Automation Myths : What You Need To Know

22nd October, 2025.

In this post of the second part, we will see the common myths about industrial automation related to creativity, learning, installation, security and meaning.

We had divided this post into two parts. In case you missed the first part, refer to the given link for more details - What are the common myths about industrial automation. In this second part of the post, we will go more deeply about the other facts and myths about industrial automation. 

Automation systems kill creativity of the engineers:

Once an industrial automation system has been deployed for use, it can be operated by operators and engineers to get the desired output. But as the system is already doing the task automatically, people think there is no scope left for the engineers and operators to think something creative and give their inputs on them. Well, this is a complete misconception. We think that it is a layman’s work to just get the output done on a regular basis from that automated system. But apart from that, the engineers can do other creative tasks like analysing the data generated and implementing them for further advancements, studying the operating pattern of the system and reading the nature and frequency of the bugs generated which can further help to make improvements and make the system more robust to operate, designing better control and operating strategies, finding new ways to optimize the process and make tasks easier to control and operate, finding ways to reduce power consumption once you know the operating style of the system, exploring the technologies being invented and used in the market for emerging automation techniques and improving efficiency, integrating emerging digital technologies and implementing them with current automation systems for making the data available to everyone with ease and with more security.

Automation systems are difficult to learn:

This is a question which almost feels the same. One thing to note is that industrial automation courses are first of all open to learning from even diploma or ITI levels, to graduation levels. The engineering streams which are allowed to study this course are electronics, electrical and instrumentation. Even mechanical engineers who are interested in programming can learn this, as mechatronics and robotics are largely associated with this field. So, you can imagine a vast amount of opportunity open for the students to learn this topic. Also, the fees are pretty much affordable, as it is very less compared to other costlier courses like embedded systems, VLSI, electrical design etc. The programming language of PLC is easy to grasp, if you have a common sense in understanding the logic. 

Also, most of the software in industrial automation is available to download and use either free or for a trial period of even 6 months, which is a good enough time to capture the basics. There are a vast number of videos on Youtube which you can refer to for doubts and queries in a variety of topics. Also, the software manufacturers nowadays have made programming easy by low-code or visual programming interfaces where logic is built with drag-and-drop functions instead of complex coding. Many community forums also provide step-by-step training. So, if the person is dedicated to learning industrial automation, he can learn it easily.

Once installed, automation runs by itself:

If you think that once you have commissioned an industrial automation system and it will run automatically without any human intervention, then it is completely wrong. A person is required compulsorily to attend to the automation systems. Yes, he will just start the system and go away. But, he will be required to attend in some intervals to check for any alarms, malfunctions, process updates, process variations, attending to data logs and parameters, checking the reports generated, setting maintenance charts, calibrating the instruments if required, and attending to programming bugs with vendors. Instruments can fail or drift in operation, a process can fail, a network can fail and a control logic too can fail. So, the operators must be completely aware of the ongoing operations and be ready to tackle any challenge in that. A system which is completely left unattended can easily lead to failures or unsafe conditions.

Industrial automation system is not secure:

As industrial automation is nowadays mostly connected to cloud servers, people think that it is vulnerable to cyber attacks more frequently and can hamper the system performance. Well, it is true that cyber attacks are relevant in automation systems, but it can be secured too. Using steps like network segmentation (separating IT from OT and dividing networks into various sub-groups), regular software and firmware updates, role based access control, firewalls and secure protocols, strong PC policies deployed by IT team, giving regular training to staff on new and existing types of cyber attacks and how to deal with them, and allowing only desired applications to be run in a PC can strongly tackle the ever growing cyber attacks and make the system more secured to operate. It would be astonishing to know that even smaller PLC’s nowadays have built-in cybersecurity features in them. And, the most important thing to note is that the engineers who design the automation system must be aware of various international standards pertaining to cyber security like ISA and IEC.

Automation means only robots:

When you say to any unaware person that you are working in the field of industrial automation, the next immediate question he will ask is - Oh, which robot system is it? Automation is not only about robots, but has a wide range of products to work on. Even a simple and small PLC with an HMI and VFD in an electrical panel is an automation system. Forget HMI and VFD, even if you have a PLC only, then too it is an automation system. Automation includes a wide range of technologies — PLCs, SCADA, DCS, VFDs, sensors, actuators, motion controllers, MES, and AI-based systems — all working together to optimize production. So yes, while robots appear the most powerful of all of them, many backend technologies, data integration and true power of automation lies in the technologies discussed earlier. 

I have covered the common myths about industrial automation. I have also not attempted to cover all the topics related to it, as it can vary from case to case. Once you are familiar with this type of technology, you can easily troubleshoot any issues related to it.

Thank you for reading the post. I hope you liked it and will find a new way in this type of technology.