How to Avoid Counterfeit Industrial Automation Components

4. Ask for Evidence Linked to the Actual Shipment

General company brochures and catalogue photographs say little about the goods being offered.

Request evidence proportionate to the order, such as photographs of the proposed stock, a written condition statement and available sourcing records. Link those records to the quotation, purchase order or shipment.

Use warning signs to trigger questions—not automatic counterfeit verdicts:

No universal discount percentage identifies a fake. Equally, a high price does not prove authenticity.

5. Inspect Deliveries Before They Become Available Stock

Create a receiving stage between delivery and release to the storeroom.

Record the shipment identity, compare the delivered references with the order and preserve relevant photographs. Keep incoming items associated with their purchase records rather than mixing them immediately with existing stock.

Inspect accessible surfaces for damage, inconsistent identification or signs that conflict with the declared condition. Do not dismantle sealed assemblies simply to look for counterfeiting.

Use the correct label reference

Security markings are product-specific. Rockwell Automation’s official guidance lists applicable products by manufacturing date and plant code, with some requirements applying only to carton labels. A marking expected on one product may therefore be inappropriate as a universal test. Rockwell Automation: Security and Anti-Counterfeit Product Labels

Compare against the manufacturer’s applicable information, not an unrelated online photograph. Record discrepancies precisely: a different part-number suffix is a factual observation; “the label looks fake” is an interpretation.

Understand the scope of digital checks

Use manufacturer registration or authentication tools where applicable, and retain the actual response.

Rockwell Automation provides an official Product Registration service and information on eligible products. Follow the program’s current instructions rather than assuming every component supports the same process. Rockwell Automation: Product Registration

Distinguish between a code that opens documentation and a manufacturer response that addresses product verification. Do not record a successful catalogue lookup as a stronger result than it provides.

6. Keep Suspect Components on Hold

An unresolved component needs a visible status and a responsible owner.

A practical internal workflow is:

Preserve packaging, photographs, identifiers and supplier correspondence while the issue is investigated. If related units came from the same shipment, review whether they also require a hold; do not assume they are all affected without investigation.

For Rockwell products, the manufacturer directs authenticity enquiries to an authorized distributor or sales office, which can involve its Brand Protection team where necessary. 

If a suspect component has already been installed, involve the responsible maintenance or safety personnel to plan the response. Avoid improvised removal from operating equipment.

7. Preserve Traceability After Acceptance

Counterfeit prevention should continue after incoming inspection.

As an internal control, connect the accepted item to its purchase order, receipt record and eventual stock location or machine. Retain unit identifiers where available and applicable; do not assume every printed code is a unique serial number.

When a component returns from a machine or repair provider, review its status before putting it back into stock. A genuine unit that has been installed should not silently return to a bin designated for new, unused parts.

Useful process measures include:

• Receipts with complete required records.
• Emergency purchases outside normal sourcing arrangements.
• Unresolved inspection holds and their age.
• Repeat discrepancies associated with a supplier.

These measures show whether purchasing controls are being followed. They should not be presented as counterfeit detection rates unless cases have actually been confirmed.