EMO 2023:
Megatrends Supporting Manufacturing Companies
in International Competition
European manufacturing companies are faced with multiple challenges when competing internationally. The hurdles that have to be overcome range from high energy and personnel costs to shortages of skilled workers and unstable supply chains for a wide variety of components. However, these very same difficulties are also giving rise to some remarkable innovations. The smart use of digitalization - including artificial intelligence - in combination with robotics and automation solutions can bring about major leaps in productivity and help raise competitiveness on a long-term basis. Cutting-edge solutions will be on show at the EMO Hannover 2023, the world's leading trade fair for production technology. Practical examples from industry and research show the most effective ways of combining the different technologies.
Highly attractive platform
for information exchange
For Maschinenfabrik Berthold Hermle AG from Gosheim, EMO Hannover is the international trade fair for engineering in 2023. The main topics - especially for Hermle - are digitalization and automation. "Despite the continuous flow of new trends, we always put our customers - and their wide ranging requirements - first," reports Udo Hipp, Head of Marketing. "Especially in our growth areas, which involve high levels of automation, we often have to consider the aspects of Industry 4.0 and the digitalization of our products. Here we offer solutions in the form of digital modules such as Digital Production, Digital Service and Digital Operation - with each module interlocking with the others. For example, the Digital Operation module provides machine tuning, permitting dynamic adaptation of the controller parameters and intelligent processing setups. The Digital Production module contains various tool and information management and automation control systems. The Digital Service module includes remote maintenance, diagnostic and monitoring systems.
"That's a whole bunch of digitalization components we are able to offer our customers," says Hipp. "At EMO Hannover 2023 we will be showcasing permanent digitalization and a number of automation solutions, including robotic and handling systems adapted to our machining centers. One of our priorities is ensuring that our automation solutions are easy to integrate into areas and industries that have not yet given much thought to these processes. It is this very shortage of skilled workers - a frequently heard topic of discussion at present - that is forcing us and our customers to invest in sophisticated automation solutions combined with highly efficient machining centers, ideally all from a single source. We are hoping to see large numbers of high-caliber visitors at EMO Hannover 2023, and we're also hoping that the event will serve as a platform for an intensive exchange of information and for new projects."
Flexible and automated loading
The manufacturing industry, especially the machining industry, is currently having to contend with decreasing batch sizes and increasing levels of variance in parts. The situation is further exacerbated by the shortage of skilled workers in all areas. This is forcing companies to keep their machines in operation for as long as possible. One solution offered by automation experts Schunk GmbH & Co. KG, based in Lauffen am Neckar, Germany, is automated pallet handling. This allows systems to be loaded around the clock, even in small-batch and single-part production and with minimum staffing levels.
The system consists of a palletizer module and robot coupling for automated loading. The workpieces and clamping devices are set up on clamping pallets, magazined and successively loaded onto the machining center from the pallet magazine. On the bottom of the pallets is a uniform interface to the zero point clamping system. Similar to an adapter, it connects the machine to a wide variety of workpieces. The pallet systems also have a side interface which allows the pallets to connect securely to a robot or gantry. The southern German company has developed a new generation of power clamping blocks for automated clamping of workpieces in the machine. "The robot and Schunk gripper can then directly load and unload the centric clamping vices and workpieces," explains Markus Michelberger, Head of Sales Clamping Technology at the company's site in Mengen. "At EMO Hannover, we will be showcasing further automation and digitalization options in machining, as well as new developments in the field of sustainable, resource-saving clamping equipment."
Image: R. Eberhard, messekompakt.com, EBERHARD print & medien agentur gmbh
Source: Deutsche Messe AG