Electrical 路 Free
Industrial Motor Control
Free beginner motor control course: read ladder diagrams, wire starters, build reversing and braking circuits. The certificate is optional and paid.
Inside the course
From the lessons
Electrically Controlled Systems and the Trainer
anthony poole
Contactors, Relays, Overloads and Protection
Jim Pytel
Switches, Ladder Logic and Documentation
Jim Pytel
Manual Motor Starters
Jim Pytel
Magnetic Starters: Two-Wire, Three-Wire and Hand-Off-Auto
Jim Pytel
Pumping Circuits and Control Panels
Jim Pytel
Lesson frames belong to the creators named in the Credits below and are shown from YouTube.
What you will learn
Read and draw motor control ladder diagrams, select contactors, overloads, fuses and breakers, wire manual and magnetic starters with two-wire, three-wire and HOA control, build reversing, jogging and braking circuits with interlocks, apply reduced-voltage and soft starting, use on-delay, off-delay, one-shot and recycle timers, and test and troubleshoot motor circuits safely.
- Select contactors, relays, overloads, fuses, breakers and transformers
- Read and document motor control ladder diagrams
- Wire manual and magnetic starters with two-wire, three-wire and HOA control
- Build reversing, jogging and braking circuits with interlocks
- Apply reduced-voltage and soft starting and motor-control timers
- Test motors and troubleshoot control circuits
For you
Taking Industrial Motor Control from the United States
- Free in the United States, as everywhere, and self-paced: lessons, notes and the final assessment are open at any hour, so your time zone and shift pattern do not matter.
- The optional certificate for learners in the United States is a one-off US$23.99. What you get for it
- Plants across the Americas most often run Allen-Bradley, Siemens and Inductive Automation; each has its own free course to take next.
- See automation and engineering jobs in the United States, and what the industry looks like in Houston, Detroit and Chicago.
- EDWartens also has a regional site for the United States, for classroom training and local support: edwartens.com/us.
The course project 路 about 14 hours
Five-machine starter panel for a woodworking shop: DOL, star-delta, two-speed and reversing in relay logic
Design, document and test-record a relay-logic starter panel for a furniture workshop's five machines: a DOL panel saw, a star-delta planer, a two-speed spindle moulder, a star-delta dust extractor with a run-on timer, and a reversing sander feed with jog. You deliver the motor list, the control circuits rung by rung, the BOM with real contactor and overload numbers, the panel layout and a completed test record. The sample pack shows what an electrical contractor hands the owner with the panel.
Sample document pack, 8 documents, filled in for the scenario
- Motor listMotor List: Workshop WS1 Starter Panel SP-01
- MCC scheduleStarter Schedule: Panel SP-01, Group by Group
- Wiring drawingsPower and Control Circuit Drawings: Sheet Index and Rungs
- Panel GAStarter Panel SP-01: General Arrangement
- BOMBill of Materials: Starter Panel SP-01
- Cable scheduleCable Schedule: Workshop WS1
- Test reportTest Sheet: Motors, Panel SP-01 and Functional Tests
- O&M manualOperating and Maintenance Note: Starter Panel SP-01
Read inside the course and download as a workbook. The project is optional practice, marked when you submit it; the certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
The course project 路 about 14 hours
Irrigation pump station in relay logic: two soft-started duty pumps with alternation and a jockey pump on HOA
Design, document and test-record the relay-logic control panel for an unattended irrigation pump station: two 30 kW pumps on Altistart 22 soft starters with lead/lag alternation from a duplex alternating relay, a 4 kW jockey pump on two-wire pressure-switch control with Hand-Off-Auto, and the dry-run, burst-main, over-pressure, phase-failure and motor-thermistor trips. You deliver the control philosophy, the motor list, the soft-starter settings, the interlock list, the control circuits rung by rung, the BOM and a completed test record. The sample pack shows what the contractor handed the cooperative.
Sample document pack, 8 documents, filled in for the scenario
- Control narrativeControl Philosophy: Pump Station PS-1 Panel PCP-01
- Motor listMotor List and Supply Check: Pump Station PS-1
- Drive parameter listSoft-Starter Settings: U1 and U2 Altistart 22
- Interlock listInterlock and Trip List: Panel PCP-01
- Wiring drawingsPower and Control Circuit Drawings: Sheet Index and Rungs
- BOMBill of Materials: Panel PCP-01
- Test reportTest Record: Motors, Panel PCP-01 and Functional Tests
- O&M manualOperating and Maintenance Note: Pump Station PS-1
Read inside the course and download as a workbook. The project is optional practice, marked when you submit it; the certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
Course content
12 modules 路 60 lessons 路 18h 57m
In order, at whatever pace suits you. Each module ends with a practice task that builds on the last.
- 01Electrically Controlled Systems and the Trainer2 lessons36m
- 02Contactors, Relays, Overloads and Protection8 lessons2h 56m
- 03Switches, Ladder Logic and Documentation6 lessons2h 37m
- 04Manual Motor Starters4 lessons38m
- 05Magnetic Starters: Two-Wire, Three-Wire and Hand-Off-Auto7 lessons1h 46m
- 06Pumping Circuits and Control Panels6 lessons1h 3m
- 07Jogging, Reversing and Interlocks6 lessons1h 54m
- 08Braking: Plugging, Friction and DC Injection4 lessons1h 12m
Requirements
- Who it is for
- Beginner. Basic electricity is enough; this course comes before PLCs.
- Software
- None required.
- Hardware
- None required. A motor control trainer board with a contactor, overload and push buttons makes every wiring lesson real.
Software you need
Nothing to install
Industrial Motor Control at a glance
Industrial Motor Control is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in electrical design and panel building. It has 12 modules and 18h 57m of video lessons by Jim Pytel, anthony poole, betechnical.ca and others, with written notes and worked problems, a practical project with a document pack and a 15-question final assessment (pass mark 60%). Learning is free with an account; an optional certificate with a public verification code is issued when you pass. Last updated 27 September 2026.
All course factsHide course facts
- Price
- Free, for good. No trial, no card. The only paid item is the optional certificate, a small one-off fee.
- Who it is for
- Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in electrical design and panel building
- Format
- 12 self-paced modules, 18h 57m of video, written notes, a practice task per module and one final assessment.
- Level
- Beginner. Beginner. Basic electricity is enough; this course comes before PLCs.
- Brand
- Vendor-neutral
- Software
- None required.
- Hardware
- None required. A motor control trainer board with a contactor, overload and push buttons makes every wiring lesson real.
- Certificate
- Optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, for a small one-off fee shown on edwartens.com/certificate. Not a vendor credential.
- Video lessons by
- Jim Pytel, anthony poole, betechnical.ca, RealPars (independent creators, credited below)
- Language
- English
- Last updated
- 27 September 2026
A shareable EDWartens certificate
Finish every module and pass the final assessment, and the optional EDWartens certificate is yours. It carries a unique verification code on a public page anyone can check, so it stands up when a recruiter looks it up. See it below.
The course itself stays free whether or not you ever buy one.
Stuck? Ask a practising engineer
A free course usually means a comment section and hope. This one does not. Every module has an Ask-your-trainer panel that reaches the same engineers who teach our paid programme: people who commission panels for a living, not moderators.
Pairs well with
FreeElectrical 路 FreeETAP Power System Analysis: Load Flow, Short Circuit, Protection, Arc Flash and StabilityFree ETAP course for electrical engineers: load flow, short circuit, protection and arc flash studies. Learning is free; the certificate is optional and paid.
FreePLC programming 路 FreeSiemens TIA PortalFree 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.
FreePLC programming 路 FreeSiemens TIA Portal in Three HoursThe first three hours of the Siemens TIA Portal course, cut to end on a win: what a PLC is, how it is wired, a project configured in TIA Portal, and your first ladder program running in simulation. Finish it in an evening or two, earn a certificate, and carry straight on into the full course.
FreePLC programming 路 FreeTIA Portal: Build a MachineOne machine, start to finish. Take a bottle filling line from a written specification and an I/O list to a structured S7-1200 program with a fill station, a capper, a reject sorter and an operator screen with alarms, then test it against a written record and archive it for hand-over. The lessons are the reference; the machine is yours, and it is what you submit.More free courses: Free electrical design and control panel courses
Learning paths with this course
- Electrical and mechanical fundamentals 路 4 coursesBefore the PLC: the electrical basics a technician works by, motor control with contactors and starters, pneumatics and hydraulics, and the control panel that holds it all. The base every automation engineer stands on.
- Power systems and electrical design 路 3 coursesFrom the load schedule to the signed study: electrical design engineering for loads, cables and breakers, ETAP for load flow, short circuit, coordination and arc flash, and motor control for what the drawings feed.
Learner reviews
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Reviews here are written only by learners who have finished every module of Industrial Motor Control, and they are published exactly as written. Finish the course and yours will be the first.
Common questions
What is a motor starter?
A motor starter is a switching device that starts and stops a motor and, with an overload relay, protects it from sustained overcurrent. The international product standard for them is IEC 60947-4-1, which the IEC describes as covering electromechanical contactors and motor-starters for circuits whose rated voltage does not exceed 1,000 V AC or 1,500 V DC. This course covers manual and magnetic starters, overloads, reduced-voltage starting and soft starters, and shows how each is wired and tested.
What jobs use motor control skills?
Electricians, maintenance technicians and controls engineers all use motor control, because starters, contactors and interlocks sit in almost every machine. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics lists repairing control systems and motors among electricians' duties and reports a median annual wage for electricians of $63,190 in May 2025. It also projects employment of electricians to grow 9 percent from 2025 to 2035. Motor control is also the groundwork for PLC programming, which is why this course comes before the PLC courses.
Should I take this before the PLC courses?
Yes. Every PLC output ends in a contactor, and every ladder program is this course in software.
Do I need a trainer board?
No, but the lectures wire one and following along on a bench is the fastest way to learn.
Which mains voltages does it use?
The lectures are North American; the notes translate them to 400/415 V three-phase (IEC) practice and the control voltages used outside North America.
Is the Industrial Motor Control course really free?
Yes. Every module, practice task and assessment. You create an account so your progress is saved and the assessments can be marked. The certificate is the only paid item, and only if you want it.
What certificate do I get, and is it a vendor qualification?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a verification code anyone can check. It is not a vendor credential and is never described as one.
Who made the video lessons in the Industrial Motor Control course?
The creators named in the Credits block at the foot of this page, on their own YouTube channels. EDWartens did not make the videos and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
How long does the Industrial Motor Control course take?
Plan on about 25 hours in all, including the video lessons, notes and practice tasks. It is self-paced, so you work through the twelve modules at your own speed.
What you walk away with
Your certificate for Industrial Motor Control
Finish the course, pass the final, and this is the document with your name on it.
Verifiable by anyone
Adds to LinkedIn in one click
QR code on the certificate
Names what you can do
A permanent link
Earned, not attended
Learning is free. The certificate is optional.
Add it now and pay only when you have finished the course, or come back for it later. One-off, US$23.99, with a receipt.
Issued by Wartens Ltd (England and Wales, company no. 15262249) through the EDWartens training portal, as a Certificate of Completion for this self-paced course. Sold by Wartens Ltd. It is not a vendor certification, a university award or a CPD-accredited activity, and it does not certify competence on live equipment. Delivered electronically; see the refund policy.
Credits
Who made the video lessons
The video lessons in this course were created by the people below, not by EDWartens. Every lesson streams from its creator's own YouTube channel; EDWartens neither hosts nor sells that footage, and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens and do not endorse this course. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
- Jim Pytelthe motor control lectures and wiring labs
- anthony poolethe motor controls 101 playlist
- betechnical.caa lesson in "Switches, Ladder Logic and Documentation"
- RealPars2 lessons in "Reduced-Voltage Starting and Soft Starters"
If you are one of these creators and would like a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@wartens.com.