What are the most important skills for an industrial automation project manager?

I totally agree. The workmanship of an industrial automation professional should be top notch. As well, I believe an automation engineer should always look at simplicity. Since there are so many ways to achieve the same logical outcome, sometimes the availability and knowledge of complex tools can become the problem as one can overlook the simpler ways.

É fundamental ter um profundo entendimento dos sistemas e tecnologias envolvidas na automação. Isso inclui CLPs, IHMs, sensores, atuadores e protocolos de comunicação. Além disso, é crucial conhecer as melhores práticas, regulamentações e padrões de segurança do setor para garantir que os projetos de automação sejam seguros e atendam aos requisitos funcionais e não funcionais. A capacidade de projetar, configurar, testar e solucionar problemas de soluções de automação é essencial para o sucesso de qualquer projeto nesse campo.

As an Automation project Manager you need to have a good understanding of the Automation Pyramid from field level to ERP. Additionally, you need to also have a good grasp about the communication protocols that integrates all together.

Unfortunately with automation. A project Manager has to learn must be one who understands automation from a practical point. Firstly knowledge of the industrial processes, then knowledge of fieldbus protocols and third party integration. A practical understanding of process controllers and at least one or two SCADA systems. This coupled with project management skills makes a good automation project manager

Being able to define the project scope, objectives, budget, schedule and monitor the project progress, quality, and performance.

Developing an organized method to track and communicate the critical components of your project has been crucial for me. More importantly, make this information highly accessible so you can effectively direct key people on the project from anywhere at any time. Digging up emails, and logging in to private networks to find data is not always an timely option.

The top skill of an industrial project manager, drawing from 10+ years of experience, is unquestionably effective communication. Eliminating ambiguity in both projects and communications is vital for successfully navigating the intricacies of industrial projects, cultivating a collaborative atmosphere, and ultimately forging robust stakeholder relationships.

As an industrial automation project manager learn how to collaborate with teams will help foster a good working environment. Ability to handle pressure, manage situations while on field and giving a good report to stakeholders cannot be overemphasized.

As an industrial automation project manager, the automation field is ever evolving with new technologies and systems, you'd do well to keep abreast of current cutting edge technologies in the field.

Seek out the production process experts for the systems you are working on to gain a better perspective on how your project can be successfully implemented.

As an industrial automation project manager, your troubleshooting skills should be top notch. Ability to critically analyze problems, conduct research, study manuals and documentation is a must have.

Communication and Leadership Skills: Effective communication skills are vital for managing cross-functional teams, collaborating with stakeholders, and conveying project status and requirements. Strong leadership abilities are also necessary to motivate and guide project teams to success.

Problem solving is often driven by our familiarity with technology. Too often we solve problems while staying in our comfort zone of skill and experience, when the better solution may lie outside. I am guilty of this in my early years. Just because you can solve it doesn’t mean it should be done your way. Remain open to other disciplines and other technologies.

Another aspect of the job i have found very helpful to have in my career in Automation is a degree of knowledge in IT and IoT as our field is continuously moving towards PC based control, virtualization, SCADA products...etc Also to that i would add a degree of knowledge in computer science to understand emerging technologies in AI, data sciences, data collection, machine vision that all ultimately tie back to Automation/robotics. The learning process never stops.