The Josef Ressel Centre for Intelligent and Secure Industrial Automation (ISIA) is housed at the Salzburg University of Applied Sciences and its aim is provide a hub for investigating the future of digitalisation and industrial automation, focusing specifically on the potential of digital assistants for industrial machines.

Suzanne Gill looks at some of the highlights of the SPS 2022 event, which was the first physical version of the event since 2019.

Given that machine vision technology is merging with Machine Learning (ML) to lead the transition to Industry 4.0, the possibilities are enormous, especially at the edge, according to ABI Research, which forecasts that by 2027, total shipments of camera systems will reach 197 million, with revenue of US$35 billion.

The new Safety Virtual Experience from OMRON provides a 360-degree view of safety solutions for factory floors in automotive and intralogistics applications.

According to research from Visual Components, 55% of manufacturing decision makers in the UK, US, Germany and France admit that their organisation is failing to invest in training on the use of new technologies.

Valmet will supply a flue gas condensing process to Vantaa Energy’s new high-temperature incineration plant in Vantaa, Finland. The plant is designed to process household and industry waste that is classified as hazardous and not suitable for recycling.

The Make UK/BDO Q4 Manufacturing Outlook survey shows manufacturing contracting by -3.2% in 2023. This comes on the back of a forecast -4.4% contraction this year, although Make UK stressed the number for this year is relative to a very strong 2021 which reflected the pandemic bounceback.

The mobile robot market is showing no signs of slowing, according to the latest research from Interact Analysis. Despite the market for mobile robot technology being well established, new applications and opportunities continue to emerge.

An independent report highlights ten actions that can help industrial users improve their energy efficiency.

EEMUA has appointed Jim Lewis as Chair of the EEMUA Council. The Council is the senior body in EEMUA setting the overall direction and policy of the organisation.

International market analysis and consulting firm, PAC Innovation Radar, has ranked Phoenix Contact’s open PLCnext Technology ecosystem as ‘Best in Class’ with an overall score of 1.91 in the category ‘Open Digital Platforms for Machine-edge-centric Industrial IoT in Europe 2022’.

The major standards development organisations, including OPC Foundation, PI, ODVA and FieldComm Group, have released the first whitepaper of their joint working group which is called the Industrial Ethernet Security Harmonization Group (IESHG).

The cost of downtime to large manufacturing and industrial organisations has rocketed since 2020, according to a new report from Senseye.

The metaverse has been billed as the future of the Internet and a prime catalyst in changing how we work, communicate, seek information, and consume content and services. But that future and its direction remain unclear, according to ABI Research.

A new report from IMechE, entitled ‘Engineering A Net Zero Energy System’ looks at the engineering challenges in achieving the Net Zero goal – which many countries have set for 2050 – that require a switch from fossil fuel to low-carbon energy in less than 30 years.

Watlow, a manufacturer of industrial thermal systems, has completed its acquisition of Eurotherm from Schneider Electric.

New research from Schneider Electric and Omdia shows that 57% of industrial companies have carbon-neutral targets. However, almost half are yet to fully deploy initiatives to achieve their sustainability goals.

Siemens is collaborating with Hilscher to offer a wide range of communication protocols. By integrating the cifX PC card technology from Hilscher into Siemens’ SIMATIC IPCs, they can provide flexible access to all relevant fieldbus and real-time Ethernet systems.

The 31st edition of SPS, the trade fair for smart and digital automation, is set to take place from 8 to 10 November 2022, at the Nuremberg Messe. The annual event offers a venue for automation providers to showcase their latest products, solutions and technologies in the field of industrial automation.

A new whitepaper document focuses on power distribution in control panels and how to incorporate more advanced components into your designs to reduce installation time, free up space, use more affordable materials, and simplify identification during servicing.