Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

predictive maintenance

Siemens partners with Databricks and FFT to turn production data into scalable AI-driven insights

by

Siemens has announced a new edge-to-cloud integration with Databricks, the Data and AI company, and long‑time automation partner FFT Produktionssysteme (FFT).

Together, the partners will connect production data directly to enterprise AI – without complex IoT middleware. This will help industrial customers transform their production data into actionable insights and scale industrial AI across global operations.

With the new integration, customers are able to stream contextualized shopfloor and plant data from Siemens Industrial Edge via the FFT DataBridge directly to the Databricks Platform, where it can be analyzed and used to train AI models centrally for implementation across global production networks. [Read more…] about Siemens partners with Databricks and FFT to turn production data into scalable AI-driven insights

Opinion: Why robot dogs are leading the pack in factory floor efficiency

by

By Andrew Hamilton, head of the Digital Process Manufacturing Centre (DPMC) at the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS)

Manufacturing facilities today are sprawling, interconnected environments where equipment operates continuously and processes stretch across large physical footprints.

From factory floors and plant rooms to service corridors and external assets, engineering teams need clear visibility across areas that are not always easy, or safe, to access.

Maintaining performance in these conditions depends on accurate, timely information and the ability to respond before issues escalate. [Read more…] about Opinion: Why robot dogs are leading the pack in factory floor efficiency

ExRobotics launches UL-certified inspection robot for hazardous industrial sites in North America

by

ExRobotics has announced the North American launch of its UL Certified ExR-2.5 autonomous inspection robot at the recent Energy Drone & Robotics Summit in Houston.

This certification marks another industry first for ExRobotics. The ExR-2.5 is the only UL Certified inspection robot for potentially explosive industrial environments. This provides operators with a recognised pathway to deploy autonomous robotic inspections in hazardous locations.

Oil and gas operators face mounting pressure from ageing infrastructure, acute workforce shortages and the escalating cost of unplanned downtime. The UL Certified ExR-2.5 was developed to address a critical industry need. [Read more…] about ExRobotics launches UL-certified inspection robot for hazardous industrial sites in North America

Top 7 AI Agent Platforms for Industrial Manufacturing in 2026

by

Manufacturing has entered a new phase of digital transformation. Over the past decade, factories invested heavily in IoT sensors, Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), industrial analytics, and predictive maintenance solutions.

These technologies generated unprecedented operational visibility, allowing manufacturers to monitor equipment, production lines, quality metrics, and material flows in real time.

Production managers still spend countless hours reviewing dashboards, comparing reports, coordinating maintenance activities, responding to quality deviations, adjusting production schedules, and balancing resource constraints. [Read more…] about Top 7 AI Agent Platforms for Industrial Manufacturing in 2026

How Equipment Asset Management Practices Must Evolve for Industry 4.0 to Deliver on its Promise

by

Industry 4.0 carries an enormous promise. Connected sensors feeding real-time data into intelligent systems, machines that predict their own failures, production lines that self-optimise in response to demand signals, supply chains that adjust without human intervention. The technology is real, the investment is substantial, and the case studies are credible.

So why are so many manufacturers still fighting the same battles they were fighting a decade ago? Why does unplanned downtime still cost Fortune 500 companies an estimated $1.4 trillion per year, according to the Siemens True Cost of Downtime 2024 report?

Why do maintenance teams with IIoT sensors on half their assets still spend most of their time reacting to failures rather than preventing them?

The answer, more often than not, has nothing to do with the sensors or the algorithms. It has to do with the asset management infrastructure underneath them. The EAM layer, the systems, data models, and practices that govern how equipment records, spare parts catalogues, work orders, and maintenance decisions are organised and acted on, was built for a different era. [Read more…] about How Equipment Asset Management Practices Must Evolve for Industry 4.0 to Deliver on its Promise

ANYbotics expands global presence with new engineering and AI hub in Barcelona

by

ANYbotics, a provider of AI-driven robotic inspection solutions, has opened a new office in Barcelona, Spain. 

Located at the DFactory Barcelona campus, the new engineering and AI hub will be the company’s third global location, alongside Zurich and San Francisco, and will support accelerating demand for ANYbotics’ autonomous inspection solutions across asset-intensive, process sectors.

Today’s expansion follows a period of significant growth for ANYbotics, as companies in sectors including oil and gas, chemicals, utilities, and materials move from pilot projects to full-scale deployments of its autonomous inspection robots. [Read more…] about ANYbotics expands global presence with new engineering and AI hub in Barcelona

The Hidden Lifecycle Challenge Behind Industrial Automation Growth

by

Automation is Driving New Infrastructure Demands

Factories and shipping centers keep changing fast, driven by new ways of making things smarter.

Staying ahead now depends on tools that boost production, cut mistakes, and less waste, while moving goods more smoothly.

Yet here’s the twist, robots, artificial intelligence, and machines running themselves need better brains than before. [Read more…] about The Hidden Lifecycle Challenge Behind Industrial Automation Growth

From oil platforms to power plants: Dietsmann showcases robotics-driven maintenance in Africa

by

Dietsmann, the independent specialist in operation and maintenance (O&M) services for energy production facilities, will participate as a Bronze Sponsor at African Energy Week (AEW) 2026 – taking place from October 12-16 in Cape Town.

The sponsorship deepens a presence in African energy that stretches back decades and reflects the company’s growing role in the policy conversation after it joined the African Energy Chamber earlier this year.

Dietsmann’s participation at AEW 2026 reflects the growing role of specialist maintenance contractors in Africa’s energy industry. With much of the continent’s production now coming from mature fields, the contractors that keep those facilities running reliably and at lower cost have become more important than ever. [Read more…] about From oil platforms to power plants: Dietsmann showcases robotics-driven maintenance in Africa

Why Factory Automation Now Depends on Software-Savvy Workers

by

Automation is becoming a software problem. The deeper robots move into production, the more workers need to be confident handling dashboards, updates, alerts and data-driven decisions.

The old image of factory automation was a robot arm behind a safety cage, doing one repetitive task faster than a human being ever could. But whilst robots weld, lift, assemble and pack at speeds fast enough to warrant their own keepers and still save thousands of man-hours, the knowledge of that robot engineer is increasingly software-based.

Meanwhile, the International Federation of Robotics said that, worldwide, more than half a million industrial robots were installed in 2024 alone, topping up a figure approaching 5 million robots in operational use. [Read more…] about Why Factory Automation Now Depends on Software-Savvy Workers

Europe’s most important industrial lubrication conference celebrates its 10th anniversary in Bilbao

by

Europe’s most important conference on industrial lubricants will celebrate its 10th anniversary at the Euskalduna Convention Centre in Bilbao.

On Wednesday and Thursday of this week, 200 professionals from Europe, Asia and America will attend this new edition of LUBMAT, a leading international biennial event specialising in lubricants, tribology and production equipment monitoring.

For two consecutive days, companies, manufacturers, technology centres and researchers will share the sector’s most recent scientific and technological innovations to address challenges such as sustainability, digitisation and industrial efficiency. The forum is co-organised by the Tekniker technology centre, the Jost Institute for Tribotechnology of the United Kingdom, Bureau Veritas and ATTEN2.

Currently rated as one of Europe’s main meeting points for the lubrication industry and R&D, LUBMAT 2026 features an extensive scientific and technical programme focused on areas such as advanced lubricants, friction and wear reduction, condition-based maintenance, online equipment monitoring, smart sensors, AI applied to industrial maintenance and the development of solutions that are safer and more sustainable. [Read more…] about Europe’s most important industrial lubrication conference celebrates its 10th anniversary in Bilbao