The latest advances in technologies such as sensing, actuation, and perception are enabling cobots to tackle more complex and delicate processes in manufacturing and logistics activities, as the experts at Yamaha Robotics explain.

Manufacturers continue to face pressure from rising costs, labour shortages and increasing demands on productivity and quality. For many SMEs, the question is no longer whether to invest in automation, but how to do so in a controlled and commercially viable way, say the experts at Innomech.

When you're dealing with hazardous locations in modern factory automation, the experts at Kollmorgen explain why proportionate specification matters.

In food and beverage, the stakes are especially high - a single point of delay can undo the efficiencies achieved everywhere else. Here, Beth Ragdale, software business manager at Beckhoff UK, explains why tackling bottlenecks requires a rethink of traditional production lines, moving beyond purely mechanical fixes to embrace flexible, software-driven solutions.

Fully autonomous production environments leave no room for unexpected downtime. In facilities designed to run with minimal human intervention, even a minor motor failure can halt output and undermine return on investment. Here, Dave Walsha, sales and marketing director at DC motor supplier Electro Mechanical Systems (EMS), explores why the success of lights-out manufacturing depends not only on advanced robotics and control software, but on the motion components at the heart of automated systems.

Based on highest resolution and a non-contact, non-destructive operating principle, interferometry measurement technology is used in numerous industries for quality assurance in high-tech areas. It reliably delivers high precision distance and thickness values says Glenn Wedgbrow, Business Development Manager at Micro-Epsilon UK.

As automation systems grow more complex, machine builders are rethinking how they design and deploy motion. Nicola Pezzolato, Application Engineering Leader EMEA at Kollmorgen, explores how a new generation of servo technology is helping manufacturers simplify design, improve flexibility, and build greater resilience into their supply chains.

Fortress Safety has expanded the communication capabilities of its tGard range to deliver a certified interlocking device ready for IO-Link Safety. Here the company explains the advantages of using the IO-Link Safety protocol.

Dr Mark Gardiner, director at Sprint Electric, explains the importance of harmonics in motor control and how power factor will become an increasingly important issue for manufacturers in the future.