Legacy controls & protocol integration
Trace unlabeled wiring, identify components, reconstruct undocumented control behavior, and integrate legacy PLCs and protocols.
Automation Intelligence for Manufacturing
Legacy Controls.
Modernized Intelligence.
Reverse engineer the existing system. Build the replacement. Connect the data. RockIT Logic brings aging manufacturing controls into a modern, documented automation environment.
Missing code, unlabeled wiring, obsolete PLCs: I work through the unknowns in systems that have been running for thirty or forty years, then develop a turnkey solution and plan the changeover around production.
New panels. PLC, HMI, and SCADA programs. Trusted operational data.
One engineer from diagnosis through startup.
30+years of hands-on experience
Brian Toro · Independent senior consultant
Brian Toro · Independent senior consultant
01 /Legacy PLC and
protocol rescue
02 /Controls
modernization
03 /SCADA, SQL Server,
reporting, and KPIs
04 /Process improvement,
energy & waste intelligence
05 /One senior expert from
discovery through commissioning
01 / Capabilities
Reverse engineering
through commissioning.
First, establish what the system actually does. Then develop the replacement: panel, controls, software, documentation, and an implementation plan designed to minimize production downtime.
For plant managers, maintenance and operations leaders, controls engineers, OEMs, and industrial design firms who need one expert to own the whole job.
Automation modernization
Build new panels and write PLC, HMI, and SCADA programs. Develop the installation and cutover plan around production constraints.
Industrial data & reporting
Data acquisition, SQL Server, historians, reports, and KPIs grounded in actual plant operation.
Process, energy & waste intelligence
Connect fuel use, energy performance, quality, and production context to practical process improvements.
Independent technical leadership
One senior expert to diagnose, design, program, document, and own the work from discovery through startup.
How Automation Intelligence works
From machine signal to better decision.
Connect existing equipment.
Bring controls, meters, instrumentation, and plant data into a usable information path.
Validate the signals.
Check the data and understand what it means in the context of the process.
Support better decisions.
Deliver reports, KPIs, and human-guided AI analysis that operators and engineers can use.
People remain accountable. AI supports operators, engineers, and judgment. Its usefulness depends on trusted data and understood process context.
02 / Selected work
Real systems. Specific work.
From vital legacy production equipment to engineered compressor systems and manufacturing intelligence.
10 / 10 projects
Ten projects at a glance. Select a capability to explore the challenges, solutions, and technologies.
American Excelsior07
High-Throughput Polyurethane Carousel Retrofit
New controls, HMI, logging, and Ignition SCADA for a vital 30-year-old, 60-mold production carousel.
The challenge
A 30-year-old, 60-mold polyurethane injection-molding carousel was vital to production and could not practically be replaced.
The solution
Modernized the machine with new controls, PLC logic, HMI screens, data logging, reporting, and an Inductive Automation Ignition SCADA package.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules09
Legacy Power Meter Data Integration
Connected obsolete SY/MAX-era power meters to modern reporting and the client’s Gemini Notebook workflow.
The challenge
Approximately 30-year-old power meters communicated through a legacy SY/MAX-era protocol. Their data needed a path into modern reporting.
The solution
Connected the legacy meters, brought their data into reporting, and made it available for the client’s Gemini Notebook analysis workflow.
Technologies & scope
JJ Crewe05
Gas Compressor Controls & Hazardous-Area Systems
Engineered gas-compressor controls, PLC/HMI, P&IDs, documentation, and training for oil and gas applications.
The challenge
Engineered gas-compressor control solutions for oil and gas applications, including hazardous-material handling and processing.
The solution
Solution design, PLC code, HMI programming, P&ID drawings, user documentation, and training, with Class I Division 2 design considerations.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules01
Ione Batching Automation
Turnkey batch-process integration, controls programming, startup, and production support.
The challenge
Manufacturing batch processes required integrated controls and support through startup and production.
The solution
Turnkey automation work spanning controls, batch-process integration, programming, startup, and production support.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules02
Ione Quarry Controls Modernization
Modernized quarry controls and infrastructure with legacy-system work, PLC/HMI/SCADA changes, and startup support.
The challenge
Quarry controls and supporting infrastructure required modernization alongside existing legacy systems.
The solution
Legacy-system work, PLC/HMI/SCADA changes, supporting infrastructure modernization, documentation, and startup support.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules03
Kremlin Color Plant Batch Automation
Integrated color-plant batching, recipes, flow meters, valves, and product-use totalization.
The challenge
New batching processes needed to operate within the existing color-plant automation and recipe environment.
The solution
Panel design/build coordination, PLC programming, Wonderware graphics, flow meters, control valves, high-speed counters, recipe integration, product-use totalization, and startup.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules04
Ione Clay Slurry Controls
Feeder integration, gravimetric controls, live-production tuning, quality troubleshooting, and reporting.
The challenge
Clay slurry batching and gravimetric control required feeder integration and tuning under live-production conditions.
The solution
PLC/HMI changes, feeder integration, live-production tuning, quality troubleshooting, and operational reporting.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules06
Ione Loadout PLC Modernization
Migrated SLC-500 / DH+ loadout controls to CompactLogix and Ethernet, including testing and commissioning.
The challenge
The loadout system relied on a legacy SLC-500 PLC and DH+ communications architecture.
The solution
Migration to CompactLogix and modern Ethernet architecture, including PLC conversion, HMI and tag updates, documentation, testing, and commissioning.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules08
Burner Systems Interface Engineering
Reusable PLC/HMI architecture connecting Siemens burner controls to the manufacturing environment.
The challenge
Siemens burner controls needed a consistent interface with the surrounding manufacturing environment as burners were deployed or upgraded.
The solution
Created a reusable PLC/HMI interface architecture integrating burner controls and operating information, designed for reuse across the plant.
Technologies & scope
GAF / Specialty Granules10
Burner Fuel & Process KPI Intelligence
Combined burner gas use, temperatures, and production context to estimate waste and establish BTU-per-ton KPIs.
The challenge
Granule-production energy analysis needed to connect burner gas use with temperatures and production context.
The solution
Combined Siemens burner-management gas data with process temperatures and production context to estimate waste and establish BTU-per-ton performance indicators.
Technologies & scope
03 / About Brian Toro
One person. You get the expert, not a handoff.
Brian’s experience begins on the shop floor: mechanical and electrical training, CNC operation and programming, drafting, service work, PLCs, and robotics. It extends through controls engineering, manufacturing operations technology, enterprise systems, and independent consulting.
Brian often takes on projects other firms will not bid on: aging controls with missing code, unidentified components, and incomplete documentation. He reverse engineers the existing system and develops a turnkey replacement. That work connects the machine-level problem to the information people need to run the business. Brian can work in the PLC, follow the signal through SCADA and SQL Server reporting, and align the solution with operations and IT.
Brian ToroSenior Consultant / Owner · RockIT Logic
Connect directly ↗- Shop-floor training → PLC, CNC & robotics
Landis Gardner / Cinetic Landis Grinding · Electrical Engineering Technician
- Controls & engineered systems
Werres Corporation · Control System Engineer
Johnson Controls · Senior Engineering Specialist - Manufacturing technology → enterprise systems
Specialty Granules · Instrumentation & controls supervision, IT business analysis, and enterprise technology management. Business intelligence, SQL Server reporting, and IT/OT alignment.
- Independent consulting
RockIT Logic · Engineering, programming, documentation, startup, and technical support.
Technology experience
Includes these platforms and extends beyond them.
Allen-Bradley / Rockwell PLCsRSLogix / Studio 5000Wonderware / AVEVARSView / FactoryTalk View MEInductive Automation IgnitionSQL Server / ReportingSCADA / HistoriansIndustrial networksInstrumentation & controls
04 / Contact
Bring the system, data,
or process challenge.
Most engagements begin with a direct conversation—no junior handoff and no generic pitch deck.
btoro@rockitlogic.com ↗Direct to Brian Toro · RockIT Logic