46 - Functional Safety, AI Blindspots, and Designing Systems That Actually Work with Jason Watts

What happens when a controls engineer raised in coal mines starts turning chicken manure into renewable energy? In this episode, made possible by PLCnext Technology, we get a masterclass in practical automation, functional safety, and building systems that work in the real world.Jason Watts, Owner and Founder of Alpha Industrial Technologies, joins Phil Seboa and Ed Fuentes to discuss building an automation company around passionate engineers, using AI as an adversary in the design process, and why improperly applied safety functions can be more dangerous than no safety at all.In this episode, we explore:Building an automation company with a flexible, passion-driven workforce modelUsing AI as an adversary to stress-test engineering designs and find failure modesCross-industry technology transfer from mining and automotive to agricultureWhy Safe Torque Off (STO) is often implemented incorrectly and the case for risk assessmentsConverting poultry manure into renewable natural gas and fertilizer using bio digesters and IIoT----------This episode is proudly made possible by PLCnext TechnologyPLCnext Technology is the ecosystem for industrial automation consisting of open hardware, modular engineering software, a global community, and a digital software marketplace.Learn more at:⁠⁠https://www.plcnext-community.net/news/synergy-edge-cloud/----------Connect with Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonwattsae/Connect with Phil on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philseboa/Connect with Ed on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/edfuentes/Learn more about Alpha Industrial Technologies: http://www.alphaindustrial.us