Earlier this month, attendees at Informa Markets Engineering West, or IME West, could see the latest advances in manufacturing technologies, from robotics and packaging to plastics. The trade show and conference in Anaheim, Calif., featured more than 1,400 exhibitors; educational sessions and workshops; and 13,000 engineers, designers, and business representatives. IME West combined five events: Design & Manufacturing (D&M) West, Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) West, Automation Technology (ATX) West, Plastec West, and WestPack. Here are six of the top robotics and automation displays from IME West: Bosch Rexroth demoes AMR, cobot Bosch Rexroth had an extremely active booth as…
The future of automation was very much in focus at the Automatica trade show last month. Over 570 exhibitors from 35 countries and more than 28,000 visitors from around 75 countries made their way to the robotics and automation trade show in Munich, Germany, according to trade show organizers. In terms of keynotes, panel discussions, presentations and live demonstrations, there were more than 150 of them. Here are some insights from the show, which took place from June 21 to 24 at the Trade Fair Center Messe. Industrial automation growing By 2026, the industrial automation market in Europe, the Middle…
With a combination of mobile robots, easy-to-use interfaces, and real-time business intelligence, Locus Robotics Corp. is helping warehouse customers meet the demands of today’s growing e-commerce and other businesses, said Jasmine Lombardi, chief customer officer at the company. She spoke at the Reuters Supply Chain Execution 2022 Conference in Chicago earlier this month. Wilmington, Mass.-based Locus' autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) and software serves more than 200 facilities spanning a dozen countries, as well as more than 80 customers. They include CEVA Logistics, DHL, Geodis, Material Bank, Shipmonk, and Taylored Services. Commissioning steps for a LocusBot Lombardi took the Reuters Supply…
Robots and other automation are critical in meeting the logistics and supply chain challenges that businesses face today today, according to presenters at the Reuters Supply Chain Execution 2022 Conference in Chicago this week. “We’ve come a long way since we started making the investments [in automation],” said Sally Miller, CIO for North America at DHL Supply Chain. Perhaps most notable of these investments was in picking robots from Locus Robotics Corp. The partnership started with a single robot five years ago, and now, DHL is using 2,000 LocusBots in various locations. Earlier this year, the mobile robots made their…
As more operators of warehouses and other facilities adopt automation, its essential that they closely monitor their robot fleets to ensure they get the most value out of them. The first step is to determine an initial expected return on investment (ROI) prior to the introduction of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) into the environment. Users must then keep close tabs on performance to ensure that calculation isn’t deteriorating over time, and to know what changes to make if the ROI figure starts decreasing. “A lot of companies are embracing robots because of labor shortages – anything from distribution centers for…
Fleet management software continues to evolve, enabling not only better and more efficient operations of the robots themselves, but also the interoperability of robots from different manufacturers. It can also be integrated with enterprise resource planning, warehouse management systems, and other software, though much of this integration is still at an early stage. “The main differentiator for MiR is the amount of sensors we use on our robot to feed data into a planning algorithm,” said Ed Mullen, vice president of sales for the Americas at Mobile Industrial Robots ApS (MiR). “We collect five different types of sensor data. When…
From path planning to object recognition, artificial intelligence is essential to improving robotic piece picking, particularly in manufacturing and e-commerce. “The number of AI applications and providers using AI in robotic picking solutions continues to increase,” said Thomas Evans, chief technology officer at Honeywell Robotics. “In the past year, we’ve seen an increase in the demand for automation, particularly around robots that use machine learning [ML] and artificial intelligence.” “Quantifying the impact and improvements can most easily be estimated by the efficiencies and increased scope of robotics in autonomous pick-and-place tasks,” he added. “The improvements most readily tied to increasing…
Many of the robots displayed at Pack Expo in Las Vegas this week included vision systems designed to eliminate or at least greatly reduce the need for human oversight in various packaging operations. The more that such oversight can be eliminated, the more efficient the robots and the quicker they can provide a positive return on investment, said the vendors. The global vision-guided robotics market was valued at $5.97 billion (U.S.) in 2018 and could reach $12.03 billion by 2026, according to Research and Markets. It projected a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.8% to 2029. “The increasing need…
With demand for packaging machinery and automation continuing to grow, more than 1,500 exhibitors displayed their products at Pack Expo and the Healthcare Packaging Expo in Las Vegas. The co-located events featured educational sessions and various demonstrations as they returned for the first time in 18 months. North American machinery shipments will reach $12.8 billion in 2026, representing a 5.2% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), forecasts the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies (PMMI). Much of that machinery will involve robotics and related technologies as the industry attempts to match the dual challenges of customers’ need for speed and efficiency…
One of the major themes at Fabtech 2021 in Chicago this week was the need for small-to-midsize companies to add automation to their operations. There is not enough skilled or unskilled labor to fill the demand. Large companies with varied, small-batch production face a similar dilemma of a lack of workers to meet production needs. The COVID-19 pandemic did increase unemployment, and many people in the service industry have departed or changed jobs. However, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce noted that “there are now half as many available workers for every open job across the country as there have been…
CHICAGO—Fabtech 2021 here this week provided robotics and other automation companies with the first chance to display their latest fabrication technologies and upgrades to an in-person audience, many for the first time in a couple of years. Attendance may have diminished since 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, but exhibitors at Fabtech 2021 reported strong engagement with manufacturers. With shortages of skilled labor, it's no suprise that interest in automation continues to grow. The global market for robotic welding and peripherals could experience a experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6%, growing by $2.3 billion (U.S.) between 2021 and…
Fabtech 2021 in Chicago this week was one of the first robot-related trade shows since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The show was had good attendance and thousands of exhibitors, even though the Delta variant is still putting a lid on many other conferences and events, with some returning to virtual formats. However, Fabtech 2021 was scaled back from the 2019 version, a decision that was made before the Delta variant hit the headlines. According to show management, there were 9,000 exhibitors and an expected 21,000 attendees this year. In comparison, more than 12,000 exhibitors and about 35,000 attendees…
