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Automatica 2010 will focus on how environmentally compatible and energy-saving production are possible only with automation technology.

David Greenfield -- Control Engineering, 10/4/2009

Automatica 2010, the international trade fair for automation and mechatronics, will take place at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre from June 8-11, 2010. The initiative "Green Automation" has been announced as the main topic of the trade fair, which will be supported by exhibiting companies marketing products and production processes for improving sustainability in production.

The "Green Automation" initiative for Automatica 2010 has grown out of collaboration among the German Robotics and Automation Industry work with VDMA Robotics + Automation and the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation (IPA). The groups have been concentrating on automation's impact on energy efficiency and sustainability in production.

Dr. Michael Wenzel, managing director of Reis Robotics and chairperson of the advertising and press committee of Automatica, explained: "Growing interest can be seen in the political sphere and society to not live at the cost of future generations and to reduce noticeably our consumption of resources without having to make quality of life sacrifices. This development challenges the investment goods industry--especially robotics and automation--to create the production technology behind "green" consumer goods.

Examples of resource-optimal automation technology include pneumatic components with minimum compressed air use, lightweight grippers and tools, and software for planning energy-optimized lines for robot systems. Many manufacturers have long been offering solutions for resource optimization, energy efficiency, reduction of pollutant emissions or energy recovery. The point of Automatica 2010's focus on this issue is to highlight how all these factors need to be considered with respect to resource efficiency throughout the life cycle of a product or technology.

Organizers of the event are preparing to present the "green automation" topic through visitor guides at the show to bring together interested attendees directly with suppliers. In addition, a special exhibition will present the most successful examples of "green" products.

Automatica 2010 will also address how automation is helping make alternative energy sources more price competitive. According to the show organizers, modern automation solutions enable widespread use of environmentally compatible products and technologies such as photovoltaics. For example, it has already been possible to reduce the manufacturing costs of solar cells substantially thanks to the use of robotic assembly technology and industrial machine vision, which not only improves production costs but also increases quality. Automation technology is bringing photovoltaics closer to the goal of generating alternatively sourced electricity at competitive conditions.

The New Munich Trade Fair Centre is the first trade fair grounds to be distinguished with the certificate "Energy-Efficient Company" by the Technical Standards Board South (TÜV SÜD). This certification indicates that energy experts have confirmed that the trade fair company uses state-of-the-art technology and works continually on optimizing energy consumption.

For more information on Automatica 2010, visit: http://www.automatica-munich.com/

Source: controleng