Industrial Computers: Do not Lag Behind

Many of the environments that an industrial computerdate.
has to work in are certainly not suitable for aWhilst industrial PCs are very stable, running
conventional desktop PC. Many areas in productionten-year-old technology does mean many
and manufacturing contain many of the things thatmanufacturing processes are not being controlled as
will finish off a sensitive piece of electronics like a PCefficiently as they should be and the time eventually
instantly; dust, grime, grease, water, fluids, extremecomes when a upgrade can be put off no longer and
temperatures not to mention the odd knock from athe industrial machines are replaced costing a fortune
pallet truck or forklift.in replacement units and production downtime.
However while industrial machines are designed andThis has always been a catch-22 for industry trying
built to cope with almost anything they areto weigh up the cost of upgrading compared with
extremely expensive and suffer from a lack ofthe possible improvements to production an upgrade
advanced performance and technology that awill bring about.
conventional PC offers.A solution to the problem is now apparent thanks to
Many industrial computers are made solid state (noseveral manufacturers of industrial computer
moving parts) meaning components have to be smallenclosures. They have been designed and
and compact. Moreover, industrial computers aremanufactured to house a conventional off-the-shelf
usually sealed machines, their design optimised fordesktop PC yet still provide the robustness of a
protection which means components need to bebespoke industrial computer.
reliable as a breakdown will result in a serviceThese enclosures are made from all types of material
engineer being called and the inevitable delays inincluding food-grade stainless steel and can be used in
production this can cause.all hazardous and hostile environments that a
Because of these design prerequisites industrialconventional industrial computer can go from dust
computers run older hardware components manyand explosive atmospheres to wet rooms, furnaces
several years out of date. While many of theand freezers.
processes that an industrial computer will control mayAs well as being far less expensive than buying a
not require high processing power or the manipulationbespoke industrial computer these enclosures have
of graphics many of these machines can beallowed manufacturing and production lines to use a
adequate.conventional low cost PC in environments that they
However, an industrial computer is designed to lastcould normally not function in allowing the use of
for several years meaning after four of five years ofcurrent technologies to ensure processes and
use the hardware could be over a decade out ofproduction are running as efficiently as possible.