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2 Year Warranty on ALL products
Early Warning Signs Your Industrial Automation Hardware Is About to Fail
Industrial automation failures rarely happen without warning. Long before a drive trips permanently, a PLC locks up, or an HMI goes dark, small signs usually appear—often dismissed as “quirks” or blamed on operators, wiring, or software. Catching these warning signs early can mean the difference between a scheduled swap and an emergency shutdown.
This guide walks through the most common early indicators of failing automation hardware, what they typically point to, and how maintenance teams can respond before downtime escalates.
Why Early Detection Matters
When automation hardware fails unexpectedly, the real cost is rarely just the part itself. Unplanned downtime brings lost production, overtime labor, rushed shipping, and increased safety risk. In contrast, identifying failure trends early allows teams to:
- Schedule replacements during planned downtime
- Prepare correct spares and accessories in advance
- Avoid cascading failures across connected systems
- Extend equipment life through targeted intervention
Most automation failures follow repeatable patterns—learning to recognize them is a major reliability advantage.
Warning Signs in Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs)
Drives are one of the most common failure points in industrial systems because they handle both power conversion and control logic. Early symptoms often include:
- Intermittent overcurrent or undervoltage faults
- Unexpected trips during startup or load changes
- Fans running constantly or unusually loud operation
- Increased heat output without load changes
These signs often point to aging DC bus capacitors, failing cooling systems, or stressed input components. Ignoring them usually leads to a hard failure.
Common drive platforms where early intervention is especially valuable include:
ABB Variable Frequency Drives
Toshiba Industrial Drives
PLC Warning Signs That Should Not Be Ignored
PLCs are designed for long service life, but they are not immune to failure—especially in harsh environments. Early PLC-related warning signs include:
- Random resets or unexpected stop mode transitions
- Intermittent I/O faults without wiring changes
- Communication dropouts with remote I/O or HMIs
- Status LEDs behaving inconsistently
These symptoms may indicate failing power supplies, aging CPUs, or communication module issues. Replacing only the symptom component without addressing the root cause often leads to repeat faults.
Platforms commonly involved in these scenarios include:
Siemens SIMATIC Controllers
Siemens S7-300 PLCs
HMI Failures Often Start Subtle
HMIs rarely fail all at once. More often, they degrade slowly, showing signs such as:
- Frozen screens or delayed response to touch input
- Loss of tag updates while the PLC continues running
- Random reboots or failure to boot on first power-up
- Backlight dimming or uneven display brightness
Because HMIs are the operator’s window into the system, these issues often get noticed early—but replacing the screen without verifying power and communication stability can mask deeper problems.
Common operator interface platforms include:
Industrial HMI Panels & Touchscreens
Power Supplies: The Silent Failure Point
Many unexplained automation problems trace back to control power issues. Aging or overloaded power supplies can cause widespread symptoms across drives, PLCs, and HMIs, including:
- Multiple devices resetting at once
- Communication modules dropping offline intermittently
- I/O faults appearing and disappearing
Because power supplies rarely fail catastrophically, they are often overlooked during troubleshooting. Upgrading or replacing marginal units can immediately stabilize an entire system.
For control cabinets using Siemens hardware, regulated 24 VDC solutions are commonly used:
Siemens Power Supplies & Accessories
How to Act When You See the Warning Signs
When early failure indicators appear, the goal is not panic—it’s preparation. A practical response includes:
- Documenting the symptom and when it occurs
- Checking environmental factors such as heat, vibration, and power quality
- Backing up parameters, programs, and HMI projects
- Identifying the exact replacement part and required accessories
- Securing a tested spare before failure escalates
This approach turns unpredictable downtime into a controlled maintenance event.
Why Having the Right Spare Matters More Than Speed
When failure finally happens, the wrong replacement can be almost as damaging as no replacement at all. Voltage class, firmware, communication options, and form factor all matter—especially for legacy platforms.
Keeping known-good spares for high-risk components dramatically shortens recovery time and reduces troubleshooting under pressure.
How Industrial Automation Co. Helps Prevent Downtime
Industrial Automation Co. supports maintenance and engineering teams by helping identify, source, and validate automation components before failures become emergencies. From drives and PLCs to HMIs and power supplies, having the correct replacement ready makes uptime predictable instead of reactive.