News

Ethanol experience matters

Trident Automation serves more ethanol producers than any other systems integrator We started designing and installing operating systems for ethanol plants in 2003 and we have surpassed 5,000 individual projects done for ethanol producers. We serve about 50% of the ethanol market and provide control solutions specific to this industry. We are proud to have served ethanol producers in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Kentucky, Oregon, Idaho, California, Arizona, Texas, and Tennessee. Trident […] Read More

Trident Automation announces business merger

Appleton, Wis., January 3, 2017–Trident Automation announces it has reached an agreement to merge with Trident Intech, LLC. Details of the merger were finalized  on December 31, 2016. Trident Intech is a software development company partially owned by Shane Seif and the founders of Trident Automation. Under the new agreement, Seif will be leading the new software development/R&D initiatives for  Trident Automation and will develop all proprietary software products for the company. Trident Intech has developed products including the Workbench […] Read More

DCS Support Agreements keep plants running

And the survey says… We just competed a survey of customers who are covered by a Trident Support Agreement and responses indicate ongoing support has its advantages. According to feedback from our customers: 96% of our customers rank Trident service courtesy good or excellent 84% of our customers ranked Trident good or excellent to work with 86% of our customers rank Trident’s after hours support good or excellent One feature of our support agreements is 24-hour support, which is often […] Read More

Case Study: Total DCS migration in under 60 hours

When you’re one of the largest ethanol plants in the United States, a system upgrade could present a serious production problem in terms of losing thousands of dollars a day in income. But Marquis Energy trusted Trident Automation to do just that—amazingly, in only 60 hours. Marquis Energy, located in Hennepin, Illinois, is the largest dry-mill ethanol facility in the country with a production capacity exceeding 300 million gallons per year. The plant was constructing a second 100+ million gallon […] Read More

Trident training an investment in productivity

You’ve had it happen before: your systems upgrade is installed and operational, until your team has to fine tune a process or train a new operator. That’s when you dig out the manual and forget everything you learned when the system was installed. That’s why Trident Automation invested in a networked Learning Center designed to keep customers updated with the latest information on their DCS. “Our philosophy is to give our customers comprehensive training so they understand all the parts […] Read More

Case Study: Deadline drives creative solutions in DCS installation for Elkhorn Valley Ethanol

There’s nothing like a critical deadline to spark creative engineering solutions. Trident was given only 3 days to install and startup a new DCS for Elkhorn Valley Ethanol plant. The project had more than 1,500 I/O connections that would require hours of painstaking installation and testing. Trident’s teams estimated it could take about a week to wire the system—and they only had a little over two days. That’s when inspiration hit Trident founder Jerry Wenzel. “There were literally thousands of […] Read More

We’re proud to be control freaks

What’s blue, covered in technology, and home to wildly creative brains? Why, that would be Trident’s booth at FEW! Make sure you visit us at booth #928 at the International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo in Milwaukee, Wis. June 20-23. Spend some time with our control system experts and you’ll find: Solutions for migrating your DCS to the latest systems. Updates in graphics and HMI designs equivalent to ergonomics for your body. Process simulation programs that are like a flight […] Read More

Trident Tips: create a system that’s easy to use

When you consider upgrading or installing a DCS architecture, here are some quick tips from our engineering experts. Rick Tenor is a project manager and controls engineer on our team and is experienced in creating new control systems and upgrading existing systems. Tips for creating a system that’s EASY TO USE: At Trident, we build systems on an open platform and don’t lock down code so our customers can easily trouble shoot on their own. If you’re considering building a […] Read More

TRIDENT TIPS: create a reliable DCS architecture

When you consider upgrading or installing a DCS architecture, here are some quick tips from our engineering experts. Rick Tenor is a project manager and controls engineer on our team and is experienced in creating new control systems and upgrading existing systems. Tips for creating a RELIABLE system: Size the system right: Many manufacturers design a system to meet today’s needs and don’t consider expanding it as processes grow or evolve. Make sure you are building a system that can […] Read More

DCS training with Trident

Control System Training We offer customized training programs designed for Plant Engineers, Maintenance teams, Technicians and Managers to learn the most up to date information on integrating and operating critical systems. Training is focused on the configuration software and hardware at your plant. Topics covered in each course are: Hardware and Architecture Diagnostics and Troubleshooting HMI Configuration and tag creation Controller and I/O Configuration System Backup Spare Parts PCS7 Configuration 1 Training Designed for Plant Maintenance, Engineers, Technicians and Managers that […] Read More