By 2018, around 1.3 million industrial robots will be entering service in factories around the world, according to the latest forecast from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR). Revenues are soaring and the global market for robotic systems is already worth around $32bn. Between 2013 and 2014, sales to the high-revenue automotive sector grew by a record-breaking 43%, the IFR reports.
Sales of industrial Ethernet technologies are growing faster than ever before and now account for 38% of the global market for industrial networks, according to the latest annual analysis by the Swedish industrial networking specialist, HMS.
The ISO (International Standards Organisation) has published its long-awaited standard that gives guidance on ensuring the safety of humans working with collaborative robots. ISO/TS 15066:2016 – Robots and robotic devices – Collaborative robots specifies safety requirements for collaborative industrial robot systems and the work environment, and supplements the requirements and guidance given in ISO 10218-1 and ISO 10218-2, published in 2011. The 33-page document will help integrators of robotic cells to conduct risk assessments when installing collaborative robots.
Rockwell Automation is buying MagneMotion, the US manufacturer of intelligent conveying systems, for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition will complement Rockwell’s existing iTrak linear transport system – which it acquired when it bought Jacobs Automation in 2013 – to create what Rockwell calls “the broadest portfolio of independent cart solutions” in this emerging technology area.
The Swedish industrial communications company, HMS Industrial Networks – a subsidiary of HMS Networks – is buying eWon, the Belgian specialist in IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) and intelligent Internet-based remote access routers, for €30m. HMS says the deal will make it a market-leader in remote access and monitoring technologies for industrial communications.
A series of tests of industrial gearbox efficiencies conducted by a team of Belgian researchers have cast doubt on the accuracy of efficiency figures given in gearbox manufacturers' catalogues. The researchers, from the University of Ghent, tested more than a dozen gearboxes and found that the measured efficiencies ranged from 25% worse to 11% better than those given by the manufacturers in their catalogues.
RS Components has announced plans to place a greater emphasis on its own-label products and has launched a new brand, RS Pro, to identify its range of more than 40,000 own-label industrial and electronics products. It also plans to extend the range and to back them with an RS Seal of Approval, “representing leading industry standards for audit, inspection, test and certification”.
The Fourth Industrial Revolution – also known as Industry 4.0 – combined with other socio-economic and demographic changes, will transform labour markets in the next five years, leading to a net loss of more than five million jobs in 15 major developed and emerging economies, according to new research published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) at its meeting in Davos, Switzerland, this week.
The global market for electric motors will expand from just under $100bn in 2014 to reach more than $140bn by 2022, according to a new report from Grand View Research. It says that advances in technology and regulatory policies aimed at improving energy efficiency will be vital factors in driving this growth, which represents a CAGR of 4.5% from 2015 to 2022.
Schneider Electric is issuing firmware updates for more than a dozen Ethernet communications modules and CPUs in its Modicon M340 PLC family after a vulnerability was found that could be exploited to stop a device or execute code on it remotely.
The US motion control specialist Allied Motion Technologies is buying the German motors and servodrives manufacturer, Heidrive, for €20m (about $22m). Allied says that the acquisition will broaden its geographical reach and expand its product and technical capabilities.
The Japanese bearings-maker Minebea is merging its business with that of the electronics parts manufacturer Mitsumi Electric, whose wide-ranging portfolio includes DC motors, stepper motors and sensors. The aim of the deal – which takes the form of a share swap which will turn Mitsumi into a wholly owned subsidiary of a new business called Minebea Mitsumi – is to combine Minebea’s expertise in metal processing with Mitsumi’s electronics know-how to produce tiny, high-performance components that meet the needs of the Internet of Things (IoT).
One year after Danfoss’ takeover of the Finnish drives-maker Vacon, the leaders of the the merged business have been talking about their plans for the future. At the recent SPS IPC Drives show in Germany, Danfoss Drives’ president, Vesa Laisi, restated his aim of becoming the world’s biggest drives-maker. “We really want to challenge ABB as market-leader,” he said in Nuremberg.
The 2015 SPS IPC Drives show was remarkable for the number of agreements and understandings signed by various industrial communications organisations during the event.
Festo has opened a new factory in Germany that implements many Industry 4.0 concepts. The 66,000m2 plant, in Scharnhausen near Stuttgart, has cost around €70m to date, and is three times the size of the previous plant, located 8km away. It employs around 1,200 people making products such as pneumatic valves, valve terminals, linear actuators and electronic assemblies.