In-person Full day training workshop
Siemens PLC
Systems & Fault-Finding
A practical one-day workshop for maintenance engineers who need to diagnose Siemens PLC faults with more confidence, more clarity and less guesswork.
Full-day workshop
Rochester, Kent
Hands-on throughout
This practical one-day workshop is designed for maintenance engineers, automation technicians and senior operators who work with Siemens control systems and need to diagnose faults more safely and methodically.
It is aimed at teams who want to move beyond simply spotting an alarm, warning light or fault indicator. Attendees will learn how to understand what the control system is doing, identify where a fault may be occurring and investigate the problem using a structured fault-finding process.
The workshop can be tailored around your plant, Siemens software versions and existing control systems. It can also be delivered as broader Siemens PLC fault-finding training for engineers who need to strengthen their knowledge across a range of installations.
Delivered at Hale Engineering’s workshop facility in Rochester, the training is hands-on throughout and focused on real-world troubleshooting rather than passive theory.
Available on following dates:
25 September 2026
6 November 2026
29 January 2027
Workshop outcomes
Hardware & system architecture
How Siemens PLC hardware is structured, including the relationship between the backplane, power supply, CPU and I/O modules
How to interpret the hardware configuration and understand how the control system has been physically constructed
How to use hardware indicators as the first step in a structured fault diagnosis
What the different LED states mean across Siemens CPUs, communication modules and I/O modules
How to identify a potentially faulty module and distinguish between a module fault, wiring fault and communication problem
How to isolate and replace faulty modules safely without creating additional faults elsewhere in the system
CPU behaviour & project management
What the programme scan is and how scan time affects PLC behaviour and system response
How to recognise when scan behaviour may be contributing to an intermittent or unexpected fault
When each CPU mode is relevant and what actions can safely be taken
The correct procedure for replacing a CPU battery without risking loss of the programme or configuration
How the PLC reads inputs, processes logic and updates outputs during each scan
What CPU modes such as RUN, STOP and PROGRAM mean
How to identify the CPU battery condition
Project management and forcing
How to open the correct Siemens engineering toolset and project
The difference between offline and online project modes
How to compare the project stored on an engineering computer with the programme running in the PLC
What forced inputs and outputs mean in practice
How to identify which software version is required for a particular PLC installation
How to check whether forcing is active
The risks associated with leaving forcing active during normal plant operation
How forcing should be managed, documented and removed safely
Online diagnostics and software fault-finding
How to interrogate the Siemens diagnostics buffer
How to interpret diagnostic events and identify which faults require further investigation
How to distinguish between a programming condition, field-device fault and hardware problem
How to use symbols, comments and project documentation to understand the purpose of the programme
How to navigate an unfamiliar programme more efficiently
How to monitor the PLC programme online
How to trace logic and identify where power flow or programme conditions stop
How to use cross-reference tools to find where inputs, outputs, memory bits and data are used
How to investigate faults without making unnecessary or unsafe programme changes
Network fault-finding
How Profibus networks operate within an industrial control system
How PLCs, remote I/O, drives, HMIs and other field devices communicate across the network
How to identify whether a fault relates to the PLC, field device, network cable, connector or configuration
How to investigate lost communication with remote I/O and distributed equipment
How ProfiNet differs from Profibus
How to recognise common Profibus and ProfiNet communication faults
How to approach network fault-finding in a structured and methodical way
What diagnostic indicators and software information to check when a network device is unavailable
What we need from you beforehand
To help us tailor the workshop to your equipment and operational requirements, we may ask you to provide:
A list of the plant systems or machines you would like the workshop to cover
Details of the Siemens PLC hardware currently installed
Details of the Siemens software versions being used on site
Relevant electrical wiring diagrams
PLC hardware and network architecture diagrams
Operations and maintenance documentation
Information explaining how the plant or machine is intended to operate
Examples of recurring faults or areas your engineering team finds difficult to diagnose
Providing this information allows the course content to reflect the systems and fault scenarios your engineers are most likely to encounter.
Where site-specific information is not available, the workshop can be delivered as broader Siemens PLC systems and fault-finding training.
“Hale were the only team who truly understood the automation risks in our production line — and fixed the problem without disrupting operations. Absolute lifesavers.”
Operations Manager
Food Manufacturing Facility
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Contact us:
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+44 20 8154 6102
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Contact us:
+44 20 8154 6102
info@hale-eng.co.uk
Proudly partnered with:
Member of: