From left: Martin Rostan, Jane van der Spuy (Tech news), and Kenneth McPherson (Beckhoff Automation).
The EtherCAT Technology Group (ETG) recently hosted a series of breakfast seminars around South Africa to educate the industry on how Ethernet-enabled fieldbuses can improve efficiency for manufacturers. The Johannesburg leg of the series took place at the Fairway Hotel and featured exhibits from event sponsors including Ana-digi Systems, Beckhoff Automation, Festo, IFM, Omron and SA Power. The well-attended was highlighted by a presentation from ETG executive director, Martin Rostan, who travelled from Germany to share his insights. “In the industrial communication world, EtherCAT is considered the benchmark with regards to performance, flexibility, ease-of-use, and low costs. Why is the bus system so important? Because it is the bus system that determines the performance, not the controller.” He said that using a super-fast controller with an average bus system is like putting bicycle tyres on a race car – you won’t be able to make use of the full power. Rostan’s presentation provided an overview of EtherCAT technology, and went on to detail installation, troubleshooting, and migration from classical fieldbus systems.
