October 2019

THE GEAREDmotors and drives specialist Nord Gear is planning to almost double the size of its UK business to around £30m in the five years to 2023. The company, which is celebrating its 25th year in the UK this year, currently employs almost 50 people and assembles up to 30 gearedmotors every day. Together with ready-built assemblies delivered from its parent company in Germany, these account for about 80%of Nord’s UK business. Jutta Humbert, Nord Drive Systems’ joint managing director and daughter of its founder, attended Nord UK’s recent anniversary celebrations, and revealed that the parent company – still family-owned – is aiming to become a €1bn business by 2025. Sales this year are expected to be around €700m. Globally, Nord employs more than 4,000 people, with the US being its biggest market – larger than Germany, which accounts for around 20%of its sales. The company operates 30 assembly plants around the world and, in addition to its geared motors, produces more than 10,000 inverters a year. Nord plans to double the size of its UK business ACOMMITTEE of MPs is warning that the UK has not been quick enough in adopting automation to ensure that its industries remain globally competitive. And contrary to the view that automation and robots are bad for jobs, they conclude that“the UK’s problem is too few, not too many, robots”. Last month, the members of the House of Commons Committee on Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, published a 63-page report* on their investigation into automation and its impact on the future of work in the UK. “The risk we face,”they say,“is not a robot takeover of our workplaces, but that our lack of adoption and the reluctance of businesses and the Government to lead the way in the Fourth Industrial Revolution means other countries will seize the initiative and take the advantage of new technologies – not least the growth and jobs they bring – while we are left behind.” Although the MPs“do not want to dismiss fears about technology replacing workers”, they urge policy-makers and businesses to think about the alternatives.“If we fall further behind in productivity and the adoption of new technologies, then future investment decisions will not follow. Businesses, investment and jobs will move overseas. “The UK’s low automation adoption is part of our lagging productivity, especially for SMEs, which is preventing a much-needed rise in economic growth, wages and living standards,”the MPs continue.“Efforts to remedy this have been slow.” They accuse the Government of not having addressed the potential for boosting automation to help tackle the UK’s relatively poor productivity and to improve living standards. They recommend that, by the end this year, the Government should develop a UK Robot and AI Strategy to improve the take-up of automation and to support British industry. It is“clear to us”, they say, that the future of manufacturing in the UK depends on higher levels of productivity. Robotics and automation offer the possibility to enhance productivity and thus to support higher production and more jobs in the UK. The MPs argue that a lack of awareness and understanding of automation is harming productivity, especially among SMEs. They condemn the Government’s decision to close the Manufacturing Advice Service in 2015 as“a mistake”, which has contributed to making it more difficult for businesses to find help and advice. They recommend that the Government funds an impartial source of advice for businesses that want to invest in automation. The committee says that a UK robot strategy should form part of the Government’s industrial strategy, and that robotics should be an integral part of the Grand Challenges it is pursuing. It regards the lack of focus on automation, beyond AI, in the Government’s industrial strategy as“a missed opportunity”which strengthens the case for a UK robot strategy supporting British innovation and encouraging the adoption of automation. Such a strategy should include actions to help UK automation businesses to grow and remain in the UK. The MPs say that the Government, having ignored calls to support leadership for the automation sector, now has a chance to rethink its attitude. It can bring the industry together, drive investment, and demonstrate support for a sector in which the UK can be a world leader. * You can download the report from http://b.link/cmb630 Robots are not just for car-makers. They can offer benefits to traditional industries such as cheesemaking. Photo: Staubli. n NEWS 6 October 2019 www.drivesncontrols.com p Mitsubishi Electric and Schaeffler Technologies have formed a global strategic partnership that will build on existing collaborations under Mitsubishi’s e- F@ctory Alliance, which they have both been members of since 2010. Schaeffler will contribute its expertise in mechatronic products, condition-monitoring systems and digital services, while Mitsubishi will contribute its know-how in factory automation and processing technologies. Together they will help users to integrate machine and plant data into MES and ERP systems. p SKF is buying Presenso , an Israeli company that develops and deploys artificial-intelligence-based predictive maintenance software that detects previously hard-to-find anomalies in production plants automatically. SKF will use the business to enhance its rotating equipment performance capabilities. p ABB has started to build a 67,000m 2 robotics manufacturing and research facility near Shanghai in China, in which robots will build robots. The $150m factory, due to open in 2021, will incorporate the latest manufacturing technologies, such as machine learning, to create what is claimed will be the robotics industry’s most advanced and flexible manufacturing plant. p Voith Group and Moog – both manufacturers of electric, hydraulic and hybrid drive systems – are in talks to form a joint venture in Germany, aimed at expanding the hydrostatic servo-hydraulics business in various markets. The proposed joint venture would combine their expertise to enter new markets. It would focus on r&d, design and assembly, as well as service. p Rockwell Automation has acquired Mestech Services , a global provider of MES/MOM (manufacturing execution systems/manufacturing operations management) and consulting and systems integration services. Mestech, founded in 2008, is headquartered in Pune, India, with operations in Germany and the US. p A group of former managers of CUI Inc has bought the company’s components business from its parent, CUI Global . The newly- formed private business, CUI Devices , will continue to develop technologies in areas including motion and sensors, as well as expanding into new technologies. p The global market for robotic grippers was worth around $1bn last year and will expand with a CAGR of about 10% in the ten-year period to 2029, according to a new report from Future Market Insights . Drivers for this growth include demand from the automotive and electronics sectors. www.futuremarketinsights.com MPs warn that the UK has ‘too few robots, not too many’