EandM is an authorized Festo distributor serving manufacturers, system integrators, OEMs and industrial facilities across the West Coast — California, Oregon, and Washington — including full support for Festo air preparation components, pneumatic actuators, valve terminals, and electric drives.
If you work with Festo air prep products, you've probably spent time in their online configurator. It's a tool I'm on almost every day, and for the most part, it's excellent. But every once in a while it throws you a curveball.
Here's one worth knowing about, especially if you're building an MSB6 service unit with a reverse flow direction.
The Setup
Imagine you are configuring an MSB6 air prep combination unit with the following components:
- A manual shutoff/on-off valve
- A filter regulator unit
- A soft-start/quick exhaust valve
- Right-to-left (reverse) flow direction
You get to the final steps of the configuration and attempt to add an AD11 or AD12 (M12 or M8 electrical connection module)—and the configurator software flags it as an error or invalid option.
Here is what I've verified in the field: it is not actually a problem. It is a completely valid physical pneumatic build.
Why the Configurator Flags It
Grayed-out or flagged choices in manufacturing software typically mean parts are genuinely incompatible, and most of the time, that's correct. Festo's tool is highly sophisticated, and there's usually a physical spacing or thread reason for those automated restrictions.
But this specific case is one where the digital tool simply hasn't caught up with production capabilities yet. Festo is actively rolling out updates and adding features to the soft-start section of the modular MSB6 configurator backend database, and the exact combination of a reverse flow path plus an AD11/AD12 connection module is not fully mapped yet. That does not mean the physical combination cannot be built or shipped.
The Workaround: Leverage the Spare Parts List
This is the engineering workaround I use daily for customers who require right-to-left reverse flow tracking:
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Build a Forward Baseline: Assemble the exact configuration inside the tool using the standard, supported left-to-right flow direction—including all your required blocks (shutoff valve, filter regulator, and soft-start valve).
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Extract the BOM: Pull the raw spare parts list or itemized Bill of Materials from that valid, unflagged baseline configuration.
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Identify Component Gaps: Note any component data gaps—you may observe that the soft-start component is not fully itemized by single part numbers, which confirms the software is still being updated in this category.
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Reconfigure Single Units: Order or reconfigure each standalone pneumatic module individually, ensuring they are flagged for right-to-left reverse flow operation.
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Compile the Master Bill: Combine the single components into a final consolidated parts list. Your assembly team now has every module needed to complete the safe physical assembly of the unit on-site.
It demands a few extra sequential steps behind the screen, but it completely bypasses the configuration blocker and delivers the exact layout your project requires.
A General Rule on Grayed-Out Options
When you see choice selectors grayed out inside an automation layout tool, your default operational assumption should be that the system is flagging a genuine hazard or design mismatch. But if something feels off based on your field experience—if you know a hardware match should be completely valid, or a generated spare parts list looks incomplete—it's always worth a double check.
That is exactly the type of design validation we provide here at EandM.
Want to optimize your MSB6 combination layouts?
Watch our technical specialist video breaking down Festo air preparation configurations and maintenance profiles below:
We're Here to Help
At EandM, our dedicated pneumatic product specialists work hands-on with these Festo design tools and service components daily. If you run into an application hurdle where a physical configuration should function but the digital software isn't cooperating, give us a call. We will map out the circuit logic with you—and if necessary, go straight to Festo engineering lines to validate your modular combination and authorize the build.
Contact EandM Pneumatic Support