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Automotive industry could gain $160 billion through smart factory adoption, says report

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Capgemini has announced a new report by its Digital Transformation Institute which reveals that the automotive industry can expect to achieve $160 billion in productivity gains annually from smart factory adoption from 2023 onwards.

The report, Automotive Smart Factories: How Auto Manufacturers can Benefit from the Digital Industrial Revolution, which surveyed more than 320 automotive manufacturers, demonstrates that the automotive sector has set more aggressive targets for smart factory initiatives compared to other sectors.

A global top 102 automotive manufacturer can expect to realize an additional $4.6 billion or a 50 percent growth in operational profits annually within five years of a full smart factory implementation.  [Read more…] about Automotive industry could gain $160 billion through smart factory adoption, says report

Autonomous Solutions wins Edison Award Gold Winner for Tractor Concept

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Autonomous Solutions, Inc. (ASI) was voted a Gold winner in the 2018 Edison Awards in April for its work in the development of the Autonomous Tractor Concept with CNH Industrial and its brands Case IH and New Holland Agriculture.

The Edison Awards, celebrating 31 years of honouring the best in innovation and excellence in the development of new products and services, made the announcement at the April event at The Capitale in New York City.

ASI is the autonomous technology provider for CNH Industrial, parent company of Case IH and New Holland Agriculture and jointly announced the Autonomous Tractor Concept with those companies in late 2016.

[Read more…] about Autonomous Solutions wins Edison Award Gold Winner for Tractor Concept

3D Systems claims its printers offer ‘world’s fastest time-to-part’ process

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3D Systems‘ Figure 4™ Production and Figure 4 Standalone is now the fastest, most accurate 3D printing technology available, says the company.

Recently released data on Figure 4 Production highlights part print speeds up to 65mm/hr, with prototyping speeds of up to 100 mm/hr.

The Figure 4 platform delivers part accuracy and repeatability, with Six Sigma repeatability (Cpk > 2) across all materials.

[Read more…] about 3D Systems claims its printers offer ‘world’s fastest time-to-part’ process

Hyundai Heavy Industries to sell Kuka robots to manufacturers

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Hyundai Heavy Industries has reached an agreement to supply Kuka industrial robots and other products to manufacturers and other industrial companies. 

This is according to a report on the website of the Korea Herald, which says the agreement is for HHI to market Kuka products to “large Korean manufacturing firms”.

South Korean industry is dominated by what are referred to chaebols, which means very large conglomerates, and gaining access to them is probably quite difficult.  [Read more…] about Hyundai Heavy Industries to sell Kuka robots to manufacturers

Unex launches online app for designing material handling systems

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Unex Manufacturing, a provider of order-picking solutions, has launched what it says is “an easy-to-use” design tool that generates a 3D image and bill of materials for users’ custom carton flow solutions.

The online Configurator quickly and easily lets users configure a Span-Track solution from the ground up by themselves, accelerating the turn-around time for custom-fit materials handling equipment that can speed fulfillment and throughput in the warehouse, distribution center or manufacturing line.

Brian Neuwirth, VP sales and marketing, Unex Manufacturing, says: “We have found that many of our customers want to design a Unex solution themselves to ensure the equipment will fit into their environment to keep their processes flowing.  [Read more…] about Unex launches online app for designing material handling systems

E-mart introduces Eli autonomous shopping cart

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E-mart, a South Korean discount chain operator under retail giant Shinsegae, has unveiled an autonomous shopping cart for test operation.

For the first time in Korea, the autonomous cart was showcased at E-mart’s warehouse-style supermarket Traders in Hanam, Gyeonggi Province, from April 17 to April 20.

The autonomous shopping cart, called Eli, has outstanding functions, such as navigation, following, avoiding obstacle, auto payment, with cutting -edge technologies.

Robotnik, in collaboration with Gaitech Robotics, developed this state-of -the-art autonomous shopping cart for E-mart.

Rethink Robotics presents new features for collaborative robot Sawyer

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Rethink Robotics presented its smart cobot Sawyer at this year’s Hannover Trade Fair last week, featuring new functionalities such as an Intera 5.2 software update for real-time production data visualization and easy external camera integration, and ClickSmart technology for easy changing of end-effectors.

Companies from numerous industries – including automotive, plastics, metalworking, electronics and co-packing – use Sawyer to complete tasks that cannot be automated with conventional industrial robots due to labour constraints, short product cycles or fluctuations in demand.

At the Hannover Trade Fair, Rethink Robotics provided demonstrations of manufacturing use cases from Germany, Europe and worldwide.

“With Sawyer, Rethink Robotics offers companies a smart, secure and quick-to-implement solution that allows them to automate manufacturing processes quickly and with the necessary flexibility,” says Darius Wilke, Director of European Business at Rethink Robotics.

Automotive robotics market forecast to grow to $6 billion by 2024

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SCARA robots used in the automobile industry will cross over 33 thousand units by 2024, according to research by GM Insights.

The company says this can be credited to increasing usage in applications such as high-speed assembly and handling operations.

Rising demand for reduced bottlenecks and optimized productivity will boost the product penetration.  [Read more…] about Automotive robotics market forecast to grow to $6 billion by 2024

Huawei woos industrial sector with new networking technologies

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Huawei has been trying to woo the industrial sector with new networking technologies and a significant presence at the recent Hannover Messe event

Huawei has been showcasing its solutions and best practices for digital industrial transformation under the theme of “Leading New ICT, Connecting Bits & Gears”.

Focusing on connectivity, Huawei and industry partners are jointly showcasing products and solutions based on new information and communications technology such as the internet of things, cloud computing, eLTE, and 5G, and demonstrating how they can be applied in a wide range of digital industrial scenarios such as:

  • internet of vehicles;
  • internet of elevators and escalators;
  • connected factories;
  • smart logistics; and
  • predictive maintenance.

Huawei is also announcing new collaborations with leading industry partners including Groupe PSA, Telefónica, Munich Airport, Alliance of Industrial Internet, Avnu Alliance, and Schneider Electric.  [Read more…] about Huawei woos industrial sector with new networking technologies

Delta Electronics showcases range of automation solutions at Japan exhibition

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Delta Electronics unveiled a range of smart manufacturing solutions at the recent Techno-Frontier show in Japan. 

Delta says the solutions use the company’s “advanced automation technologies and production expertise to provide mass or customized production with high flexibility”.

Delta’s exhibition features a new integrated robot production line application for the needs of the Japanese market.  [Read more…] about Delta Electronics showcases range of automation solutions at Japan exhibition