"Soft Hand" is German Robotics collaborating robot, represented as an anatomically shaped hand.

Software supplier Machine Works announced the release of Machine Works 8.4. Enhancements include computation of safe holder profiles, multiple simultaneous holder and tool collision checks, improved simulation performance through collision check buffering and extensions to design part comparison Render Query.

Designed to simplify operations and increase manufacturing productivity, integrating this drill into the machining process can reduce machining cycle times by up to 50 %.

Supplies of standard parts, Starck Norma, will present its new products for tool and mould making at Kuteno, the subcontracting fair for the plastics processing industry, from 10 to 12 May in Rheda-Wiedenbrück, Germany.

UK — Agemaspark won the Digital Engineering/Technology Award for their innovative work using 3D printing to develop a new technique to improve the efficiency of a mould tool by as much as 20 percent and reducing cycle times for multi-impression mould tools.

UK — Intech Additive Solutions partners with and licenses Polygonica from Machine Works to enhance their Metal 3D Printing Ecosystem.

Germany/Belgium — European Bioplastics, the association, representing the bioplastics industry in Europe, is pleased to announce the appointment of Maria Neguț as new Head of EU Affairs. She assumed her position on 14 March 2022 and will be based in Brussels.

Software developer Sigma Labs announced that it has signed an agreement with AMFG, a provider of manufacturing execution systems (MES) software for additive manufacturing (AM). The goal of the partners is to expand the footprint of both companies’ solutions and provide the marketplace with an optimised AM solution.

Manufacturers need to measure and quantify the causes of unproductive time so they can optimise their efficiency. Machine Monitoring from Seco Tools provides them with the data-driven knowledge they need to not only manage production efficiency, but also increase both output volume and product quality.

Israel – Additive manufacturing specialist, Azoth, has received XJet’s first Carmel 1400M metal AM System — the first metal and ceramic material jetting system in the world. Repeatable, quality parts suitable for industrial production were the main reasons cited by Azoth for the investment.