Should you use a large automation firm or a smaller specialist?
Large integrators bring depth for very big programs: multiple lines at once, global sites, and the balance sheet for large turnkey contracts. Smaller specialists tend to win on access and attention: the senior engineer who scoped the job is the one on site, and a retrofit or recovery job that's too small for a large firm's process gets their best people.
The real risk with a small firm is capacity. Ask how many people will be on your project, what else they're running at the same time, and whether they have a floor to build and test on. The real risk with a large firm is handoff: ask who you'll actually deal with after the sale.
Should you hire an integrator or build an in-house controls team?
Most plants need both. An in-house controls team is the right owner of day-to-day maintenance, small changes and plant standards. An integrator is the right choice for new equipment, robot cells, large retrofits and recovery, where you need a team, a test floor and breadth across platforms for a defined period. The best results come when the integrator builds to your plant's standards and hands over code your team can own.
What should you ask before awarding a project?
Questions that separate integrators quickly:
- Show me two systems you built that are running now, similar to this one. Can I talk to the plant?
- Where will this be tested, and will it run at production rate before it ships?
- Who exactly will program it, and who will be on our floor at commissioning?
- Will you work to our plant standard for hardware, tag naming and drawings?
- Do we receive the complete commented source, all passwords and as-built drawings?
- What does support look like after start of production, and how fast do you respond to a line-down call?
- Which platforms do you program, and do you push one vendor?
- How do you handle safety: risk assessment, safety circuits, and the documentation for sign-off?
What should you ask about commissioning and support?
Ask for the commissioning plan in writing: the runoff criteria, who signs off, the open-items process and how long the integrator stays after start of production. Ask what training your maintenance team gets and what documentation arrives at handover. If the answer is vague, the commissioning will be too.
What should you look for in an integrator for an automotive line?
Automotive work adds rate, uptime and traceability pressure to everything above. Look for experience inside OEM and tier-one plants, comfort with plant standards and their controls specs, error-proofing and traceability as normal practice, and a record of installing in short shutdown windows. Someone who has worked on the buying side of an automotive plant knows what the plant will check.
How does PH answer these questions?
PH Engineering Solutions was founded in 2017 by two engineers who met at Toyota, and it's led by licensed professional engineers. We test every system on our 20,000 sq ft floor in Woodstock, Ontario before it ships, work to the plant's own standards, and hand over commented source you own. Our case studies show the work, including which plant types it runs in.
Common questions
Is a small integrator riskier than a large one?
The risk is different. With a small integrator, check capacity: how many people, what else they're running, and whether they test on their own floor. With a large one, check who you'll actually work with after the sale.
What documentation should an integrator hand over?
Commented source for every PLC, HMI and robot, all passwords, as-built electrical drawings, network and device configuration, a bill of materials with versions, and a walkthrough for your maintenance team.
Should an integrator test a machine before it ships?
Yes. Running it at production rate on the integrator's floor is where cycle time and fault-recovery problems surface. Commissioning on your floor should be verification, not development.