With its upgraded FX5-ENET Ethernet unit for Melsec iQ-F series PLCs, Mitsubishi Electric elevates the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) experience. The upgrade is enhancing operational efficiency through cloud computing, advanced cybersecurity and email functions.

Automation and digitalisation are indispensable features of modern factories. The manufacturing industry is now turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to spark its next stage of development. But what will manufacturing look like in the future? How much higher can efficiency levels be raised? And what does the arrival of AI on the shop floor mean for skilled workers?

High-tech company Trumpf presents figures for the fiscal year 2022/23: Sales revenue increases by 27 percent to 5.4 billion euros, Ebit rises by 31 percent to 615 million euros. Number of employees worldwide increases by almost 2,000 to 18,400, in Germany by 700.

Facing rising production costs, scarcity of skilled labor, and a demand for lower manufacturing prices, WTO, a precision toolholder manufacturer, takes a groundbreaking leap into the future. Partnering with workholding technology manufacturer, Hainbuch, WTO launches a fully automated Smart Factory where all processes are robot-controlled, revolutionising the manufacturing industry.

With a wealth of data generated from production processes of all kinds, shops need to understand how to use that data to their advantage. Now, progressive manufacturers can move toward even greater benefits with software that fulfills the promises of Industry 4.0.

With Artificial intelligence (AI) an important technology is moving from the research lab into daily use. Not fast enough, perhaps, in the view of those hoping to gain a significant competitive edge from AI. Rather sinisterly in the view of others who currently only have a vague idea of how self-thinking machines could change their everyday working lives.

With Kelch's modular concept, companies receive individual support in setting up and expanding their Smart Factory. The so-called Smart Factory Services are tailored to the needs of machining companies and consist of modules that can be combined individually.

More than half of UK manufacturers have been significantly impacted when it comes to recruitment in the last year according to a new report. The 2022 Manufacturing Agility Assessment, which was launched on day one of Smart Factory Expo in Liverpool, painted a worrying picture of labour shortages and supply chain disruption, with 69 percent citing issues with sourcing material and components.

For five days, a total of 64,298 visitors frequented the fully booked Stuttgart fair grounds during AMB. The 1,238 exhibitors from around the world — with around 25 percent hailing from outside Germany — presented a variety of innovations, products, services and concepts.

Industry 4.0 — a term that has fallen more often in recent years than most other. At leading trade fairs such as the Hannover Messe, the topic has been playing a central role for a long time. But what does industry 4.0 actually mean? We explain the concept.