EMC filter series. - Schaffner has announced the new FN2500 / FN2640 - EMC filter series* for robotics and datacentres. The new filters have been developed to meet the specific needs of these two important and growing markets. These markets have technical requirements in common that can now be met by these new EMC filters.

Monitoring emissions from space! - With ABB's technology, the GHGSat team is able to precisely locate and measure methane emissions from any given industrial site on earth. The launch of three new ABB-built high-resolution methane sensors doubles the company's capacity to monitor customer sites. In addition to the three units being launched – Luca, Penny and Diako – six additional units are under fabrication at ABB.

Motion control programming in manufacturing tiles. - As a material for the home, workplace, or retail environment, tiles provide a robust and durable surface that can be both practical and elegant. With earliest examples dating back to the 13th century, they last for decades with no visible loss in pattern brilliance or color fade. As good conductors of heat, they adapt to the room’s warmth and help keep your home feeling cozy. And when compared to other materials such as timber and marble, they are highly sustainable as they are made of natural material. At the core of their manufacturing is a Delta DVP50MC series motion controller.

Build AI vision apps without coding! - The current software release 2.6 for the AI vision system IDS NXT focuses primarily on simplifying app creation. The initial phase in development is often one of the greatest challenges in the realisation of a project. With the help of the new Application Assistant in IDS NXT lighthouse, users configure a complete vision app under guidance in just a few steps, which they can then run directly on an IDS NXT camera.

Career and salary survey, 2022,. - Solve the workforce challenge: Automate, innovate, hire and retain great workers. Lack of skilled workers, materials and the economy are biggest threats to manufacturing. Lack of available skilled workers jumped from 37% in 2021 to 57% in 2022.(Control Engineering )

Fast and reliable implementation of Ethernet-APL field devices. - Ethernet Advanced Physical Layer (Ethernet-APL) is the new standard for end-to-end digital communication in the process industry and is also suitable for use in hazardous areas. commModule APL is a new hardware module from Softing Industrial Automation, is designed to support device manufacturers in implementing Ethernet-APL field devices for the process industry quickly and reliably.

High performance videoscope. - Teledyne FLIR has released the FLIR VS80 high-performance videoscope series, a professional inspection tool for use in a wide variety of commercial and industrial applications.

Staying Ahead of Threats to Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity - Manufacturing organizations know that unplanned downtime is costly. What may be less clear is the impact that cyberattacks, like ransomware, have on downtime. Simply put: successful attacks on manufacturing mean downtime–not measured in hours or days, but often weeks or longer. (Automation.com)

Reducing risk of failures in glass furnace refractories. - Deterioration of refractories can increase fuel costs and may cause glass breakouts or failure, which is why it is vitally important to maintain the condition of a glass furnace refractory as it will ensure safety and process efficiency. The LWIR-640 monitoring system from AMETEK Land monitors the exterior of the melt tank and identifies any hot areas that may indicate refractory damage. It also gives an early warning of potential glass breakouts.

Hygienic scale platforms. - Mettler Toledo’s PBD659 and PBA639 hygienic weighing platforms enable manufacturers in the pharmaceutical, chemical and food industries to speed up cleaning processes and ensure regulatory compliance with an optimized hygienic design. The platforms strictly adhere to hygienic design guidelines, facilitate quick and easy cleaning, and meet higher weighing accuracy standards to expedite processing time and reduce production costs.

Dual connectivity protocol conformance test approved. - The Global Certification Forum's (GFC) Certification Agreement Group (CAG) has approved the industry first Dual Connectivity Protocol Conformance test for Standalone (SA) 5G New Radio (NR) on Anritsu Corporation's ME7834NR Protocol Test Platform at their CAG#70 meeting held in April 2022.

All-in-One connectivity for power, signal and data. - TTI is now stocking the Intercontec M12 one cable technology (OTC) motor connectors from TE Connectivity. The M12 metal connectors with IP66/77 protection, when mated, are rated for 500 mating cycles, enabling robust and reliable installation of small servo motors for applications including automation, robotics, packaging, food & beverage, and material handling.

Industrial specification TFT displays. - Review Display Systems (RDS) has announced the availability of a comprehensive range of industrial specification 10.1-inch TFT display modules that are suitable for use in a broad range of industry sectors, applications, and operating environments.

Norm Smith has been appointed as VP of Sales to lead the The Antenna Company's Sales and Business Development efforts

Building resilience in oil & gas supply chain cyberSecurity - While the green energy transition accelerates, the world remains highly dependent on the oil and gas supply chain. Most people tend to think of the oil and gas industry in segmented terms. There’s upstream oil and gas, pipelines, and downstream operations. Like most industries, however, the oil and gas supply chain has become increasingly integrated and complex over the past 20 years. Increased adoption of Industrial Internet of things (IIoT)-based solutions is making it easier to integrate the supply chain and obtain data from all aspects of oil and gas operations from the wellhead to the consumer.(Larry O'Brien, ARC Advisory)

Breakthrough robot alignment software. - ABB Robotics has launched an industry leading, pioneering software solution to transform speed and accuracy in electronics assembly. "Packed with 50 years of software expertise," ABB's High Speed Alignment software is the first to offer manufacturers the ability to increase the speed of 6-axis robots by 70 percent, and accuracy by 50 percent – significantly reducing time-to-market while increasing accuracy levels.

Bridget Fitzpatrick, ISA Fellow and process automation technical expert, died suddenly last month.

Precision power analyser. - The WT5000 Precision Power Analyzer - Transformer Version from Yokogawa, is dedicated to helping transformer manufacturers develop and validate the losses of highly efficient products for utility industry customers.

Integration into configuration platforms facilitated. - The edgeConnector products from Softing's dataFEED family now include a REST API. This makes integration into configuration platforms even easier. In addition, a new licensing model offers more flexibility when deploying the individual products.

10 gigabit industrial Ethernet switch. - The new 10Gb industrial Ethernet switch from Westermo is designed to meet increasing demand for greater bandwidth, enabling modern, large-scale data communication networks to transmit more information than ever before. The RedFox 7528 provides outstanding network performance, reliability and security, making it an ideal solution for mission-critical rail trackside, energy and process industry applications.

Optical connectors and accessories. - Cliff Electronics have increased their range of optical connectors, cables and accessories suitable for many applications from high quality audio and broadcast systems, AV installations, automation, instrumentation, data and IT connectivity, medical equipment, instrumentation, industrial control, data acquisition and other high bandwidth signal connections.

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems take to the road. - NI and key partners have announced the deployment of a fleet of vehicles in Europe, the United States and China that will enable ADAS/Autonomous Driving engineering teams to address top challenges related to data volume, quality, access and utilization. The vehicles are equipped with the high-performance in-vehicle data recording and storage solution from NI and Seagate Technology, with integration services from ADAS experts Konrad Technologies and VSI Labs.

Tony Welter is the new president of the Hydrostatics division of Danfoss Power Solutions.

Award for demand creation. - Anglia Components has been named STMicroelectronics 'UK Demand Creation Distributor of the Year 2021', the award recognises Anglia's exceptional performance for the second year in a row. The award presentation was made in person by Iain Currie, Managing Director UK & Ireland at STMicroelectronics when he visited Anglia in April.

Electronics test systems. - Intepro Systems can help add longevity to existing electronics test systems by facilitating the replacement of test hardware without impacting test procedures or testing programs. This offers users the ability to upgrade components without additional software or fixture costs.

Robotics starter kit. - The Kria™ KR260 Robotics Starter Kit is the latest addition to the AMD Kria portfolio of adaptive system-on-modules (SOMs) and developer kits. A scalable and out-of-the-box development platform for robotics, the Kria KR260 offers a seamless path to production deployment with the existing Kria K26 adaptive SOMs.

A new era of human-robot collaboration. - What if there was a robot that was easy to operate, did not require a safety fence and was also attractively priced? That would introduce a whole new era in human-robot collaboration. This new era is now dawning – with the world's first pneumatic robot from Festo.

IO-Link Technology for Industrial Applications. - IO-Link technology was introduced over a decade ago and the number of IO-Link devices have been expanding and more devices are deployed. The technology continues to evolve with new specifications and standards, including IO-Link Safety and IO-Link Wireless. The IO-Link Community and the working groups have been continuously adding enhancements to IO-Link as it evolves. (ARC Advisory)

Celebrating automation professionals. - The International Society of Automation celebrated the first-ever International Automation Professionals Day on 28 April. The digital event engaged automation professionals from all around the globe to recognize their efforts in the vastly growing automation industry. ISA President Carlos Mandolesi said that automation professionals make up many diverse sectors, and having a day dedicated to those in the field offers a learning opportunity for those unfamiliar with automation.

Emergency shutdown discrete valve controller. - The TopWorx™ DX PST with HART® 7 has just been introduced by Emerson. Units provide valuable valve data and diagnostic information, enabling the digital transformation of process applications. The new DX PST integrates seamlessly with existing valves and control systems, giving operators access to critical valve data, trends, and diagnostics that can be used to predict and schedule maintenance.

Specifications revised and improved - The nonprofit CAN in Automation (CiA) association revises systematically its specifications. This spring, several CANopen profile documents have been improved.the profiles for motor starters (CiA 442), spreaders (CiA 444 series), RFID devices (CiA 445), and programmable power supplies (CiA 453) have been updated.

Using advances in vacuum measurement technology. - In process engineering, the exact observation of pressures in vacuum-assisted processes is an important parameter for ensuring optimum efficiency and the best possible product quality. VACTEST vacuum measurement equipment from Busch is designed to combine the latest advances in vacuum measurement technology with exceptional manufacturing quality - providing an innovative and comprehensive portfolio of active vacuum gauges and controllers. This makes it possible to match the right measurement technology to each and every process.

Green building for Canadian arm of automation company. - Endress+Hauser Canada has erected one of the country's "greenest" commercial buildings for 20 million euros. The recently-opened customer experience and process training center in Burlington, Ontario, roughly 50 kilometers southwest of Toronto, is energy-autonomous and CO2 neutral. The 4,400-square-meter facility – twice the size of the current location – houses a process training center, a large calibration lab, repair facility, training center and state-of-the-art office and recreational space for around 120 people.

Collaboration to accelerate the electrification of heavy machinery. - Danfoss Power Solutions and RISE™Robotics have signed a collaboration agreement to jointly validate and test a key innovation that has the potential to transform the heavy machinery market through electrification. This new partnership is an example of how both companies prioritize innovation and find new ways to meet the increasing demand for electrification solutions coming from current and prospective customers.

Robots for EV batteries. - Two new robot families have been added to ABB's portfolio of large robots for complex manufacturing applications. Delivering enhanced speed, accuracy, flexibility, and a more robust design including integrated process cabling, ABB's IRB 5710 and 5720 robots deliver increased productivity and enhanced performance with higher uptime for applications including electric vehicle (EV) manufacture, foundry, forging, rubber, plastics, and metal fabrication.

Load sensors in the world of greasepaint and legwarmers! - Sensor Tehnology had developed load cells, which is called LoadSense, a couple of years ago, originally for monitoring cargo nets carried under helicopters. They were asked to develop one specific capability within the cell and did so because that technology could transfer to many other fields – although they hardly realised it would get to be a backstage pass to a world of greasepaint and legwarmers! That critical characteristic was robust, industrial-grade wireless communications something in which the company already had a 15year track record from its TorqSense transducer range.

Michael Sleven has been appointed as Managing Director of LEM Europe GmbH and Head of Sales for Germany..

Flammable gas sensors enhance safety. - Blackline Safety announced its partnership with NevadaNano, the world's leading innovator in gas detection sensor technology, which has resulted in the deployment of over 20,000 Blackline Safety G7 wearables and EXO portable area gas monitors on customer worksites integrated with the Molecular Property Spectrometer™ (MPS™) flammable gas sensor offering the most accurate data to enhance safety.

European experience centre shares amazing ideas! - Fluke has a new European Headquarters in Eindhoven (NL), which includes a 400sqm customer experience centre. For the first time, customers will not only be able to see Fluke's range of world-class tools, but experience using them in a variety of real-world applications.

Continuous improvement is not digital transformation. - To be competitive in your industry, it is important to understand the difference between continuous improvements that leverage new technology and manufacturing digital transformation. (Bill Lydon, InTEch)

Franz Praxenthaler has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) to the Management Board of Rosenberger.

Pressure sensor is Ex. - The model MTF-1 pressure sensor module from WIKA is available in a version with ATEX and IECEx approval. The new variant of the compact module supports manufacturers in their development of end products for applications in potentially explosive environments.

Computer systems company earns platinum award. - A Platinum Partner Award for 2021 has been presented to Impulse Embedded by Axiomtek in recognition of their success in integrating industrial motherboards, box computers, panel PCs and embedded SBCs into a large number of projects particularly in the rail, artificial intelligence and building management sectors.

Over-The-Air (OTA) measurement. - An enhanced partnership with Bluetest AB of Sweden has been announced by Anritsu Corporation. This offers a new unified test solution for Over-The-Air (OTA) measurement of 5G mobile terminals.

Study compares methods for measuring composition and energy content in LNG - Endress+Hauser Raman spectroscopy-based analyzer systems are a reliable and low-maintenance alternative to traditional gas chromatography (GC)/vaporizer systems for liquefied natural gas (LNG) composition and energy content measurement during custody transfer transactions. This is the result of a years-long study of the European Gas Research Group (GERG), representing 33 members from 15 countries across Europe, comparing different methods.

Award announced for instrument design. - The Fennia Prize has been awarded to Vaisala in recognition for the industrial design of their new Indigo handheld instrument. This highlights the commitment, customer centricity and creative work behind Vaisala's world-renowned measurement solutions.

Water energy reclamation for process facilities. - Facility owners are striving to make their building systems as energy efficient as possible and a process derived from a research application may help. Improving energy efficiency reduces operating costs and delivers a positive impact on the environment and carbon footprint. The perception regarding process and/or research systems often is there are no opportunities to design a system that can save energy relative to the baseline needed for a specific research application. (Control Engineering)

Looking into substations. - In substations, real-time monitoring is always of critical importance. However, for substations whose operations run on many legacy devices, real-time monitoring can be an enormous challenge for operators. Moxa provides a variety of connectivity solutions for different application demands.

AI in Food and Farm Automation. - Image processing can be used to accelerate, control and optimise processes. When artificial intelligence comes into play, the range of applications becomes even wider. This is especially true for agriculture and the food industry, as highly varying objects and processes are difficult to control with hard-coded machine vision applications. What does this mean in particular and which solutions prove themselves in practice? This is what the May event of the IDS Vision Channel is about.

Re-starting of business in Ukraine. - Business activities are being re-started in Ukraine by Danfoss. Since the war in Ukraine broke out, activities have been put to a halt, and the restarted business activities will be focused on restoring critical infrastructure in damaged cities and towns. A warehouse of the company itself was reported to have been hit by ordinance in early March but no injuries were reported.

Automation Services. - This report looks in depth at the development of the automation service market and the transition towards digital services, which is happening right now. The report is based on a survey with more than 270 participants in total. (ARC Advisory)