Automation & Controls

Mazak Corp., Florence, Kentucky, announced the start of assembly operations at its latest production facility in Inabe City, Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Coldwater Machine Co., Coldwater, Ohio, an engineered solutions company that manufactures and integrates assembly automation and special machines for a variety of industries, appointed Nathan Wenning, P.E., to application engineering manager.

Esben Østergaard, co-founder and chief technology officer of Universal Robots A/S, a manufacturer of collaborative robots, was awarded the automation industry's most prestigious honor, the Engelberger Robotics Award.

Marposs has announced the availability of its Mida Laser 75P Hybrid tool setter that combines a noncontact laser and touch probe in one system. While the laser enables measurement and checks on high-speed rotating tools, the laterally mounted touch probe monitors nonrotating, lathe tools.

Teradyne Inc., North Reading, Mass., and the shareholders of Mobile Industrial Robots ApS, Odense, Denmark, announced the acquisition of privately held MiR for €121 million ($148 million) net of cash acquired plus €101 million ($124 million at the current exchange rate) if certain performance targets are met extending through 2020.

While manufacturers around the world have reached new heights in technology adoption and equipment innovation, there are still many pain points that hinder optimization, efficiency and even safety on the plant floor. Sensai, an augmented productivity platform for manufacturing operations, unveiled a list of the top five plant floor risks that reduce efficiency, drain productivity and negatively impact business results if left unattended.

Myths and debates swirl around the questions of using robots to automate CNC operations. From "Should we automate?" and "Can we automate?" to "How should we automate?" Are they true or not? Let's look at a few of the most-discussed topics regarding robotic CNC automation.

Fastems LLC is launching a new generation of flexible manufacturing systems engineered to fulfill manufacturers' growing needs to handle shorter product life cycles, higher product mixes and lower volumes.

Users of the Mitsubishi Electric Automation MELSEC iQ-R automation platform can now achieve even greater productivity and lower cycle times with the introduction of the C80 Series CNC. The rack-based C80 features a CNC-dedicated CPU to maximize the control's performance.

HEIDENHAIN Introduces the new ND 5023 digital readout (DRO) for use with manually operated machine tools. This new DRO replaces HEIDENHAIN's entry-level ND 522/523 models and consolidates it to one 3-axis product. The new DRO comes equipped with a new TFT color display that significantly improves the readability of the information displayed over older models, plus features other design changes and enhanced functions.

Tooling Tech Group, Macomb, Mich., acquired Century Tool Group, which is composed of Century Tool & Gage Co. in Fenton, Mich., and CTG Bel-Kur Automation in Temperance, Mich.

Make a complex process simple and intuitive. This was the goal for the specialists at DATRON AG intent on developing an innovative control called "DATRON next." The result is a control system with surface optics that compare to the newest smartphone technology--clearly laid out tiled optics, self-explanatory icons with intuitive control logic, clearly illustrated tools in 3D optics.