Twenty-five years in publication. In the publishing world, that’s a huge fete, as magazines tend to rise and fall — and often are gobbled up by their competition. So why has The Journal remained one of the best custom publications in the industry? First, you should know how it all began.
Just 25 years ago, the Internet and industrial automation control were still in their infancy. Controller Area Network (CAN) and DeviceNet™ protocols were all the rage. At the forefront of these technology changes was Allen-Bradley company, now Rockwell Automation, but because of the “newness” of these technology disruptors, the company leaders knew they needed to better inform its users.
To address this challenge, Rockwell Automation decided sharing technical information via a magazine would be the best way to help industrial firms do their jobs better. Taking it a step further — and key to the magazine’s 25-year staying power — was the company’s goal to not just provide valuable content its readers desired, but to do so without sales and marketing hype.
So, Rockwell Automation opted to collaborate with an independent publisher to help ensure content remained nonpromotional, credible and objective. That’s where we come in. Putman Publishing Company (now Putman Media) began its collaboration with Allen-Bradley and Padilla Speer Beardsley (now Padilla) public relations firm and launched the A-B Journal at the 1994 Automation Fair® event in St. Louis.
