[sidebar id =1]Several dozen visitors "went back to school" to attend Harting's annual media day on Oct. 25 at North Central College in Naperville, Ill. The connector firm's U.S. and European leadership cut the ribbon to officially open the college's Harting Electronics Laboratory that the company is supporting to nurture the next generation of control engineers and technicians.
To assist these data transfer efforts, Harting has traditionally used a networking strategy of combining multiple circular connectors in one larger rectangular connector. However, to participate in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), it's launching Smart Han connectors that integrate more intelligent electronics, include Ethernet switches, surge protection, and even an onboard microprocessor for energy measurement.
"This is a very happy partnership because encouraging engineering is the source of our future, and enables us to reach future potential employees," said Phillip Harting, chairman of the board at Harting. "As a global company, we try to respond to the needs of our users, and this is about responding by developing the students and graduates that will be needed in engineering and the sciences."