Machine Building

How machine builders can address the issue of single-use plastic

Plastic waste deserves no place on our planet. This is the strong and clear message coming from the public and rightly so, but what does it mean for designing and building packaging solutions in the future? Neil Beaumont of Lenze discusses the challenges and solutions available.

1st August 2019

What are the options for AGV navigation sensors?

Various technologies are available on the market for bringing an automated guided vehicle (AGV) to its destination. Let us first of all say: many roads lead to Rome. There is no right way and no wrong way. Decisive is always the application itself - that means the question of where and how the given AGV is used.

1st August 2019

Fast turnaround on customised enclosures

To the untrained eye, electrical enclosures can come across as very uniform, standardised products. However, experts such as Spelsberg, manufacturer of premium enclosures, must be adaptable when it comes to meeting specific customer requirements within a short timeframe. Thanks to decades of experience in providing standard and custom enclosures, the business has a proven track record in delivering optimised electrical protection products quickly. Chris Lloyd, Managing Director at Spelsberg UK, explains the challenges of supplying enclosures to customers quickly, and how Spelsberg as a business overcomes them.

31st July 2019

Choosing an automation partner for Industry 4.0

Automation vendors are increasingly being considered as project partners by machine builders placing as much importance on the system design and support capabilities as on the extent of their product portfolio. Neil Beaumont, Marketing Communications Manager at Lenze, offers insight to those about to choose an automation partner.

31st July 2019

A beginner's guide to Just in Sequence (JIS) production

Automotive manufacturing has long been recognised as a technological role model for other sectors. As the wider industry looks to automotive for guidance on how to advance, how can automotive manufacturers continue to improve their processes? Here, Stefan Reuther, Chief Sales Officer at COPA-DATA explains how Just in Sequence (JIS) production can help.

30th July 2019

Grasping the opportunities afforded by Industry 4.0

"˜Industry 4.0' promises to transform the way we manufacture and distribute goods and services. No longer simply a concept, it is very much of the "˜here and now', and the opportunities for growth and productivity it affords to manufacturing enterprises of all shapes and sizes are ripe for the taking, as Lenze's Neil Beaumont explains.

30th July 2019

How secure are IT systems in manufacturing companies?

Sweden is often considered to be one of the world's most cybersecure countries but despite this, it was revealed in 2017 that a security slip up made confidential police records available to IT workers in the Czech Republic. This throws into question other security systems across Sweden and the globe. Here, Sean Robinson, service leader at industrial automation provider Novotek UK and Ireland, explores how automation systems in manufacturing can be made more secure.

29th July 2019

How AI-based predictive maintenance benefits robots

As Industry 4.0 turns into a reality, businesses that are introducing more robots into the production environment will be able to benefit from increasingly efficient maintenance regimes. As with any asset, these critical machines will run at peak efficiency when operators have access to predictive maintenance tools. The latest predictive analytics system supplied with Mitsubishi Electric industrial robots uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a key feature for optimisation. Barry Weller, Product Manager at Mitsubishi Electric, looks at how AI-based predictive analytics can support robot predictive maintenance and how this can benefit end users.

26th July 2019

50 years of the MacRobert Award and British innovation

In 2019, engineering companies throughout the UK are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the prestigious MacRobert Award, the country's longest running prize for engineering innovation. As a previous winner, Renishaw is celebrating the success of others in the industry as well as reflecting on its own engineering innovations which continue to shape the world around us.

25th July 2019

What does the future hold for motion control?

Industrial control is a highly developed field that advances year on year as the underlying technology advances. But will it and all its specialist sub-sets continue to thrive? Gerard Bush, a motion specialist with INMOCO, offers his opinion.

24th July 2019