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 of their DCS process,” said Jason Hurst, Trident founder. “This gives new hires an overall introduction to their systems and provides an update for existing operators.”

The Learning Center features 16-networked stations that emulate the engineering stations of any of the control systems supported by Trident. Training includes formal book training with simulations that are designed to mirror a systems expansion in a typical plant upgrade or expansion. Trainees can adjust levels, set points, set alarms and interlocks all in a realistic “mini-factory” setting complete with tanks, pumps, valves and instrumentation.

“We have a complete set of hardware for every DCS we support,” Hurst said. “Trainees can pull it out, try to break it, and we can help them troubleshoot in a real-life environment.”

The training allows customers to do more in-house. “The best money we spend is training our guys on how to do some of the support ourselves,” said Kenny Wirts, plant manager for Commonwealth Agri-Energy in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. “As we upgrade our processes and add equipment, our guys are able to install systems in the field, but we always have a phone call back-up to Trident.”

For engineers just starting in the field, Trident’s training gets them up and running faster. “I never could have done it myself,” said John Madajewski of CertainTeed in L’Anse, Michigan. “Trident does a week of training and maintenance to get these guys up to speed to take care of the plant in weeks as opposed to years.”

Training programs are designed for plant engineers, maintenance teams, technicians and managers and topics covered are:

• Hardware and Architecture
• Diagnostics and Troubleshooting
• HMI Configuration and tag creation
• Controller and I/O Configuration
• System Backup
• Spare Parts

For information on our next training sessions, please visit here or contact [email protected]

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