Have been in the automation industry for 3 years but only have SIS experience in ESD and F&G applications with a system integrator for oil and gas projects. I never did get to work in DCS, PLC, HMI, SCADA programming or Instrumentation.

Have been recently forced to look for a new job and, in Alberta where I live, find jobs require some of the above skills all rolled into one.
Having seriously considered PLC and HMI training on my own, what vendor specific ones would make me more competitive for the job market now a days. Have used FB mainly, guess ladder logic programming is something I have to pick up along the way. Any additional advice is also welcome.

Appreciate all replies to this post, in advance.
Thanks.

Soe,

Training is a great first step, but understand that training will never make you proficient. Only regular challenges and doing it will ever get you there. You probably already know that. With that said I would suggest that your best option would be to see if you can line up an employer that understands that you are willing to do what it takes (time and money) to trian up on PLC's if they can provide an opportunity. That may sound a little far fetched, but you need to utilize the training to make it worth while. It goes away quick. A big problem with guys I have worked with and trained is that they dont get to use what they have learned. The use it or lose it phrase really comes into play here. Another issue with most training is the cram factor. There is so much that the brain can handle in a short amount of time and actually retain it. Many of these 2 day courses are just a great way to get a certificate.

Let me add that some of the problems that I just detailed are due to what I would term "traditional" training. We are trying to do something a little different here. First the costs are spread out month to month so it is not a big hit on your wallet. Second we dont try to cram it. We suggest that you learn the material over a longer time period similar to a college classroom so that you can retain it better. You can also review and redo the courses as necessary. Long term, we will be here as a mentor to help you past your early programming problems. We are not looking to sell a 2-3 day course after which we wave goodbye. We want to offer a solution. That all said, you will need to have an opportunity where you can just do a real program. We will have a course that is very close to that with drawings, specifications and other real world situations, but nothing is like the real thing. You have to find a way to get work and use those tools before they rust.

Finally concerning the platform you should train on - you will need to ask around. I am not sure about the Alberta area. Allen Bradley has 65-70% of the US market. Kind of a no brainer on what to train on here. Some areas are heavily Siemens, or GE, or other lines. So even with that huge market, some people may be better training on a different platform due to their area or possible the facility at which they work.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have further questions.

Russell