Professor George Turnbull is adept in the design and development of control systems, specifically process control. He joined the Eurotherm Group in 1966 as a research and development engineer before establishing Turnbull Control Systems (TCS) as a subsidiary of Eurotherm in 1974. Turnbull acted as Managing Director of this company for five years before acquiring the position as Technical Director for the Eurotherm Group worldwide. His skill held him accountable for many of the Groups successful products and also formulating the overall international product strategy. After resigning from Eurotherm in 1998, he performed a role as Director of the Open Architecture Control Group for Object Automation and later joined Industrial Control Services PLC (ICS) as Group Technical Director on the main board of the company.
George Thomas learned that Perry Sink Marshall had resigned from Lantronix/Synergetic so he contacted him and asked "what's happening?" Perry has some great marketing ideas that are shared in this interview.
Perry Marshall caught up with Jim and the two of them discussed his 30+ years as an entrepreneur, the direction of the industrial controls business, future technologies that will make our lives better, and where he thinks our world is headed in the 21st century.
Dick Morley is the founder of Modicon (now Schneider Automation, Inc.) and the inventor of the PLC. Today, he continues his work as a nationally recognized expert in the field of computer design, artificial intelligence, automation, and authority on the factory of the future. Morley is an engineer, consultant and inventor, who holds more than 20 United States and foreign patents.
For years Tom Bullock has been one of the most vocal and visible figures in the motion control business. Mr. Bullock worked at Giddings & Lewis for 28 years, where he drove many important product development initiatives, and left in 1990 to form his present consulting firm, BullsEye Marketing. He has been featured in virtually every trade magazine in the automation business, and continues to shape the direction of our industry.
Eric Byres is a Professional Engineer and research manager of the Internet Engineering Lab at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), one of North America's leading research facilities in the field of industrial cyber-security. For the past 14 years, he has specialized in data communications and controls systems in industrial environments, focusing on both Industrial Ethernet research and network security design.
John Pittman, former President and CEO of the Fieldbus Foundation, has played a major role in making the automation industry what it is today.
Dick Caro is without doubt one of the most influential persons in the field of industrial networking and in the automation business at large. Dick led the charge for adopting Ethernet as a fieldbus and as a means of achieving interoperability between hundreds of manufacturers' products, and prior to that held important positions at Foxboro and Automation Research Corporation. He's the author of three books and more than 45 papers and articles, served as chairman of the Fieldbus Standards Committee, and was elected to the Automation Hall of Fame. He's a frequent speaker at automation events and his Boston-based consulting firm, CMC Associates, advises vendors and users on strategic planning for communication systems.
Part II of the Dick Caro interview.
I met Pat Yanahan in the mid-80's when I asked Tom Barry, publisher of Control Engineering Magazine, to make me a recommendation on an advertising agency. He told me to use the same firm Control Engineering was using. That recommendation led to a long personal relationship with Pat Yanahan. Pat keeps our company honest by continually challenging us about the clarity of our marketing message. He is both an engineer and marketer, and engineering entrepreneurs would benefit from his wisdom. I spoke with Pat about his career and about marketing in the Internet age.
Bill Lydon has the heart of a businessman. At an early age, he showed determination and progress. Lydon has gone from selling newspapers at age 12 to becoming a successful business development consultant working with various companies in the controls and automation field. In addition, he facilitates groups to solve problems and identify opportunities. In this interview, Lydon reveals his philosophy based on his experiences in the corporate world and forming a start-up company.
As a young man, Ken Sinclair enrolled in technical school and studied Air Conditioning and Design. As he stated, "I got dragged into the large building space. I guess I did end up repairing refrigeration fans and boilers; they were just bigger than I had imagined." His credentials span more than 35 years in the industry optimizing operating procedures in existing facilities and large buildings. His online Internet readers know him as the Editor/Owner of AutomatedBuildings.com. George Thomas talks to Ken about building automation.
During the recent Light+Building show in Frankfurt, Germany, the BIG-EU was celebrating their 10th year anniversary with a party in their stand. One of the industry leaders being recognized that evening was H. Michael Newman of Cornell University. Mike is considered the "Father of BACnet" and was visiting the show. George Thomas had the opportunity of interviewing Mike after the party.
