Where to Find Timeless Resources on Our Site

Winter has been a mild one for us here in the Midwest — unless you count the three winter storms we received recently. Our fall- and spring-like winter days have us begging for spring to come early, and if Punxsutawney Phil is correct, spring will be here in no time. This is why I've started my spring cleaning early.

Spring cleaning on a website can be difficult to do but, like any woman's closet, our online vault is filled with dusty boxes that need to be sorted through. While cleaning our vault, I came across many timeless resources that have been very popular with our audience over the years. Like any classic, little black dress, these articles never go out of style.

"What's Your Flow Control Valve Telling You?" is a 2003 article written by Greg McMillan, process control guru and blogger for sister publication Control. In this piece, McMillan talks about different valve problems you could encounter, such as dead band, stick-slip and slow responses. He gives tips on how to identify these problems and fix them.

"Closed-Loop PID Algorithms in Motion/Motor Control" was an article first published in April 2007. This timeless back-to-basics tutorial by Ernst Dummermuth is one of several popular articles he wrote for us and that have generated a large number of page views on our site.

In 2009, we wrote that relays might seem to be in retreat for all but the most basic control applications in the face of seemingly relentless PLC advances. Instead, relays actually are adding capabilities and encroaching into control territory formerly occupied by PLCs. If you want to learn how relays show staying power, access "Relays Yield More Programmable Machine Control Options."

Underwriters Laboratories' Anura Fernando contributed to our timeless articles collection with his report, "Functional Safety Concepts in Motor Control." Fernando wrote that functional safety of embedded software-dependent controls was becoming a growing concern as programmable components replaced traditional electromechanical components in safety-related systems.

These are just a few pieces of our invaluable collection. You can search our site and find other articles such as "Books for Success in the Automation, Instrumentation and Controls Industry," "Benefits of Remote Diagnostics and Monitoring" and "What Does NFPA 70E Allow?," which also have been catching our readers' attention.

We will feature more of these timeless each month in our newsletters, so pay attention to your email inbox to read these and other articles. You never know what treasures you might find hidden in those old boxes.