Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

manufacturers

Opinion: Radical rethink of automotive R&D investment required in 2020

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Continued disruption, restructuring and re-shaping of the automotive industry will be required to make increasing levels of R&D affordable whilst simultaneously representing a major growth opportunity in the year ahead, according to engineering consultancy Horiba Mira.

The proliferation of electrification and connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) technologies will continue to be amongst the top automotive trends in 2020 which will continue to push up the already soaring costs of research and development.

Indeed, latest figures show European auto manufacturers spent a record £33.3 billion on R&D – 35 per cent more than the £24.6 billion spent in 2014/15. [Read more…] about Opinion: Radical rethink of automotive R&D investment required in 2020

Automotive manufacturers need digital transformation to survive disruption

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Automotive manufacturers need to accelerate digital transformation initiatives in order to survive disruption, according to analysis by GlobalData.

From automation and seamless connectivity to personalization, digital technologies are putting the automotive industry in a state of disruptive transition.

Against this backdrop, auto manufacturers need to explore new digital solutions across the value chain to conceive new models and survive in the rapidly transforming industry, says GlobalData, a data and analytics company. [Read more…] about Automotive manufacturers need digital transformation to survive disruption

Brain Corp achieves ‘record sales growth’ in 2019 amid strong demand for autonomous mobile robots

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Brain Corp, a San Diego-based robotics and artificial intelligence company, says it achieved “record sales and revenue growth in 2019” as retailers increasingly turn to robotic solutions to reduce costs and enhance in-store experiences.

Brain Corp achieved more than a 300 percent increase in revenue last year, fueled by a surge in interest for BrainOS-powered floor care machines by major retailers, including Walmart.

The company also saw a 760 percent increase in global deployments. It now provides the intelligent backend for one of the largest fleets of its kind in the world – approximately 10,000 robots deployed or enabled. [Read more…] about Brain Corp achieves ‘record sales growth’ in 2019 amid strong demand for autonomous mobile robots

Automation Drives COGS Reduction for Small and Mid-sized Manufacturers

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By Mike Franz, founder and creator of the WorkCenter from ManufacturingPower

Automated access to summary cost and margin information for each SKU delivers light SaaS “MRO/tail-spend” price transparency, returning a minimum 11-14 COGS (cost of goods sold) reduction to the bottom line.

Every manufacturer must pay attention to costs and competitors’ pricing. For better or worse, purchasing professionals are rewarded for capturing the lowest price; few have the time to scour the internet for ever RFQ to see if the bid offered is indeed competitive. Measuring value with price experiments is not realistic.

Full-time competitive pricing professionals could work 24/7 to generate statistically valid and accurate data. For the small and mid-sized manufacturer, the solution is to automate price comparison functionality. Until recently this was prohibitively expensive and often too complex. Automating costs and competitive prices can be achieved in a $5,000 per year SaaS solution. [Read more…] about Automation Drives COGS Reduction for Small and Mid-sized Manufacturers

New product launches to bring new dawn for industrial robotics

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The advent of robotics has been a boon for the industrial sector and new innovations have been offering improved efficiency, less downtime, and better products.

From implementing robots for mundane tasks to enhancing precision of existing tasks, industrial robotics has come a long way.

The advancements in technologies have enabled manufacturers to utilize robots that are lightweight, perform multiple tasks, and improve efficiency. [Read more…] about New product launches to bring new dawn for industrial robotics

Universal Robots partners with DLL to launch financial services leasing program

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Universal Robots, the largest collaborative robot manufacturer in the world, has launched a new cobot leasing program in partnership with DLL, a global vendor finance company.

The new agreement enables all manufacturers, regardless of size or capital equipment budgets, to reap the benefits of automation without worrying about cash flow and seasonal fluctuations.

Klaus Vestergaard, CFO at Universal Robots, says: “We’re leveling the playing field by enabling all manufacturers to immediately put cobots to work without an upfront capital investment. [Read more…] about Universal Robots partners with DLL to launch financial services leasing program

Universal Robots sells almost 40,000 units

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Universal Robots has sold almost 40,000 units to date, but says the market for collaborative robots remains “largely untapped”.

The company started selling its collaborative robots more than 10 years ago, and has become the leader in a category which it effectively created.

At the time, collaborative robots were unheard of, and industrial robots were always thought of as big, powerful machines which needed to be caged off in case of danger to human workers. [Read more…] about Universal Robots sells almost 40,000 units

Elisa Smart Factory and TCS partner to develop advanced analytics solutions to manufacturing sector

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Elisa Smart Factory, an industrial internet of things and data analytics provider, has agreed a partnership with Tata Consultancy Services, an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization.

Under this collaboration, Elisa Smart Factory and TCS will jointly undertake efforts to market and deploy Elisa Smart Factory IIoT and advanced analytics solutions to a broad spectrum of industry manufacturers.

Kari Terho, general manager, Elisa Smart Factory, says: “Elisa Smart Factory solutions represent a tremendous opportunity for industry manufacturers, especially for companies in the process and discrete manufacturing. [Read more…] about Elisa Smart Factory and TCS partner to develop advanced analytics solutions to manufacturing sector

Manufacturing industry turning to robotics and AI in challenging economic landscape, says Deloitte

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The manufacturing industry is turning to robotics and artificial intelligence as well as a range of other strategies to navigate an increasingly challenging economic landscape, according to a report by Deloitte.

The management consultancy says that, as the risk of a global economic downturn grows, the industrial manufacturing industry faces a challenging landscape in 2020 replete with trade tensions, muted job growth, supply chain volatility and an ongoing skilled talent shortage.

Yet, despite these headwinds, industry leaders are rapidly developing coping strategies – not only to weather the brewing storm, but to thrive in spite of it. [Read more…] about Manufacturing industry turning to robotics and AI in challenging economic landscape, says Deloitte

Essentium research shows industrial-scale 3D printing moving into mainstream manufacturing

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Essentium, a leading innovator in industrial additive manufacturing, has released the first in a series of findings from independent global research on the current and future use of industrial 3D printing.

The study reveals a significant increase in the use of large-scale additive manufacturing (AM).

The number of manufacturers using 3D printing for full-scale production has doubled compared to last year (40 per cent in 2019; 21 per cent in 2018). [Read more…] about Essentium research shows industrial-scale 3D printing moving into mainstream manufacturing