Industrial Technology

Grolsch bottling plant upgrade goes with a swing, thanks to Festo automation

New servo technology from Festo is helping Grolsch to put the iconic swing tops on its bottles of lager. The ‘swing-top transfer unit’ was custom-designed by Festo in conjunction with system integrator MCA Linear Motion Robotics and is installed at the Grolsch Enschede plant in The Netherlands.

22nd October 2021

Sustainable and ethical procurement emerges as a key business pressure

RS Components has launched the 2021 Indirect Procurement Report ‘From Disruption to Recovery’ – the resulting report of responses from the fifth annual survey produced in association with the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS). It explores how the category of supplies for maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) is managed. The survey was the biggest yet, with more than 1,300 global respondents from the procurement profession.

22nd October 2021

LG Motion shortlisted for Innovation in Growth Award

LG Motion has been shortlisted for the Innovation for Growth award. This category asked entrants to discuss recent innovative solutions and show how they have helped give the business a competitive edge. 2020 was no doubt a year in which many businesses had to make hard choices in order to continue trading, and the engineering and manufacturing industries were hit hard by the pandemic. LG Motion made the conscious decision to focus on new and developing markets during this time, in order to grow business.

22nd October 2021

Disruptive technologies to deal with disruption

Covid-19 has accelerated the need for, and the move towards, increased digitalisation across industry. Mike England, chief operating officer at RS Components, outlines some of the solutions and trends.

21st October 2021

CKF Systems shows you how to boost productivity at Robotics and Automation exhibition

CKF Systems will be sharing the latest technology and solutions available to increase productivity, reduce overheads and give added flexibility on their Stand 608 at the Robotics and Automation Exhibition on the 2-3 November 2021 at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

21st October 2021

SKF commits to net zero across full supply chain by 2050

SKF has made a commitment to have a supply chain with net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. President and CEO Rickard Gustafson said: “Having already made significant progress on our journey to reducing emissions from our own operations to net zero by 2030, we are today committing to an even more ambitious goal, spanning our full supply chain. Reaching this goal will require major focus and commitment from our own operations, as well as from our suppliers, partners and customers.”

21st October 2021

Architectural products safely 3D printed with Igus energy chain system

Whether creating unique store concepts, futuristic concrete stairs and modern building facades, Dutch architectural design company Aectual produces very special architectural projects with the help of its robot-driven XXL 3D printer. For reliable ‘lights-out’ robot operation, the designers opted for highly flexible chainflex cables in a triflex R energy chain with a pneumatic retraction system. In the seventh axis, an E4/light energy guide supplies the robot with energy and data.

20th October 2021

Nord Drivesystems presents technologies for efficient, digital system concepts at SPS

Intelligent and efficient drive systems help to optimise and speed up processes whilst saving costs. Nord Drivesystems will show how this looks like at SPS in Nuremberg from 23 to 25 November 2021. The focus will be on innovative drive solutions for smart and digital automation – from modern frequency inverters to high-efficiency IE5+ motors up to the DuoDrive geared motor.

20th October 2021

Yokogawa invests in Web Synergies to expand global digital transformation capabilities

Yokogawa Electric has invested in Web Synergies, a Singapore-based company that provides IT and integrated IT and operational technology (OT) solutions. Yokogawa and Web Synergies have been successfully collaborating on solutions and services for internal and external digital transformation (DX) engagements for more than ten years. This equity participation will enhance this collaboration and complement Yokogawa’s DX engineering capabilities to support the development of integrated IT/OT portfolios and the shift to the cloud.

20th October 2021

Small business joins the automotive research conversation

Griffiths Precision Moulds (GPM) is conducting independent research into the use of 3D printing and electro-active aerodynamics for the design, manufacture, and performance of supercars. Brad Griffiths, a senior CAD engineer at the small family-run business on the Wirral, designed the experimental vehicle using 3D modelling software back in 2018 and is now coming to the end of a five-year building process. The car is called Nighthawk, “which is apt,” Brad laughs, “given how many hours of sleep I have lost in the process of making it.”

19th October 2021