Substantial growth
Industrial automation specialist B&R sustains its impressive growth rates and continues to gain market share with its innovative solutions. Particularly in demand: the intelligent SuperTrak transport system, powerful ACOPOS P3 servo drives and the web-based mapp View HMI solution.
"We're going to be continuing our growth streak in 2016," said General Manager Peter Gucher at the annual press conference in the run-up to the SPS IPC Drives. According to the VDMA's latest numbers, machine manufacturing saw a 2% increase in revenue over the first half of 2016. "We were significantly higher than that, and we've made another surge over the past few months," said Gucher. "We've done this by providing our customers not only with innovative products, but also with optimal support as they implement advanced manufacturing strategies for mass customization."
Intelligent linear transport system
B&R's SuperTrak transport system represents a further step toward mass production of customized items. Dependable, precise and remarkably low maintenance – the SuperTrak melds seamlessly with robotics and CNC systems to create integrated production lines. State-of-the-art linear motor technology and independent shuttles provide highly responsive transport for efficient production at any batch size.
Web-based HMI for industrial applications
In 2016, B&R added the web-based mapp View HMI solution to its mapp Technology software framework. "Our customers are really enjoying the ability to design modern user interfaces using mapp View," reports Gucher. By making it easy to implement smartphone-like features like embedded video and multi-touch gestures, mapp View helps increase productivity and keep downtime to a minimum. Since it functions independently of the operating system, mapp View can run on any mobile device, including smartphones and tablets. "With mapp View we've succeeded in fusing the worlds of web-technology and automation in a way that doesn't require development teams to include web design experts."
Advanced system architecture for commercial vehicles
With B&R's X90 system, manufacturers of construction, agricultural and municipal vehicles can now benefit from B&R's 35 years of automation experience and enjoy access to the absolute latest hardware and software technology. "Powerful tools like our Automation Studio automation software and the mapp framework aren't available with conventional solutions found in these industries. B&R technology is going to help these manufacturers take some big leaps forward with their applications," said Gucher confidently.
Growth industry: Packaging
B&R's growth spans all industries, with packaging being particularly strong at the moment, as Gucher highlighted: "Packaging customers especially appreciate the dynamics and precision of our ACOPOS P3 servo drives." Exceptional axis synchronization accuracy and integrated safety technology make it possible to design more agile packaging machinery for smart factories.
Growth markets: India and Northern Europe
Over the past 12 months, B&R has responded to increasing demand for its solutions by opening new offices in Valencia, Strasbourg and Mumbai, as well as a new subsidiary in Finland. "More new locations are in planning all around the world," said Gucher.
