As a senior engineer who has long been engaged in the design, programming, debugging and other application work of PLC products, Zhu Xinghua (pen name on the Industrial Control Network: Yinguang Rensheng-Hua), the moderator of the PLC section of the Industrial Control Forum, believes that domestic PLCs have made significant improvements in terms of software and hardware technology and services compared to previous years.
"Compared to products from some well-known foreign manufacturers, domestically produced PLCs are still relatively simple in function, their programming software is not perfect, and there are some problems when communicating with other brands of PLCs. But all of this has not hindered the development of domestically produced PLCs." Zhu Xinghua currently works at Xuzhou Weisi Water Technology Co., Ltd., mainly engaged in system integration work in water conservancy and hydrology. In the interview, Mr. Zhu also mentioned that the number of domestic PLC manufacturers is increasing rapidly, and domestically produced PLCs are still frequently used in specific industries, such as textiles and water conservancy. There are two main reasons for this: first, "customized service," domestically produced PLCs can be "tailor-made" according to the characteristics of the industry, producing PLCs that are suitable for the industry's needs, so designers often require the use of this product; second, "cost-effectiveness," sometimes the choice of domestically produced PLCs is determined by project budget. Because domestically produced PLCs have a higher cost-effectiveness, users often choose domestically produced PLCs in some projects with limited investment. Currently, more and more domestic users are choosing domestically produced PLCs, which is an affirmation of the domestically produced PLC. The increasing number of domestic PLC brands and the diversification of their functions demonstrate that domestic PLCs are developing in a positive direction.
Compared to foreign PLCs, Zhu Xinghua believes that domestically produced PLCs still have certain advantages in some aspects. Firstly, domestically produced PLCs offer excellent cost-effectiveness; their lower prices, while providing the same functionality, are often unmatched by foreign manufacturers. Secondly, after years of development, some major domestic PLC manufacturers have established increasingly comprehensive service systems. They understand that selling domestic PLCs is about providing customer service and value, not just the product itself. They offer PLC products along with motion controllers, HMIs, frequency converters, motors and drives, and integrated machine control solutions. Furthermore, they provide comprehensive services including pre-sales configuration, system optimization, technical consultation, programming guidance, system integration, and after-sales product maintenance and spare parts provision, truly tailoring solutions to meet specific customer needs. Thirdly, domestically produced PLCs are highly targeted, offering customized and specialized services for certain industries, providing solutions throughout the product lifecycle to address users' actual problems. As long as we maintain these advantages and quickly address our shortcomings, domestically produced PLCs still have a bright future.
In his work, Engineer Zhu frequently encounters water conservancy engineering projects. In these projects, such as power station gate control, ship lock control, reservoir gate control, and irrigation district gate control, domestically produced PLCs are generally not used unless there are specific requirements or a designated brand. Engineer Zhu explains that this situation mainly arises because:
1. There are many domestic PLC brands, making the selection process quite fragmented and difficult to find a suitable product;
Second, the lack of information and manuals for some products can easily lead to problems not being resolved in a timely manner.
Third, the functions of domestic PLCs are relatively unstable, especially in terms of communication interfaces. The communication protocols are not particularly standardized, the programming software is simple, and the programming style is completely different from that of foreign PLCs. For engineers who are used to imported brands, programming is not easy.
Fourth, some manufacturers' technical support is inadequate, and it is sometimes difficult to get strong support from them when encountering difficulties.
Compared to international brands, the shortcomings of domestic brands go beyond this. Given these circumstances, Mr. Zhu hopes that domestic manufacturers can make improvements in future development.
First, eliminate the traces of imitation, establish the unique characteristics of your own product, and make it have more complete functions;
Second, the programming software should be universally applicable and capable of online upgrades;
Third, products must be of qualified quality and tested to ensure stability before being put on the market and sold to users.
We believe that the shortcomings of domestically produced PLC products and services indicate significant room for improvement. If manufacturers recognize these shortcomings and continuously strive to improve, then domestically produced PLCs will see substantial improvements in both quality and quantity.
During the interview, we could sense that Zhu Xinghua, as an industrial control engineer, hopes that his country's products can grow bigger and stronger, and that one day domestic PLCs can replace foreign products, have their own place, and even enter the foreign market.
