Beckhoff: 40 Years of Innovations
Spanish company Packfeeder has developed a family of automatic, robot-supported bottle unscrambling machines for the packaging industry. The so-called Pickfeeder uses the eXtended Transport System (XTS) from Beckhoff to implement a machine concept that is highly flexible and suitable for the most demanding sorting jobs in packaging with virtually no changeover effort.
When Meta, Google, and Microsoft collectively committed billions to “open” hardware standards, industry analysts inevitably declared the end of proprietary dominance. The narrative is intoxicating: freedom from vendor lock-in, dramatic cost reductions, and accelerated innovation. The Open Compute Project (OCP) market was projected to reach $36 billion by 2025, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 18% through 2033. Yet beneath these impressive figures lies an uncomfortable truth that most technology journalists and industry commentators refuse to articulate: open hardware has become a luxury commodity exclusively available to those who can afford to employ armies of specialists to manage it.
Allied’s “Ask The Expert” series taps into the experience and expertise of key thought leaders and subject matter experts from the more than 500 global suppliers we work closely with to bring customers solutions for their most challenging problems (and the daily ones, too). They spoke with David Garcia, product manager at Moxa, who generously offered his vast experience and insight to help them better understand the myriad of considerations needed to create a secure, future-proof Ethernet network.
The integration of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) into your facility’s operations can offer a multitude of benefits, such as increased efficiency and productivity. However, ensuring the safety of these robots and those who interact with them is paramount. This blog post will delve into key safety considerations for organizations and end-users when deploying AMRs in their facilities, with a focus on the application environment.
One of the easiest ways for manufacturers to transform their operations with IIoT capability is to use IO-Link. This internationally accepted platform allows sensors to go beyond a simple ON/OFF reading and communicate details about fault detection, condition monitoring, and component identification, and more throughout the system. Thanks to IO-Link, manufacturers can shorten commissioning time, minimize the impact of downtime, and boost their production availability.
In the era of digital transformation, everyone is combining forces so that various software applications such as product configurators, CPQ, PLC, PLM/ERP and others can ideally communicate with each other. The EPLAN Partner Network was founded over two years ago and around sixty companies have joined in the meantime. Strategic partners such as Phoenix Contact, Siemens and Rockwell Automation, plus technology partners – including ABB, Lapp Kabel, Wago and Weidmüller – come together under one guiding principle: providing the highest degree of integration capability with EPLAN for their solutions.

This webinar presented by Beth Lessard and Keith Cordero will be highlighting three Panduit solutions that will optimize network equipment and cabling to ensure that your spaces are efficiently and properly managed to support ever-evolving business needs of today and beyond. Products that will be featured include PanZone TrueEdge Wall Mount Enclsoure, Cable Managers, and Adjustable Depth 4-Post Rack.

The Siemens SIMOVAC medium-voltage non-arc-resistant and SIMOVAC-AR arc-resistant controllers have a modular design incorporating up to two 12SVC400 (400 A) controllers, housed in a freestanding sheet steel enclosure. Each controller is UL 347 class E2, equipped with three current-limiting fuses, a non-load-break isolating switch, and a fixed-mounted vacuum contactor (plug-in type optional for 12SVC400). The enclosure is designed for front access, allowing the equipment to be located with the rear of the equipment close to a non-combustible wall.

Power is vital to production, and well-designed control cabinets are key. Allied Electronics & Automation offers a comprehensive collection of control cabinet solutions including PLCs, HMIs, contactors, miniature circuit breakers, terminal block connectors, DIN-rail power supplies, pushbutton switches, motor starters, overloads, power relays, industrial Ethernet switches and AC drives engineered to keep your operations running safely, reliably and efficiently.
Learn more HERE.

With multiple ports and a host of user-configurable features, the R95C 4-Port Motor Driven Roller Controller gives system designers a more flexible and efficient way to control motor driven rollers while keeping conveyors and other equipment, including Remote Safety Relay (RSR) devices, in one system. It easily integrates via IO-Link, directly to PLCs via Modbus… Read More…

The SPPM series includes 12 power ratings, starting from 25 W (90.8 mm height, 51 mm width, 28.8 mm depth) up to 800 W (226 mm height, 116.5 mm width, 40.7 mm depth). Thanks to its optimized housing design, the SPPM series enables panel space savings of up to 25% and weight reduction of up… Read More…