Automation, Robotics, IIoT, and Much More Was the Focus of 5th Annual ASSEMBLY Show

ROSEMONT, IL--(Marketwired - Nov 6, 2017) - Last month, 5,250 engineers and executives responsible for assembly manufacturing attended the 5^th Annual ASSEMBLY Show at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. BNP Media, publishers of ASSEMBLY Magazine, announced growth in all areas at the recent trade show and conference. The exhibit hall floor had 295 exhibits occupying 76,800 net square feet, a 15% increase over 2016. With nearly 8,000 industry professionals from 48 states and 28 countries registered to attend, The ASSEMBLY Show experienced an 12% increase in total registrations over 2016. Exhibitors responded enthusiastically with over 75% of the 2017 show exhibitors renewing booth space on-site for the 2018 Show, which will take place October 23-25, 2018 back in Rosemont, IL. 

"For five consecutive years we have stayed focused on assembly manufacturing and each year we bring together more and more vendors who are offering the latest advancements in products and services with more and more buyers of these solutions. We are so pleased that this year's event had the most demonstrations of the latest robotic equipment as well as a comprehensive educational program, and valuable networking opportunities," said Tom Esposito, Publisher, ASSEMBLY Magazine. "We are thrilled with the response from the industry and thank the exhibitors, sponsors, attendees, and speakers who made this such a worthwhile event for the fifth year in a row."

The conference program, kicked off on Tuesday, with industry experts sharing their knowledge about Industry 4.0, Creating the Future of Manufacturing, Beyond the Edge of IIoT, Operational Excellence, and more. In addition, there were a dozen educational sessions that were held in theaters set up on the exhibit hall floor. All of the presentations are available on www.theassemblyshow.com/presentations. Presentations were given by Balluff Inc., RedViking, Desoutter Industrial Tools, Epson Robots, Festo Corporation, LACO Technologies, Orbitform, Comau LLC, Ubisense, Promess Incorporated, Bosch Rexroth, elliTek, Inc., and Microscan. Topics included smart and cyber safe production environments, the starting point for robot automation, the future of intelligent pneumatics, finding leak testing success, how to choose the right transfer system, solving the OT-IT system conflict, and more.

The keynote speech by Gene Hopkins, Director of Applications, Information Technology of Faurecia North America focused on the company's initiative to transform itself into a digital enterprise and how they looked at every area where digital technology could enable gains in efficiency including applying simulation tools in R&D; capturing data from every machine and process; and deploying collaborative engineering technology. Preceding the keynote Austin Weber, senior editor for ASSEMBLY Magazine, presented the Assembly Plant of the Year Award to AGCO, Jackson, MN.

The 5th Annual ASSEMBLY Show featured nearly 300 exhibiting companies including Gold Sponsor PROMESS; Silver Sponsors FESTO and Schunk; and Bronze Sponsors, Kistler, Orbitform and Schmidt Technology. The event kicked off with the very popular "Taste of Rosemont" Networking Reception on Tuesday evening, sponsored by SCHUNK, which attracted hundreds of attendees who had the chance to enjoy food and while visiting with the exhibitors on the show floor. All of the attendees and exhibitors then had a chance to network and mingle on Wednesday evening at a fun and lively Pub Night, sponsored by FESTO. 

New to The ASSEMBLY Show this year was TASTV sponsored by ATE, BalTec, Design Tool Inc, Promess and Weiss. This TV program featured exclusive interviews, show highlights, presentations and much more and was broadcasted on-site at the Show as well as online. Be sure to check it out at www.theassemblyshow.com/tv.

Many exhibitors showcased new products, including:

• Applied Robotics, Inc., a leading global provider of robotic end-of-arm tooling and connectivity solutions, has launched their new Bag Gripper, one of the lightest weight to capacity ratios on the market and is fully adjustable to work with multiple conveyor spacing and payload sizes.
• Baltec introduced the ELECTRIC ER series electrical riveter. The technology of electro-mechanical servo presses has been transferred to this particular joining and forming method. It allows producing permanent mechanical connections with the highest speed and precision.
• Bosch Rexroth featured Rexroth's latest in connected automation, including a new Open Mechatronics Demo, the TS2plus and VarioFlow plus conveyor systems and Active Cockpit.
• Epson Robots showcased its newly launched T3 All-in-One SCARA robot, the revolutionary Flexion™ N2 6-Axis robot, as well as a selection of its leading 6-Axis and SCARA robots.
• Eisele Connectors presented a range of durable solid metal connection components for compressed air, gases and liquids, that are ideal for use in rough environments and industrial assembly processes.
• elliTek, Inc. demonstrated that data can be moved in minutes vs. months with the Data Commander™ MES gateway appliance.
• Lattice Technology delivers XVL-based software solutions that enable manufacturing companies to repurpose 3D CAD data in order to be utilized by functions downstream from product development.
• Mecademic demonstrated their six-axis robot arm, which fits in a briefcase, with all of its accessories, and boasts a 5-micrometer repeatability.
• Mountz, Inc., a specialist in the design and manufacturing of torque control products, showcased new assembly solutions developed for engineers in order to deal with the most demanding fastening applications.
• Nordson Corporation (NASDAQ-NDSN), a leading supplier of precision technologies for ambient temperature material dispensing, announced the addition of an extensive line-up of new meter mix and dispense solutions through its' Nordson SEALANT EQUIPMENT division.
• Radiant Vision Systems, a leading provider of high-resolution imaging solutions for automated visual analysis of light and color, demonstrated new applications of its photometry-based imaging technology for machine vision inspection.
• Toshiba Machine Robotics, demonstrated the TVL700 6-axis robot, the THL300 with TSL3000 controller and a three axis BA-III Cartesian.
• UNEX Manufacturing, Inc., the trusted industry leader in providing innovative order picking solutions, exhibited their advanced order picking and lineside storage solutions helping to improve productivity, quicken delivery schedules and enhance customer satisfaction.

For more information on these products, click here

The ASSEMBLY Show 2018 will be held Tuesday, October 23 - Thursday, October 25 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL. The Show is sponsored by ASSEMBLY (www.assemblymag.com), a monthly trade magazine read by 56,000 engineers and managers responsible for manufacturing and designing cars, computers, catheters, coffee makers, etc. ASSEMBLY covers the processes, technologies and strategies for joining discrete parts into finished products. The event is produced by BNP Media (www.bnpmedia.com), one of the country's leading business-to-business media companies serving professionals across 50+ industries. For more information, visit www.theassemblyshow.com.