Digital machine shop New CAD/CAM Innovations at Mach

At Mach 2026 in Birmingham, Open Mind Technologies will showcase the latest innovations in its Hypermill CAD/CAM suite, highlighting how digital process chains, MES integration and new AI-supported functions are reshaping connected manufacturing.

From the 20th to the 24th of April, Open Mind Technologies will once again be exhibiting at the Mach exhibition at the Birmingham NEC. The CAD/CAM specialist will present the newest advancements from the latest version of its Hypermill CAD/CAM suite on Stand 230 in Hall 17. The focus will be on solutions for digital process chains, connected manufacturing, automation, turning, and Hypermill Virtual Machining. Open Mind will provide live demonstrations and insights into various practical applications of Hypermill.

The collaboration between a CAM system and IT solutions, such as MES, PLM, or a tool management system, is becoming increasingly common in modern manufacturing. On the Open Mind stand at Mach, visitors will see how Hypermill integrates with Hummingbird MES to make production processes more transparent, efficient, and flexible. All production-related data is accessible anywhere in the company at any time. This supports consistent process organisation and distinguishes Hummingbird from many other MES solutions. Every change, such as the completion of a component, is immediately visible to all users without needing to click a refresh button.

An integral component of Hummingbird MES is the Kanban board for planning and workshop oversight. While the planning board provides comprehensive information about processes without assigned tasks, the team board acts as a central communication tool for the entire team. This is where all information on pending orders is consolidated. Every team member has access and can view the process status.

MES and CAM

The Hummingbird MES supports all CAM systems and production machines and integrates seamlessly with Hypermill. The digitalisation through Hummingbird also includes a digital tool management suite in its portfolio. With the ‘Tool Logistics’ module in Hummingbird MES, users can achieve highly efficient digital tool management effortlessly.

A lack of transparency in tool management leads to delays caused by searching for and allocating provisions, as well as costs from inefficient warehousing with excess tool stocks or premature tool changes. In the worst cases, manufacturers may experience significant downtime due to missing or incorrect data. This is where modernisation becomes crucial. Open Mind experts can implement digital processes based on CAM and MES to deliver highly efficient digital tool management through five simple steps.

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The first step is to analyse existing processes and systems. This involves reviewing available tools and storage data, or how tool storage and setup processes are organised. Potential improvements are identified, and a detailed roadmap for system implementation is developed. Standardising data in the Hypermill or other CAM system tool database is a necessary prerequisite for error-free, efficient processes.

Breaking boundaries with rules-based & AI

Also making its Mach debut will be the new Hypermill Intelligence. The clear mission of Hypermill Intelligence is to solve real manufacturing challenges with five core areas that range from rule-based automation to tool and machine optimisation, and also the AI Assistant with Hypermill Chatbot and Hypermill Data Center. This philosophy reliably addresses key issues such as routine tasks, tool errors, processing risks, and knowledge loss. Combining rule-based strategies with AI, this technology combines automation, optimisation, and AI in a meaningful way to deliver measurable results on the shopfloor that gives the end user the right technology for every operation.

For example, the rule-based automation can streamline repetitive CAD/CAM tasks by utilising pre-defined rules, whilst the tool-based automation enables customers to leverage the power of digital twins to ensure the right tools, strategies and parameters are integrated into both CAM and MES. This is enhanced by machine-based optimisation and an AI assistant to personalise real-time guidance for seamless programming workflows.

With the latest 2026 version of Hypermill set for release ahead of Mach, show visitors will witness the European premiere of this new version.

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