The industry does not have a great reputation. You will make less money and in worse working conditions, likely with more travel. The machines are cool. Automa

The industry does not have a great reputation. You will make less money and in worse working conditions, likely with more travel. The machines are cool. Automation Direct has some starter PLCs that are in the hundreds of dollars, and they have good enough reputations (though you will find shops that turn up their nose at AD). That'll be enough to learn ladder logic. And you can buy servos or steppers and learn motion control as well. It'll be difficult to get a job without experience at first, but talent is short and you might be able to convince someone to do entry-level work with the material you taught yourself. And then it gets easier. But you might start missing your old software engineering job.