GE Fanuc Automation has formed a strategic partnership with Phoenix Contact under which Phoenix will supply its Inline I/O technology for use in GE Fanuc`s VersaMax range of flexible I/O.

The deal includes further development, and global marketing, of the Inline system which is designed to simplify I/O installations. The system allows users to mix-and-match DIN-rail-mounting modules to meet the precise needs of an application. Modules available include digital and analogue I/Os, counters, circuit-breakers, and safety devices. Pneumatic components are planned.

When the Inline modules are plugged together, they automatically form connections for protective circuits, buses and power supplies.

GE Fanuc suggests that the system will open up new applications. Two key factors in GE Fanuc`s choice of the Phoenix technology were the function-based nature of the modules, and their ease of installation.

John Pritchard, GE Fanuc`s senior-vice president for automation equipment sales in Europe, predicts that the combined marketing and development strengths of the partners will expand the market for the Inline system which, he says, "possesses an ideal combination of flexibility, modularity and economy".