Automation Insights & Technical Blog

Expert articles on PLC programming, VFD applications, servo selection, and industrial automation best practices from our engineering team.

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How a $5,400 PLC Configuration Mistake Taught Me the Real Basics of Omron Sysmac Programming

Posted on Monday 22nd of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
A real-world story about learning the fundamental programming logic of Omron PLCs the hard way—by making a costly configuration error on a Sysmac NJ project. [...]
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The Hidden Cost of Choosing the Cheapest PLC: Why Training and Support Matter More Than You Think

Posted on Monday 22nd of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
A quality inspector shares how focusing on unit price alone led to costly mistakes, and why training classes and technical specifications like 6 MHz pulse output are worth the investment. [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Schneider M241: The Myth of the "Generator-Ready" Micro PLC

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Schneider PLC — Every integrator who has ever commissioned a micro PLC on a backup generator feed has heard the same line: "It's a standard industrial controller — it'll tolerate whatever the generator throws at it." That's a… [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Siemens S7-1200: Which PLC survives a tight-cooling shelter?

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Siemens PLC — You are inside a 8×12×8 ft equipment shelter. The ambient outside is 48°C in the shade; the air conditioner is a 1.5-ton unit that cycles off during peak solar. [...]
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“The Ethernet/IP node count looked fine — until every axis started to stutter.”

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Allen-Bradley PLC — I’ve heard the claim more times than I can count: “Allen‑Bradley is the safe bet for motion — you get what you spec.” Then the engineer shows me a Micro850 driving four axes over EtherNet/IP, and the first… [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Mitsubishi FX5U: The 5-Year TCO Trap – 3 Numbers That Blew My Client’s Budget

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Mitsubishi PLC — The number: The Omron NX1P2 is programmed in Sysmac Studio; a single environment covers logic, motion, safety, and visualization. [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Schneider PLC M241: Sizing by Real Watts, Not Program Memory

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Schneider PLC — You're looking at a 24-point micro PLC for a packaging machine with three servo axes. Every candidate claims IEC 61131-3, integrated motion, and enough memory. [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Siemens S7-1200 (CPU 1214C) for a maintenance-light panel: what the datasheets actually tell you about future service calls

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Siemens PLC — The myth: “A PLC for a small, lightly-loaded panel—conveyor, packaging cell, simple pump station—doesn’t need much thought. It runs for years untouched. [...]
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“We spec’d an Allen-Bradley Micro850 and it couldn’t run the motion loop—the datasheet never showed the real scan penalty.”

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Allen-Bradley PLC — That quote came from a packaging integrator in Wisconsin. He’d built a 4-axis pick-and-place sequence on a Micro850 using the three PTO outputs and six high-speed counter inputs the datasheet listed. [...]
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Omron NX1P2 vs Mitsubishi FX5U: 3 Scan-Cycle Numbers That Expose Your Motion Bottleneck

Posted on Thursday 18th of June 2026 by Rebecca Sloan
Omron vs Mitsubishi PLC — The popular claim – "a 34 ns basic instruction speed means the Mitsubishi FX5U will always outrun the Omron NX1P2" – sounds clean. But that number is a trap when the load is a real multi-axis motion system. [...]
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