Speaker: Jeff Winter, Industry Executive, Manufacturing, Microsoft
Can you tell us more about you and your professional experience/educational background?
Jeff Winter: My name is Jeff Winter and I am an industry executive for manufacturing with Microsoft. What that basically means is I help U.S. Manufacturers digitally transform and scale. I got my degree in 2005 in electrical engineering technology but have mostly been in sales and marketing related roles throughout my 17 year career so far, with a small stint in operations. I've been in the manufacturing industry the whole time, working in a variety of different industrial automation hardware manufacturers and then spending about 8.5 years as a systems integrator before joining Microsoft.
How did you become familiar with ISA? What led you to contribute to the development of ISA’s Digital Transformation Training Series?
Jeff Winter: Safety expertise. But right before 2019 my role switched away from safety and moved towards Industry 4.0 which is when I really started to get involved with ISA. I need to learn the subject and more of the best ways I know how to do that is to submerge myself in the subject by getting involved within the industry, speaking, writing, taking on positions. And almost three years ago ISA Formed a new Smart Manufacturing in IIoT division, which was right up my alley. So I joined, got involved, and two years later I became the division director. So when I heard ISA Was developing a digital transformation training series, I thought it would be great to get involved and pull in the experts of the division to help contribute great content.
Who is this series well-suited for, and what should students expect to learn?
Jeff Winter: This series is suited for people who have been within industrial automation but really want to learn more about the vast worlds of Industry 4.0 and Digital Transformation. This helps bridge the gap between the tried and true principles of controls and automation, with the newer, more disruptive technologies being explored and adopted across the industry. The intent is to give a more well rounded view on all of them and how they come together.
What value does this series provide, and how does it differ from other training in the market today?
Jeff Winter: This training is different for two reasons. First, it's modular based and will keep growing over time, and second, it includes a mix of theory and strategy, with hands on practical applications that are related to real world controls and automation professionals that they live in every day.
