PLC programming
Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert (Unity Pro) with Modicon M340 and M580
Program Schneider M340 and M580 PLCs in Control Expert: hardware, ladder and ST, analog and HART, networks and diagnostics.
Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert (Unity Pro) with Modicon M340 and M580 is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation, electrical and instrumentation. It has 12 modules and takes about 28.6 hours, with written notes, a practice task per module, a practical project and a final assessment of 15 questions (pass mark 60%). Learning costs nothing and needs only a free account. The optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, is a one-off US$28.99 for you; it is not a vendor credential. Updated 1 November 2026.
- Free
- Intermediate
- 28.6 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
- Lab practice in your browser
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$28.99, optional.
- Who it is for
- Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation, electrical and instrumentation
- Jobs
- Roles that use this skill: PLC programmer, controls engineer, automation technician and commissioning engineer. No course guarantees a job.
- Tools
- EcoStruxure Control Expert (30-day trial) with its built-in simulator. Hardware: none. Simulator for programming; hardware modules followed by watching.
- Updated
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Install Control Expert and use its simulator
- Configure M340 and M580 hardware and IP addresses
- Program in ladder, FBD and structured text
- Set up Modbus TCP and EtherNet/IP
- Expose data over OPC UA and migrate legacy projects
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation, electrical and instrumentation.
Level: Intermediate. Intermediate. PLC basics assumed.
What you need
Software: EcoStruxure Control Expert (30-day trial) with its built-in simulator.
Hardware: None. Simulator for programming; hardware modules followed by watching.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Practise in the 3D labOptional
Try the module in the free 3D lab, in your browser.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
12 modules in order, at your own pace. 28.6 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1Control Expert: Install, Licence, Simulator22m
- 2M340 and M580 Hardware, IP Addresses and I/O Cards2h 39m
- 3Programming Basics: Variables, Arrays, Values and Simulation, with lab practice: 1h 46m
- 4Structured Text, FBD, DFBs and DDTs, with lab practice: 59m
- 5Analog Scaling and HART, with lab practice: 1h 31m
- 6Modbus TCP, DTM Browser and I/O Scanning, with lab practice: 3h 19m
- 7EtherNet/IP and Explicit Messaging1h 23m
- 8OPC UA, OFS and Data Servers, with lab practice: 2h 0m
Show the other 4 modules
- 9HMI and SCADA Integration, with lab practice: 4h 23m
- 10Utility Protocols and Special Modules52m
- 11Hot Standby, Safety Outputs, Diagnostics and Migration1h 54m
- 12Final Assessment
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
Show what to download (1 tool)
Required
- 01Free trial: 30 days
EcoStruxure Control Expert
Schneider Electric
- Runs on
- Windows PC (check the release notes on the download page)
- Account
- A free Schneider Electric (mySchneider) account
Control Expert includes a 30-day trial licence that starts automatically the first time you launch it. The trial has the full XL feature set with the M580 Safety add-on; after 30 days you need a paid licence.
Steps
- 1.Open the Control Expert installation file page on se.com.
- 2.Log in or create a free Schneider Electric account.
- 3.Download the ISO file.
- 4.Mount the ISO and run the setup as administrator.
- 5.Launch Control Expert; the 30-day trial activates automatically.
- The download is a large ISO file; Schneider recommends Chrome or Firefox.
- Check the SHA256 value shown on the page after downloading.
Official download pagese.com
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
Practise in the 3D lab
Practise the same logic you write in Control Expert on working machines in the PLC lab: start/stop, sequences, timers and analog scaling, then pass each lab test.
- Motor start/stop with overloadPLC lab, about 45 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Motor start/stop with overload
- Pedestrian crossingPLC lab, about 75 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Pedestrian crossing
- Tank filling pumpPLC lab, about 50 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Tank filling pump
- Commission the 4-20 mA level loopElectrical labOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Commission the 4-20 mA level loop
Optional. Skip it whenever you like: it never blocks your progress or your certificate.
Course project, about 16 hours
Filter backwash on an M580: narrative, DFB library, SFC sequence and X80 I/O for a 40 ML/day water works
Specify, design, program and test the backwash automation for four filters at a water treatment works. The hardware is an M580 with one X80 remote drop. You write a control narrative, an I/O list and a library of function blocks. You also write one SFC that washes whichever filter is due, and a FAT record from the Control Expert simulator.
- 8documents in the pack
- 9steps to follow
- 7things to hand in
- 16 hof work, at your pace
- Control narrativeControl Narrative: Rapid Gravity Filter Backwash, Filters F-301 to F-304
- HDSHardware Design Specification: M580 Controller and X80 Remote Drop
- SDSSoftware Design Specification: Backwash Program, DFB Library and SCADA Map
- I/O listI/O List: Local Rack CP-301 and Drop 1 (Filter F-301 typical)
- BOMBill of Materials: CP-301 and Drop 1
- Interlock listInterlock and Permissive List: Filter Backwash
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$28.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
PLC Programming
Eight short weeks of PLC ladder logic on free simulators: notes, diagrams, a few videos and auto-tested tasks. Finish weeks 1 to 4 and the final, then claim a free Internship Completion Certificate with your real dates and study hours, and a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
See the internshipMore free courses
Roles that use this skill
- PLC programmer
- Controls engineer
- Automation technician
- Commissioning engineer
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Engineer-verified internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: Automation4all, Schneider Electric, Schneider Electric, Industrial Automation Maven (Louis Wyn), Jasmine Jones. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
Automation4all · Schneider Electric · Schneider Electric · Industrial Automation Maven (Louis Wyn) · Jasmine Jones. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@edwartens.com.
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.
- Practise safely, so a mistake costs nothing.
- The lab checks your work like a site test, so you know when it is right.
- Free, in your browser, with nothing to install.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Practice in a free 3D lab in your browser, with nothing to install.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
Is Control Expert free?
Schneider offers a 30-day trial; its simulator runs the programming modules, so install it when you reach them. The hardware and hot-standby modules are followed by watching.
Control Expert or Machine Expert Basic?
Machine Expert Basic is for the small M221; Control Expert is for M340, M580 and Quantum. Take the free Machine Expert Basic course first if you are new to Schneider.
Why so much about communication?
Because M580 projects are integration projects: Modbus, EtherNet/IP, OPC UA and SCADA links are most of the engineering time on a real site.
Is the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert 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 Schneider Electric qualification?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a verification code anyone can check. It is not a Schneider Electric credential and is never described as one.
Who made the video lessons in the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert 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 Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course take?
Plan on about 29 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.
Do I have to use the lab?
No. The lab is optional practice. You can skip it whenever you like, and it never blocks your progress, the final assessment or your certificate.
Is the lab free?
Yes. Every lab level for this course opens in your browser, free, with nothing to install.
What topics does the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course cover, module by module?
The Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course has 12 modules. It opens with "Control Expert: Install, Licence, Simulator", goes through "M340 and M580 Hardware, IP Addresses and I/O Cards", "Analog Scaling and HART", "OPC UA, OFS and Data Servers" and "Hot Standby, Safety Outputs, Diagnostics and Migration" and ends with "Final Assessment". The full list with minutes is under "What you learn" on this page.
What can I do after the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course?
After the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course: Install Control Expert, use libsets, the simulator and downloads; Configure M340 and M580 CPUs, I/O cards, IP addresses and fail-safe outputs; Program with variables, arrays, ST, FBD, DFBs and DDTs. These are the practical outcomes the course is written around, and the final assessment of 15 questions checks them.
What software and hardware do I need for the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course, and does it cost anything?
For the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course, software: EcoStruxure Control Expert (30-day trial) with its built-in simulator. Hardware: none. Simulator for programming; hardware modules followed by watching. The course itself is free.
Is the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course suitable for me, and what level is it?
Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert is rated intermediate. Intermediate. PLC basics assumed. It is written for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation, electrical and instrumentation, and takes about 28.6 hours at your own pace.
Which jobs use the skills from the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course?
Skills from the Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert course (for example: install Control Expert, use libsets, the simulator and downloads) are used in roles such as PLC programmer, controls engineer, automation technician and commissioning engineer, and in automation engineer work. The course gives you practical evidence of the skill; it does not promise a job, and employers decide on experience and interview.
Start free today
Schneider EcoStruxure Control Expert (Unity Pro) with Modicon M340 and M580, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.