September 2023: Tesco Controls is excited to announce that Derrick Marlow, has been chosen as a Class of 2023 Engineering Leader Under 40, by Control Engineering Magazine/CFE Media in their article, “What makes an engineering trailblazer?”
Derrick Marlow, an accomplished self-taught automation professional, is an energetic leader and mentor of high-performing teams. Self-driven from a very young age, he turned his passion for automobiles and electronics into a career in industrial automation. He found new direction in the water industry, deciding to devote his talents and energy to preserving precious water resources. He has rapidly advanced from SCADA Engineer to Supervising SCADA Engineer – and in June 2023 – to leading TESCO’s SCADA department of 30+ engineers. Derrick has a positive outlook, unrelenting work ethic, outstanding leadership, and ability to solve complex challenges with out-of-the-box solutions.
Career Reflections
Derrick reflects, “I have always loved tinkering with electronics and fell into the industrial automation industry during college while working as an automotive technician, troubleshooting electrical and drivability issues. It was so enjoyable, I wanted to apply my interest in electronics and control loops into a career. After my first job in the water industry, the understanding of how precious our water resources are brought about the desire to develop systems to protect and preserve the future of this scarce resource. Although industrial automation transcends many different industries, it is the importance of protecting the future of water that holds my interest.”
Achievements, Advancement & Career-related Industry Contributions
Derrick has embraced his career in industrial automation with purpose and enthusiasm. From his first position as operator at an environmental mediation company, to his role as SCADA Manager at Tesco Controls, he has become skilled in every aspect of the profession. He moved from instrumentation to system integration to learn design, system implementation, hardware and software platforms. He earned a Bachelors in Business Administration from CSU Sacramento, and although automation is his passion, he puts his keen business sense to work deftly managing people and projects.
Derrick joined Tesco Controls to focus on SCADA. His leadership skills quickly advanced him to SCADA supervisor and technical lead, architecting challenging critical infrastructure projects, both greenfield and complex legacy migrations. His ability to innovate, combined with great people skills has helped to navigate difficult projects and improve client relationships. His recent promotion to SCADA Engineering Manager is a testament to those abilities and command of the complex nature of the platforms he and his team design.
He is no stranger to mind-bending legacy migration projects. One successful migration for a large water agency included finding an effective approach to implement an object-oriented scalable platform, upgrading legacy PLCs, integrating a multitude of older hardware, numerous protocols, and an existing SCADA system alongside the new SCADA platform. Future-proofing allowed for “plug and play” functionality, combining the two SCADA systems if necessary.
Having a Little Fun With Automation
An active home brewer, Derrick knew there had to be a better way to monitor keg levels than using flow sensors and scales. Since measurement scope is similar to industrial water automation, (using ultrasonic level transducers to measure reservoir levels) he invented a sensor retrofit lid that installs on a standard keg to measure level, temperature and pressure. Using open-source controllers and user interface, it connects to Wi-Fi, and logs to a cloud data base. He built Android and iOS apps that connect from anywhere to update setpoints for alarm notifications when parameters are outside of range, and an API for 3rd party integration. His newest invention, a sensor retrofit lid with apps, received great buzz in Brew Your Own Magazine.
Class of 2023
CFE Media and Technology proudly presents the Engineering Leaders Under 40, Class of 2023 — a cohort of 35 exceptional minds, all hailing from the industrial manufacturing, controls, automation and systems integration professions. These pioneers are reshaping the industries of technology and engineering.
With less than 10% of the automation and controls workforce being under the age of 40 (see Control Engineering Career and Salary Survey, 2022), seeing the passion from the following Leaders offers hope to the future of engineering.
See the article about Derrick and the other Class of 2023 recognized leaders in the September 2023 edition of Control Engineering Magazine.