Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

Industry

Plant manufacturer Schenck RoTec extends range of services in its balancing centres

by

Schenck RoTec

Schenck RoTec has added a new feature to its certified balancing services – high-speed balancing of flexible rotors. 

The company claims to be “the global market leader in balancing and diagnostic systems”.

Basically it balances rotating bodies to avoid vibrations.

In heavy industrial machines such as gas turbines and electric generators, vibration can cause catastrophic failure, as well as noise and discomfort.  [Read more…] about Plant manufacturer Schenck RoTec extends range of services in its balancing centres

Automation Direct launches new CPU for its programmable logic controllers

by

Automation Direct’s new CPU
Automation Direct’s new CPU 

Automation Direct has added two new “feature-enhanced” CPUs to its DirectLogic DL405 programmable logic controller product line.

The D4-454 and D4-454DC-1 provide all the capabilities of the D4-430, D4-440 and D4-450 CPUs, using updated microprocessor technology allowing the D4-454 to be the CPU of choice for the DL405 family.

Both D4-454 CPUs include a built-in power supply and four communication ports.  [Read more…] about Automation Direct launches new CPU for its programmable logic controllers

Honeywell says its newest PLC dramatically reduces integration costs for industrial plants

by

Honeywell Process Solutions has launched the latest version of its ControlEdge Programmable Logic Controller.

This release, combined with Honeywell’s Experion distributed control system, provides a “significant reduction” in integration efforts and project costs as well as increased security and availability through enhanced cyber security for industrial facilities, says the company.

The PLC is used in a variety of balance of plant applications, such as equipment and device level control.  [Read more…] about Honeywell says its newest PLC dramatically reduces integration costs for industrial plants

Foxconn evaluating US locations for $10 billion expansion plans

by

Foxconn, the main manufacturer for Apple’s smartphones and tablet computers, is looking for locations in the US to invest $10 billion into setting up factories, according to a variety of reports in the media. 

The company has already earmarked $7 billion for a display panel factory after buying the Sharp electronics company, although it’s not certain where it will be located.

The Taiwanese company’s newly found interest in the US comes after President Donald Trump made it clear that he prioritises the reinvigoration of the country’s manufacturing base.  [Read more…] about Foxconn evaluating US locations for $10 billion expansion plans

Sepro launches €11 million expansion of robot operations in France and the US

by

sepro building

The Sepro Group has embarked on an €11 million expansion plan which will accelerate its robot operations in France and the US.

Following four years of “record-setting sales growth”, Sepro says its three-phase, €11 million expansion plan will increase production capacity at the company’s headquarters facility in La Roche-sur-Yon, France, and launch a new global training facility nearby.

In the US, the plan will add large-robot assembly capabilities to the systems integration and service operations already in place at the Sepro America operation in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  [Read more…] about Sepro launches €11 million expansion of robot operations in France and the US

McDonald’s shares reach record high as it launches new wave of automation

by

Fast-food restaurant chain McDonald’s shares have reached record highs last week, gaining 26 per cent, as the company announced a new round of automation at 2,500 of its outlets in the US. 

The global icon of American enterprise says it will replace cashiers with digital ordering kiosks and introduce mobile ordering at a total of 14,000 locations across the US.

The extensive automation plan is part of the company’s “Experience of the Future”, according to a report on CNBC.com.  [Read more…] about McDonald’s shares reach record high as it launches new wave of automation

Xiamen installs 64 Universal Robots machines on production line

by

One of the world’s largest manufacturers of bathroom accessories and auto parts, Xiamen Runner Industrial Corporation in China, has installed 64 Universal Robots arms to upgrade the efficiency of the production process by establishing a highly-efficient, flexible, and reliable production line.

The UR robots are installed in 10 different applications ranging from injection molding machine tending, gas testing and product assembly.

Before deploying UR robots, most operations at Runner Corporation were manual with operator fatigue posing risks on both safety and product yield. The company was devoted to developing a highly-efficient, flexible, and reliable production line.  [Read more…] about Xiamen installs 64 Universal Robots machines on production line

Cyber-physical systems and manufacturing’s new frontier

by

The real world and its digital twin are collaborating to bring forth something called “mass customisation”, a new manufacturing culture which, as the term suggests, will be the basis for the most diverse ecosystem of engineered products ever seen. 

To understand and articulate some specifics about what’s being called “the new frontier of manufacturing”, one of the world’s largest management consultancy firms, Deloitte, partnered with the Singularity University, a forum for technology futurists co-founded by Ray Kurzweil, to organise a conference called Exponential Manufacturing, featuring many thought leaders working in the industrial sector.  [Read more…] about Cyber-physical systems and manufacturing’s new frontier

China’s enthusiasm for robots and electric cars creating oversupply of clean technology

by

China’s enthusiasm for new technology, combined with its paranoia about being left behind in a globally intensifying high-tech competition, sometimes leads it to create small bubbles in its economy which may or may not dissipate in the disciplined manner in which the markets they encompass may have emerged in the first place. 

Two years ago, the government of the world’s most populous nation of 1.4 billion people launched a 10-year national plan to “transform China from a manufacturing giant into a world manufacturing power”, in the words of XinhuaNet, the state propaganda outlet.  [Read more…] about China’s enthusiasm for robots and electric cars creating oversupply of clean technology

Thailand prioritises robotics, aerospace, and auto industries as it looks to increase competitiveness

by

Managing an economy today is not easy. But managing it for tomorrow? Now that’s a real challenge. It’s one that the government in Thailand is tackling head on, with a raft of new policies aimed at future-proofing its workforce and industry, particularly in the automotive, robotics, and aerospace sectors.

The measures, known collectively as Thailand 4.0, are centered on incentivizing foreign direct investment and nurturing innovation for 10 key future-focused industries.

The goal is to foster an ecosystem that promotes emerging technology, innovation, and creativity within each of these sectors.  [Read more…] about Thailand prioritises robotics, aerospace, and auto industries as it looks to increase competitiveness