FANUC is constructing a new technical centre at its Neuhausen site in Germany. The building will provide approximately 6000 sq m of space for the company’s European development centre and technical support organisation. FANUC hopes to open the facility in 2023. Housing over 400 employees, there will be more space for software development and test runs, as well as for functional and application tests on a variety of machines and robots. The technical centre’s machine hall alone will cover more than 2000 sq m. In total, FANUC is investing around €22m million in the building and associated car park.

For further information
www.fanuc.eu

Stauff, a global manufacturer and supplier of precision fluid power products for mechanical, industrial and plant engineering, has signed a five-year strategic partnership with UK-based Unison, a specialist in all-electric tube bending machinery. Unison has supplied Stauff’s global facilities with Unison Breeze electric tube manipulation machines for more than 10 years. The strategic partnership takes the relationship between the two businesses to a new level and reflects the high degree of service and support that Unison has provided to Stauff over that period.

For further information
www.unisonltd.com

Comau has successfully released its next-generation programming platform, a protocol that implements the URDI communications standard to simplify robot programming. This initiative facilitates the complete integration of Comau’s robot family with the Siemens Simatic Robot Library, reducing complexity within machine automation. Now, operators in any sector can easily program one or more Comau robots via the Siemens ecosystem currently used for other applications and processes. Working with a major automotive customer, Comau has reduced configuration and programming costs by 30%.

For further information www.comau.com

Having seen record demand for heat pumps as a result of its successful multi-technology strategy, Vaillant is to extend its UK manufacturing facility. Based in Belper, Derbyshire, Vaillant Industrial UK will begin manufacturing heat pumps alongside its range of high-efficiency boilers from 2022. The company believes there must be an urgent increase in support for installers within the industry. Only this way will it be possible to expand the skills base sufficiently to meet the Government’s target of 600,000 heat pumps sold per annum by 2028.

For further information
www.vaillant.co.uk

Bowers Group, which manufactures its bore gauges at a dedicated facility in Bradford, has recently achieved the Made in Britain accreditation. To maintain the quality and accuracy of its bore gauges, the company uses a measurement solution from within its own range of products: a Baty profile projector. As part of the Bowers Group, Baty also manufactures its profile projectors and vision systems in the UK, achieving its own Made in Britain accreditation last year. During the manufacturing process, Bowers Group uses the Baty R400 profile projector and complementary Fusion Software to ensure the accuracy of all parts.

For further information www.bowersgroup.co.uk