The PROFIBUS/PROFINET Competence Centre of South Africa recently ran two Certified PROFINET Engineers in a row at Siemens South Africa.
Using tools such as Netilities from PROCENTEC, the delegates were able to quickly understand the structure of their PROFINET network. They can configure their devices to match their setup in the controller. Configuration of the S7-1200 PROFINET controller from Siemens is done in TIA Portal.
Migrating from PROFIBUS to PROFINET is covered in the training and is shown to be quite seamless with COMbricks from PROCENTEC.
In addition to this, COMbricks users can permanently monitor their PROFIBUS installation. Remote access and alarms are also possible. The modular nature of COMbricks allows the user to add slave, IO, fibre optic, PA, scope and repeater modules.
Tapping into the network teaches the delegates the fundamentals of the PROFINET protocol. Start-up procedures and diagnostics messages are recorded using Wireshark, a tool that the delegates get to configure to suit PROFINET applications. To capture these messages delegates connect the provided laptops to the network switch and enable port mirroring.
ProfiTap from PROCENTEC allows the user to capture messages, and verify connections and performance of IRT applications. It works well with the Netilities tool mentioned above.
What if you don’t have PROFIBUS or PROFINET?
Anybus X gateways allow you to convert between other fieldbuses and industrial Ethernet Protocols. Getting a Modbus device is easy with the Anybus Communicator from HMS. You’ll find these on the training rigs too.
The training was well received, and the delegates all received an International PROFINET certification and will be able to find themselves listed amongst the elite PROFINET Engineers listed at PROFIBUS/PROFINET International. In addition to that, they are entitled to 3 CPD points if they are registered with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA).
