Home » Authors » Wayne Labs

Wayne Labs

Wayne Labs has more than 30 years of editorial experience in industrial automation. He served as senior technical editor for I&CS/Control Solutions magazine for 18 years where he covered software, control system hardware and sensors/transmitters. Labs ran his own consulting business and contributed feature articles to Electronic Design, Control, Control Design, Industrial Networking and Food Engineering magazines. Before joining Food Engineering, he served as a senior technical editor for Omega Engineering Inc. Labs also worked in wireless systems and served as a field engineer for GE’s Mobile Communications Division and as a systems engineer for Bucks County Emergency Services. In addition to writing technical feature articles, Wayne covers FE’s Engineering R&D section.

Senior Contributing Technical Editor

Articles

ARTICLES

Rich McDonnell, Parker Hannifin's Pneumatic Division N.A.

Engineering R&D

Get a grip: The light touch

Wayne Labs

February 5, 2015

Technically inclined people in the baby boom generation no doubt remember the crystal (more properly known as piezoelectric) phonograph cartridge or microphone.

Food Safety

Avoid labeling-related recalls

Tips and techniques to get labels right the first time, every time.

Wayne Labs

February 4, 2015

More than 60 percent of FDA recalls are due to labeling issues.

Automation Series

The rise of robotic automation

Robotics can play a role in pick-and-place, packaging, case packing and palletizing processes, but how do you know where to implement robotic automation?

Wayne Labs

January 8, 2015

Throughput. It all comes down to this number.

LiquiGlide's liquid-impregnated surfaces

Engineering R&D

Free fall fluid flow

Wayne Labs

January 8, 2015

With all due respect to Jim Morrison of The Doors, who authored “Yes, the River Knows,” the title of this story aptly describes how a viscous fluid or slurry pours out of a tilted container with an interior surface coated with a food-safe, slippery compound.

Cone Drive's new stainless steel worm reducers

Power Transmission

Components toughen up

Wayne Labs

January 7, 2015

While the power transmission industry is pretty mature, power transmission components have had to endure a lot of hardships imposed upon them by the food and beverage industry.

Fabulous Food Plant

Fabulous food plant: Chelten House heads west to meet market demand

Locating a new facility in Las Vegas had excellent odds, including cutting transportation costs and finding a committed workforce.

Wayne Labs

December 4, 2014

Chelten House Products is a fourth-generation, family-owned business that has provided great-tasting, high-end pasta sauce and salsa products for food retailers for more than 40 years.

Sanitary Plant Design

A clean slate: Use it wisely

Not all processors have the luxury of picking a new property to build a food or beverage plant, but when they do, several factors affect sanitary design.

Wayne Labs

December 2, 2014

Starting with a clean slate is usually easier than renovating an older facility to catch up with food safety specifications as shown in the Food Engineering November 2014 article, “Renovate for the right reasons.”

Engineering R&D

Improving the mechanical properties of stainless steel for food and beverage applications

Wayne Labs

December 2, 2014

Extending the wear resistance of stainless steel (SS) components used in food manufacturing equipment operating on production lines lengthens replacement intervals and minimizes potential component failure, resulting in decreased downtime and improved cost savings—a long, sought-after goal of any maintenance department.

Sustainable Processor of the Year

Sustainable processor of the year: Smithfield foods embraces environmental stewardship

Wayne Labs

November 5, 2014

In the past, Food Engineering’s Sustainable Plant of the Year story has focused on a single plant at one geographic location that has made significant strides in sustainability.