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IntelliFinishing Systems Adapt Better When Labor is Short

Labor availability has become one of the most persistent operational challenges across manufacturing. Recruiting skilled workers, particularly in specialized roles like painting and finishing, is difficult in most markets. For facilities running traditional finishing lines, a single absent employee

Vention and FANUC America unify industrial and collaborative robots on a single AI platform

Vention and FANUC America have integrated FANUC's full robot portfolio into Vention's AI-driven platform, letting manufacturers design, simulate, and deploy aut

AI safety agents hit zero misses in first industrial trials as automation sector accelerates

Industrial AI safety deployments achieve a perfect recommendation capture rate in early trials, while automation launches and leadership moves signal a sector i

What Separates IntelliFinishing Custom Coaters from Their Competition?

In the custom coating industry, differentiation is rarely about a single advantage. It is the combination of flexibility, capacity, quality controls, and competitive pricing that separates operators who can sustain long-term customer relationships from those who cannot. For IntelliFinishing custom c

Cranswick deploys Rockwell Automation pick-and-place robots to hit 240 cycles per minute in end-of-line packaging

UK food maker Cranswick replaced manual end-of-line packaging with autonox Delta robots running Rockwell Automation controls, reaching 240 picks per minute.

Cranswick deploys Rockwell Automation robotics at 240 picks per minute to automate its most labor-intensive packaging line

Cranswick's pigs-in-blankets line now runs 240 robotic picks per minute using autonox Delta robots and Rockwell Automation controls, freeing workers for higher-

Cranswick deploys Rockwell Automation robotics to hit 240 picks per minute on pigs-in-blankets line

UK food maker Cranswick replaced manual end-of-line packaging with an autonox Delta robot system that picks and places 240 sausages per minute.

Industrial manufacturing M&A hit $173B and automation capex is accelerating, operators need to move now

PwC reports record $173B in industrial M&A, up 28%, as Roland Berger forecasts 6–9% annual automation growth through 2030.

What features should Custom Coaters consider if looking for a new finishing system?

Choosing a new finishing system is a significant capital decision for any custom coater. The range of parts, the pace of production, and the unpredictability of future contracts all create pressure to get the specification right the first time. Industry practitioners who have gone through that proce

How Many Product Painting Recipies Do You Need?

For custom coaters and some OEM manufacturers, finishing recipe flexibility is not a luxury. It is a core operational requirement. Managing a wide range of part numbers, substrates, and customer specifications means that coating systems must be configurable enough to handle significant variation whi

What is SCADA?

SCADA, or supervisory control and data acquisition, is a foundational technology for plant managers and operations teams that need real-time visibility and control over industrial processes. Despite how widely it is deployed across manufacturing and process industries, the term still draws blank sta

What is a friction driven conveyor used in finishing?

In finishing environments, conveyor selection has a direct impact on cleanliness, noise levels, maintenance costs, and overall operational efficiency. One technology that draws consistent attention from facility managers and finishing professionals is the friction-driven conveyor, a system built aro

Prince Hydraulics Finally Gets The SCADA System They Wanted

For Prince Hydraulics, the road to a functioning SCADA system was more than a decade in the making. As far back as 2011, a group of plant employees presented to corporate leadership with a clear ask: find a way to bring all the information operators need into one place and make it easy to apply to t

The Challenge of Being a Custom Coater

For custom coaters operating as job shops, no two days look the same. Part sizes vary, customer specifications shift, and the shop floor has to adapt quickly to whatever work comes through the door. That kind of environment demands finishing equipment that can keep pace, and it is precisely where th

Industrial automation's mid-2026 moment: AI picking, superhumanoids, and the safety certification push

From AI-based grippers to ISO 27001-certified robot makers, industrial automation's summer 2026 wave carries concrete operational implications.

Industrial M&A hit $173 billion over the past year, with mega-deals now accounting for 56% of deal value

PwC and BCG data confirm a 28% surge in industrial manufacturing M&A, driven by AI infrastructure, grid modernization, and conglomerate carve-outs.

Cobot orders surged 55.6% in Q1 2026 as automation demand shifts away from automotive OEMs

A3 data shows North American robot orders held near flat in Q1 2026, but collaborative robots and life sciences led sharp gains as automotive OEM demand slumped

Agentic automation hits enterprise scale: Automation Anywhere, Yaskawa, and KUKA signal a new operating model for industrial AI

From billion-request IT service desks to robots that write their own work orders, agentic AI is moving from pilot to production across manufacturing and operati

Roland Berger forecasts 6-9% annual growth as industrial automation shifts from traditional systems to intelligent platforms

Industrial automation is entering a five-year growth cycle, but humanoid hype at Automate 2026 is outpacing what factory floors can actually deploy today.

93% of manufacturers have MES, but only 23% have fully integrated it across the enterprise

Rockwell Automation's new report of 1,560 manufacturers finds MES adoption is near-universal, but enterprise-wide integration remains the industry's defining ga

AI kaizens, agentic systems, and pricing pressure: what manufacturers are actually doing with IIoT in 2026

From TE Connectivity's AI vision gains to outcome-based pricing debates, industrial AI is moving from pilot to operational reality across the plant floor.

Industrial manufacturing M&A hits $173 billion as convergence deals crowd out single-theme bets

PwC's 2026 midyear outlook finds industrial M&A up 28% year-over-year, with mega-deals and strategic buyers driving the surge.

Most mid-sized manufacturers are stuck in AI pilot purgatory, Kaufman Rossin research finds

73% of manufacturing companies remain in AI testing phases, and not one has reached full operational deployment, per Kaufman Rossin research.

ABB Robotics launches AI-powered visual platform as manufacturers push physical AI and data governance to the front of the automation agenda

ABB Robotics' new AI visual platform, physical AI for mid-market plants, and a data-governance push are converging into a practical 2026 automation agenda.

Technology in manufacturing: the operational trends shaping factory floors in mid-2026

From physical AI to an 80% automation gap, here are the manufacturing technology shifts ops leaders need to act on right now.

73% of mid-market manufacturers are still testing AI, with zero at full deployment

New Kaufman Rossin survey data reveals most mid-market manufacturers are stuck in AI experimentation, held back by siloed data and legacy ERP systems.

Global M&A hits $2.8 trillion in H1 2026, with mega-deals and AI infrastructure pulling industrial manufacturing to a 28% surge

Global deal value hit a record $2.8 trillion in H1 2026, up 48% year-on-year, as AI infrastructure, grid modernization, and defense reshape who buys what.

Automate 2026 sets records with 50,000 registrants as humanoid robots and industrial AI take center stage

Automate 2026 drew 50,000+ registrants and 1,230 exhibitors to Chicago, marking the biggest year yet for North America's leading robotics event.

Analog Devices maps the semiconductor case for physical intelligence in industrial automation

ADI's Fiona Treacy lays out how AI-driven physical intelligence and humanoid robotics are reshaping factory systems and semiconductor demand.

Robotics in manufacturing: five shifts defining factory floors in mid-2026

80% of U.S. factories still run without automation. Here's what physical AI, new cobots, and vendor restructuring mean for ops teams right now.