A visit to Engel; new cobot conference; large-part printer from Formlabs: Machinery Minutes

On this week's episode of the Machinery Minutes podcast, you'll hear about PMM's visit to Engel's North American headquarters and what their leaders have to say about the secrets to the company's success.

You'll also learn about a new large-part printer from Formlabs, and the inaugural Collaborate North America, a trade show and conference centered around cobots.

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Transcript

Welcome to Machinery Minutes, where at the beginning of each week I share with you three things you need to know in about three minutes. You can read the complete stories on plasticsmachinerymanufacturing.com.

No. 1 – Despite a worldwide slump in injection molding machinery sales, market leader Engel has experienced good sales and increased market share. What’s the secret?

Vanessa Malena, president of Engel Americas, credits the success to family-owned business investing in its future – including on sustainability, recycling, and developing energy-saving equipment.

The family has invested at least $500 million over the last five years, with about $70 million every year going into research and development, she said.

The formula appears to be working. Worldwide sales for the most recent fiscal year ended March 31 were $1.7 billion, down just 6 percent from the previous year. This comes during a period in which some industry associations estimated the market to be to be down by as much as 40 percent.

Engel, headquartered in Germany, is widely believed to be the market leader in North America in terms of sales.

Find out more about Engel’s success by reading Editor Ron Shinn’s story: “Engel invests in its future.”

No. 2 – Universal Robots is planning what it calls the nation's largest collaborative robot conference and tradeshow, Collaborate North America, for Jan. 28 in Novi, Mich. 

The one-day event will include more than 30 hands-on demonstrations with several focusing on injection molding-related tasks. Applications will include welding, quality inspection, material handling, machine tending, assembly and palletizing.

Speakers will include subject experts from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Siemens. 

To learn more about the speakers and how to register for the event, check out our story headlined: “Universal Robots plans nation’s largest cobot conference and trade show.”

No. 3 – Formlabs has unveiled new larger-format 3D printers.

The Form 4L and Form 4BL SLA printers can produce parts in under six hours and handle a variety of materials. The Form 4BL printer accommodates biocompatible materials, including resins used in dental and medical fields.

The build volumes are significantly larger than those of the previously introduced Form 4 printer. For specifics, including the build volume measurements, read the story: “Formlabs unveils larger-format 3D printer.”

Those are my Top 3 items you need to know for this week. We will have a new list every Monday.