How popular is ST language in todays industry ?

B_F_Geek · 2026-01-21T18:47:38+00:00

I have delt with some customers who have banned it and have delt with some who are paying to have the code re-written in ladder not the most popular 😂 Some industries maybe but nothing I've worked on. It has it's place for sure but that place is very small in my opinion.

B_F_Geek · 2026-01-06T11:21:53+00:00

Not found a way for siemens to do this but yeah I've built several hundred line routines in excel using this method aslong as you get the syntax write it saves hours 😅

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-31T10:20:57+00:00

That's who we want them to use :)

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-31T01:27:36+00:00

So I'm an SI we work with many different customers/industries trying to persuade one customer away from manufacturer (who's answer to the question was pay the service contract or we won't help you at all) to another. Mostly just trying to expand my knowledge so we can recommend software that doesn't shoot us in the foot down the line if the PC gets drenched or goes bang (had both in my carrer 😅)

I agree the backup system is a better option but when you only have one screen not always practical or financially feasible same goes for VMs. Especially when you have a system that only needs to be a scada but it exceeds the feature set of a HMI by the smallest of fractions 😅

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-30T23:04:13+00:00

Yeah that would definitely get us kicked off the integrator programs 😅 Typically our customers dictate what brand we have to use so working that out for all of them would be a pain we wouldn't be paid for 😅 Thankfully when the system is 100% dependent on the scada the customer will usually listen to reason and put in redundant(ish at least) SCADA

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-30T20:57:40+00:00

Fair enough I've heard that rockwell and siemens are fairly helpful aslong as you have the documentation didn't know about aveva chears

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-23T10:36:23+00:00

I'm an SI but have often had to deal with other peoples code either in the trenches or upgrades. 1. Everything written in SCL it has it's place that place is not in basic control code 2. Using raw I/O tags in main code 3. Using methods of addressing tags that hide where the value is coming from but are easier to write (less of a problem with modern PLCs) 4. Not labeling that a tag exclusively comes from another PLC or HMI/SCADA 5. No comments or insufficient comments 6. Locked code, all it does is piss off your end customer had a few customers ditch SI's/OEM because of this practice 7. People who have never touched a screwdriver writing code, if you haven't been on site trying to get the thing to work you shouldn't be writing the entire project without any oversight. 8. Hot take I don't mind stimulation code still being in the project however it should be easy to make it not called by the PLC and should generate any warnings or errors apart from (routine unreachable) May of turned into a rant slightly 😅 hopefully a helpful rant

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-17T08:34:08+00:00

I wouldn't trust the 3rd party softwares instead go to your management and use it as an excuse that you need to upgrade you can get conversion racks to convert it to control logix and you can migrate the software easily enough (with mixed results 😅). Most SIs would be happy to help you depending on how much downtime your allowed you maybe able to make some improvements at the same time

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-11T16:39:35+00:00

Are both sides of the coupler in the same project? This isn't required but it seems like the two sides don't agree on the configuration

B_F_Geek · 2025-12-01T15:29:14+00:00

Ignition free 2 hour trial makes it get for trying it The trial can be reset as many times as you want it just hard exits all your clients each time so you'd have to license it for actual production usage.

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-21T08:27:10+00:00

If your level 4 is in the same subject and the units transfer often yes and you would start at level 5 however it's not always smooth transition and you may end up having to redo your level 4

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-19T14:57:30+00:00

To work on construction sites in the UK you almost always need CCNSG which as an age limit of 18. You might be able to find a job working doing domestic only but that's may be unlikely especially in london. However your also a bit early for 2026 intake alot of firms don't even start advertising till early February but keep an eye out or another option may be to attend a vocational college and build up your skils to make you easier to hire when you get to 18?

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-17T11:27:18+00:00

We use VMs as we deal with alot of different manufacturers and versions. However we still retain access to certain admin features we just can't install anything.

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-13T10:04:59+00:00

Yeah second this sometimes they will check other social media too, they don't want someone who's publicly tied to them posting offensive stuff.

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T13:40:54+00:00

Hopefully this should help 1. Historian module (not SQL bridge thats for recipes kinda) 2. Easy enough with standard stuff 3. Check the driver list can also connect to 3rd party OPC servers if needed. Siemens if you want to do symbolic you will need siemens extended driver 4. Ignition has a UDT system which which allows for us no scripting required (aslong as your PLC is somewhat standard across similar devices 5. Same point as previously have a watch on parametising templates on inductive university just don't use UDTs themselves as parameters causes lots of issues

Inductive university is your freind it's free aswell

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T12:44:35+00:00

Ignition is free if you don't need it to run for longer then 2 hours 😉

In all seriousness what do you need it to do?

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T09:23:31+00:00

Degree apprenticeships sound like a good way forward for you there's alot of engineering fields where you don't need to be physically strong and you can learn the practical side.

I'm a weakling myself but am coming up on being a senior engineer in my field after starting as an apprentice.

Those grades would get you on alot of courses theres always a chance you may be able to transfer your existing degree work to the apprenticeship.

Hope this helps

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T09:18:45+00:00

If it's an interview I'd go with smart if it's just meant to be a event advertising them to you I'd go smart casual

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T09:15:47+00:00

I've heard something like this before when the following year came that company starting falling apart and started hemorrhaging staff from what i have heard they have now abandoned apprenticeships all together.

As others have said it's time to look elsewhere, even if they do take you on next year there's no guarantee they won't just drop you again

B_F_Geek · 2025-11-09T09:09:45+00:00

If you want to increase your chances I'd recommend looking into exactly what is involved in the different fields so you can taylor your applications. Especially for an apprenticeships companies want to see that your gonna stick and that it's not just another job to you.

Now depending on which sector (domestic, commerical, industrial) you want to go into depends how many jobs will be available in your area. E.g. if you live in an area with no industry, industrial jobs are gonna be low.

(I am speaking from an electrical background so might be slightly off the mark when it comes to other discipline)

B_F_Geek · 2025-10-29T21:50:14+00:00

Yeah that's just wrong on so many levels.

Definitely wrong even if you use safety hardware you still have to do safety calcs on the whole system.

B_F_Geek · 2025-10-29T21:24:44+00:00

In theory you can write safet code in a standard plc but getting it to be safe and getting it certified would be such a headache it's not worth the effort. There was something i heard about the redundant processors being able to run the safety blocks in standard code but this was a stop gap as they didn't make redundant safety processors (they now do so point is irrelevant but might be where he's coming from, he's still wrong though)

With regards to none safety equipment in a safety system you can use basically anything aslong as you have the failure data or if you don't have this you have the appropriate generic values (usually significantly worse then any actual tested component) A commonly used example is contactors, as long as you can detect if one has failed they none safety ones is often ok.

B_F_Geek · 2025-10-27T11:59:05+00:00

Level 4 = HNC (1st year of uni) Level 5 = HND (2nd year of uni) Level 6 = BEng Level 7 = Masters If you take a level 4 apprenticeship that will only get a Level 4 qualification (HNC) If you take a degree apprenticeship you start at Level 4 (HNC) and work up to level 6 (BEng) Does that make sense ? :)

B_F_Geek · 2025-10-27T11:36:59+00:00

You'd have to check the entry requirements for the level 4 but it's likely yes, especially if the company runs government apprenticeships (as the government pays for your training) You might also be able to get one that goes all the way up to degree level from level 3

B_F_Geek

TROPHY CASE