New Study Finds Cybersecurity as Top Concern Among Automotive Manufacturers

Results from the 9th annual State of Smart Manufacturing Report: Automotive Edition are out. The global study encompasses the responses of 182 leaders from automotive manufacturers, automotive supply manufacturers, and electric vehicle manufacturers across 15 of the leading manufacturing countries.

This year’s report emphasizes the evolution of the automotive industry, revealing a focus on harnessing emergent technology to reduce risk, generate growth, and maximize workforce potential. Automotive manufacturers are acutely aware of the industry's evolution in the era of Industry 4.0, particularly as cyberattacks resulted in $1.99 billion in system downtime costs in the first half of 2023 alone.

Key global findings include:

• Cybersecurity risk is listed as the top external obstacle for automotive manufacturers in 2024 – up from 9^th position in 2023.
• 97% of automotive manufacturers are using or evaluating smart manufacturing technology – up from 85% in 2023.
• Wearable technology is listed as one of the top 10 investment areas for automotive manufacturers in 2024, ranking third overall.

Learn more here.

Rockwell Automation Meets Evolving Needs of OT Environments with Enhanced Industrial Data Centers

The newest generation of Industrial Data Centers (IDC) offers a flexible, scalable compute solution for medium-to-large sized businesses interested in streamlined data collection and storage, with a goal of plant floor virtualization. IDC Gen 4.0 now offers on-cloud backup through Veeam Software, reduced server footprint, improved physical security, and an industrial-rated design geared toward harsh environments.

Manufacturers need a way to securely collect and store critical data but may lack the skillset to deploy and maintain the necessary technology. Rockwell Automation operational technology (OT) managed services can help ease the load of data center management, allowing in-house engineering and information technology (IT) teams to focus on other high-priority business objectives.

IDC Gen 4.0, paired with Rockwell Automation OT managed services, provides access to industry-leading expertise, and enables manufacturers to achieve lower cost of ownership, increased productivity and ease of management. Learn more here.

Rockwell Automation to Advance Intelligent Automation, Mobile Robotics in Manufacturing Logistics in Collaboration with NVIDIA

Rockwell Automation announces further collaborations with NVIDIA to supercharge the development of safer and smarter industrial AI mobile robots.

Earlier this year, Rockwell announced its ongoing work with NVIDIA to increase the scale and scope of AI in manufacturing. The collaboration is now expanding to involve robotics, helping drive the use of AI in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to improve performance and efficiency. Rockwell brings AMRs and production automation applications to industrial customers who are looking for increased efficiencies in their factories. This will help unlock unrealized potential in this space via the integration of the NVIDIA Isaac robotics platform.

“We’re invigorated by this continued collaboration with NVIDIA,” said Ryan Gariepy, CTO, OTTO Motors by Rockwell Automation. “Rockwell's industrial AI expertise, combined with NVIDIA AI and robotics technologies, is going to help drive an exciting new generation of autonomous mobile robots.”

Learn more here.

Multicom Resources selects Rockwell Automation to automate critical minerals R&D plant With PlantPAx

A company dedicated to delivering critical resources for a sustainable future, Multicom Resources, is investing in a new Research and Development Plant (RDP) to be built on the Saint Elmo Mining Lease at Julia Creek, for the refinement of Vanadium Pentoxide and High Purity Alumina (HPA).

The RDP – which is scheduled to be productive by the end of 2024 – will be used to continue to develop Multicom’s process intellectual property (IP), and be utilised to produce up to 26,000 tonnes per annum of these critical minerals. Multicom’s Julia Creek Saint Elmo mine is in Queensland’s North-West Minerals Province, which holds 18% of the world’s stores of Vanadium.

“Multicom is a company that embraces sustainability throughout its operations. It provides minerals for energy-efficient solutions, and researches new extraction techniques to minimise environmental impacts. Its dedication to a sustainable future aligns well with Rockwell’s sustainability goals, so we were delighted to work with a company with a similar vision,” said Anthony Wong, regional director, South Pacific, Rockwell Automation.

Learn more here.

Rockwell Automation Unlocks the Next Generation I/O with HART Integration

Industrial manufacturers can simplify maintenance, increase productivity, and maximize uptime with the new Allen‑Bradley® Compact 5000™ Isolated Analog HART I/O Module. By integrating HART capabilities, this module provides traditional I/O capabilities while unlocking valuable insights into device health and advanced diagnostics.

This enables users to manage their systems, facilitates online addition and replacement of process devices, and provides access to crucial diagnostics. This innovative technology can decrease downtime by providing users with easy access to diagnostics through the seamless integrated HART feature in the Studio 5000 Logix Designer® application.

Compact 5000 Isolated Analog HART I/O Modules from Rockwell Automation are designed to meet the demands of noise-sensitive applications, providing channel-to-channel isolation to help achieve reliable performance. Integrating with PlantPAx® 5.0 or higher provides compatibility with existing systems, streamlining the configuration and operation for a more efficient control environment.

Learn more here.

Rockwell Automation Celebrates Third Annual APAC PartnerNetwork Awards

Rockwell Automation is pleased to announce this year’s winning partner companies, awarded at the company’s Asia-Pacific PartnerNetwork™ Conference in Bali, Indonesia.

More than 250 partners from across Asia and the Pacific attended the invite-only event. The program featured keynote presentations from Rockwell Automation leadership and guest speakers, open discussions with program managers, networking, and educational breakout sessions. A highlight of the event was the gala dinner where the winners of the third annual PartnerNetwork awards were announced.

The awards recognize the achievements of organizations that have successfully implemented innovative and transformational solutions using Rockwell Automation technologies. Partners were also recognized for projects driving sustainability.

For the full list of winners, visit here.

Rockwell Automation Increases Asset Visibility and Mitigates Risk for Manufacturers

Industrial organizations are facing a wide range of challenges including unmanaged assets on the plant floor, legacy hardware and networking equipment, a large variety of asset types, network complexity, and a lack of internal resources. The Vulnerability Discovery Service (VDS) from Rockwell Automation can help overcome these challenges by providing a comprehensive view into the plant floor network -based assets and their associated cyber risk.

VDS helps manufacturers establish a baseline for their operational technology (OT) cybersecurity journey, providing them with a place to start and plan for continuous improvement. This solution is ideal for those just starting their cyber journey, looking to maintain critical uptime, and lack visibility across their enterprise.

Learn more here.

ROKLive Kuala Lumpur Highlights Adoption of Emerging Technologies as Key to Driving Digital Transformation

Rockwell Automation hosted its annual ROKLive Southeast Asia event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. With the theme 'Discover What's Possible,' the event showcased the latest innovations in industrial technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud-based manufacturing execution systems (MES), and cybersecurity, while addressing key challenges and trends in manufacturing.

This year's ROKLive event served as a platform for customers and partners to dream big and present an opportunity to educate themselves on transformative technologies like AI, Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality (AR/VR), and robotics, discovering how these innovations can help revolutionize their business.

Read more here.

Rockwell Automation Partners with Mahindra University to Train Students in Sustainability Best Practices

Rockwell Automation has signed a memorandum of understanding with Mahindra University, one of the premier educational institutions in India, to develop a collaborative framework to create, implement, and promote a comprehensive ‘Climate Solutions’ course. The goal is to equip students with skills and knowledge in sustainability best practices. The course will launch in August 2024.

The collaboration’s comprehensive curriculum will include fundamental sustainability concepts, methodologies, and real-world applications. In addition, the partnership can establish a climate solutions laboratory that will offer students invaluable hands-on experience with advanced technologies. Outside of academia, joint research efforts will delve into pressing sustainability issues, fostering innovation and effective solutions.

For more information, visit here.

Rockwell Automation Expanding Presence in India with New Manufacturing Facility

Rockwell Automation announced plans to open a new manufacturing facility in Chennai, India. The 98,000-square-foot facility—with space for potential expansion—will help Rockwell build a more resilient, agile, and sustainable supply chain in the Asia Pacific region and around the globe.

India has the world’s fifth-biggest and fastest-growing large economy. The country’s economic policies will continue to have a significant impact on the global economy, particularly in the areas of trade, investment, and innovation. Rockwell is investing in India by expanding its manufacturing presence and building a new factory in Chennai. The facility will be in the same industrial park as Rockwell’s CUBIC manufacturing facility to help maximize supply chain resilience and create additional career opportunities for employees.

For more information, visit here.

Fiix by Rockwell Automation Announces Industry-leading GenAI Prescriptive Work Orders

Rockwell Automation is excited to add cutting-edge, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) prescriptive work orders to Fiix Asset Risk Predictor software, creating the first complete predictive and prescriptive maintenance solution to help manufacturers eliminate unplanned downtime.

Fiix Asset Risk Predictor’s powerful AI can be set up in as little as two weeks and starts predicting asset failures days in advance. With the addition of Fiix Prescriptive Maintenance, it now features GenAI capabilities that transform failure predictions into detailed, actionable work orders for maintenance teams. Work orders are generated using asset data, completed work orders and trusted maintenance sources. Teams can then review and edit work orders, and instantly push them to any computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) or enterprise asset management (EAM) tool. All data is kept completely private and protected by the highest security standards.

To learn more about Fiix Asset Risk Predictor, visit here.

Rockwell Automation Expands Application Coverage with Permanent Magnet Motors, Extends Device Analytics in Medium Voltage PowerFlex VFDs

The latest firmware release for PowerFlex^® 6000T medium voltage variable frequency drive (VFD) now supports efficient permanent magnet (PM) motor applications. As manufacturers in the oil, gas, HVAC, paper, water, metals, and forestry industries aim for new energy efficiency and sustainability goals with PM motor solutions, the PowerFlex VFD supports high-speed applications up to 120 Hz output frequency, from 2.3…11 kV up to 680 A.

The PowerFlex 6000T VFD offers expanded predictive maintenance capabilities enabled by TotalFORCE^® technology. Communicating real-time component health data helps reduce downtime and provides predictive maintenance alerts for fans, transformers, and airflow along with motor and machine bearings and lubrication. Plus, the drive displays runtime alerts for critical components like power cells.

Click to learn about the advantages of medium voltage VFDs.

New FLEXLINE 3500 low voltage motor control center

Rockwell Automation launches the FLEXLINE™ 3500, a new low voltage motor control center (MCC) for IEC markets globally. With this motor control center, manufacturers can unlock production data and increase uptime and productivity through a portfolio of smart products.

In manufacturing and processing operations, every production minute counts. Yet, it’s reported that the average global manufacturer faces up to as much as 800 hours of equipment downtime per year. Depending on the industry, downtime can cost $100,000 per hour or more. By integrating with smart motor control devices, the FLEXLINE 3500 MCC delivers real-time operation and diagnostic data for critical equipment. Global manufacturers rank predictive maintenance as the top strategic technology to reduce downtime.

The modular motor control center design is customizable to meet many low-voltage motor control applications and factory footprints while the technology is engineered for a wide range of industries, from food and beverage to oil and gas. And when FLEXLINE 3500 motor control centers are integrated with smart variable frequency drives, manufacturers can significantly reduce power consumption.

More information can be found here.

Tasti's Recipe for Success in Smart Manufacturing

Snack bar and wholefood ball manufacturer Tasti Products Limited has chosen Plex, by Rockwell Automation, as its new integrated smart manufacturing and business process solution.

Tasti Products will migrate to Plex’s cloud-based solutions, implementing Plex ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), including Plex’s world-class MES (Manufacturing Execution System), to drive their New Zealand-based operations.

Recognising their legacy ERP system could no longer support an expanding business, Tasti Products searched a smart manufacturing solution that would allow the company to scale in size and improve the speed in which business analytics could be performed. Tasti sought a manufacturing solution that was cloud-based and could offer end-to-end digital transformation.

With the ability to offer world-class food safety and its established presence in the food and beverage industry, Plex will provide Tasti Products with a connected plant floor, digital product tracking capabilities, and real-time data to support the company as it continues to grow and flourish.

Read more.