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Learning path · Aimed at a process control and instrumentation engineer

Process control

For learners heading to process plants, water works or pharma lines, where measuring and controlling flow, level and temperature is the job.

You start with the first course. The next one is added when you are halfway through the one you are on.

See the courses in order
4 courses · 63 modules · 31h 33m of video · free, no card

What you can do at the end

Finish the path and you can do this

  • Read an instrument loop and choose a sensor for the measurement.
  • Explain and tune a PID loop, and say what each term does.
  • Set up a variable frequency drive, and run the loop from a PLC.

A path teaches skills. It does not promise a job, an interview or a salary.

Why these courses together

Each course builds on the last

  • 1Instrumentation first: a control loop is only as good as the signal that goes into it.
  • 2PID and drives come next, using those signals to move something.
  • 3The PLC course closes the path, so the loop you tuned runs in a real controller program.

A planned order also saves the time you would spend choosing what to learn next, and you finish with one story to tell: what you learnt, in order.

The roadmap

4 courses, in this order

  1. Step 1: Industrial Instrumentation and Process Control

    Adds: Free beginner instrumentation course: sensors, 4-20 mA loops, control valves, P&IDs and calibration. Learning is free; the certificate is optional and paid.

    • Beginner
    • 15 modules
    • 8h 18m of video

  2. Step 2: PID Control for PLC Engineers

    Adds: From on/off to a tuned loop: what P, I and D each do, how to tune by hand and by rule, anti-windup and filtering, and PID inside Allen-Bradley controllers.

    • Intermediate
    • 13 modules
    • 6h 15m of video

  3. Step 3: Variable Frequency Drives: Wiring, Programming, PLC and Network Control

    Adds: Power wiring, keypad and terminal control, analog and preset speed references, relay outputs, PLC and Modbus control, fieldbus, safety functions and troubleshooting, on a generic drive and the Schneider ATV320.

    • Beginner
    • 13 modules
    • 5h 10m of video

  4. Step 4: Siemens TIA Portal

    Adds: Free Siemens TIA Portal course for beginners: write ladder logic for a simulated S7-1200 and WinCC HMI. Learning is free; the certificate is optional and paid.

    • Beginner
    • 22 modules
    • 11h 50m of video

4

courses

63

modules

31h 33m

of video in total

Example: at 5 hours a week, the video alone takes about 7 weeks. Practice tasks and the finals come on top, and you set the pace.

Practise what you learn in the free 3D lab

Technical work is judged on what you can do: wiring, commissioning, finding a fault. Doing a task yourself teaches more than watching it a second time, and a lab lets you try it safely before you meet real equipment. It does not replace working on real hardware.

See the 3D lab

What you get

What joining gives you

  • Every course is free, with lifetime access and no card.
  • Video lessons by credited independent creators, with our written notes and worked examples.
  • A practice task per module, and one final assessment per course.
  • Ask-an-engineer support.
  • Optional verifiable certificate for each course you pass, US$23.99 for a beginner course. There is no single certificate for the whole path.
  • One course at a time: you start with the first, and the next is added when you are halfway through it.
  • Each course keeps its own progress. You can open any course on its own at any time.

Put it into practice

Then try it in an internship

Process pipework with pressure gauges and valves in an industrial plant.

Instrumentation and Process Control Internship

Eight short weeks of measurement, calibration and control loops: notes, diagrams, a few videos and practice in the Panel Lab and LADX Mini.

The Instrumentation and Process Control internship practises the same loops and signals in short weekly tasks.

The Free internship is 4 weeks with a free certificate. It is training, not employment, and the Engineer-verified internship is optional.

See the Instrumentation and Process Control internship

Questions

Questions about this path

Is the Process control free?

Yes. Every course in the path is free in full: lessons, notes, practice tasks and the final assessment. The only paid item is the optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion for each course.

What happens when I join the path?

You are enrolled on the first course straight away. The next course is added to your account when you are about halfway through the one you are on, so you never face a pile of unstarted courses. Each course keeps its own progress, notes and final.

In what order should I take the courses?

In the order listed: each course is placed after the ones it builds on. Every course also stands alone, so you can open any of them from the list.

Do I get one certificate for the whole path?

No. Certificates are per course, issued when you pass that course's final assessment, and you only buy one if you want it. Finishing every course gives you one optional, verifiable certificate for each.

How long will it take?

The video alone is about 31h 33m. Notes, practice tasks and the finals take extra time, and you go at your own pace.

Do I have to do the internship?

No. It is a separate, optional step. The Instrumentation and Process Control Internship is training, not employment: the Free internship is 4 weeks with a free certificate, and the Engineer-verified internship is optional.

Ready to start Process control?

You start with the first course. The next one is added when you are halfway through the one you are on.

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