by Gary Mintchell | Jun 26, 2024 | Commentary, News
Mitsubishi has been collaborating, financing, and partnering busily over the past several months. I’m wondering about a future corporate strategy. This news concerns MVTec Software who develops machine vision software. It has announced inclusion of Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. in the MVTec Technology Partner Program. All models of the Mitsubishi Contact Image Sensors (CIS) use standard interfaces and are therefore directly compatible with MVTec’s software products. MVTec also provides an interface to Mitsubishi’s MELSEC PLCs. As part of this strategic partnership, these existing measures will now be consolidated under a unified framework to optimize collaboration and ensure the sustainable integration of Mitsubishi products into the MVTec portfolio.
by Gary Mintchell | Jun 24, 2024 | Commentary, News
Predictions are difficult—especially about the future.
I mostly discard all analyst predictions about the future of manufacturing markets. There are so many variables that cannot be foreseen. Supply chain, technologies, sudden bankruptcies. Of all I’ve seen, I like the modeling by Interact Analysis the best. The do extensive research.
They sent me a recent report by Jack Loughney, senior data analyst, who maintains the Manufacturing Industry Output Tracker (MIO).
His first conclusion, which fits neatly with my look at the major automation suppliers, calls the current outlook “challenging.”
The overall outlook for global manufacturing is challenging for this year, with many companies reporting a decline in orders and most regions expected to see a contraction. However, there are some positive signs on the horizon, particularly in the US, and many territories will end the year in a slightly better position than expected, according to results from our latest Manufacturing Industry Output (MIO) Tracker.
Recent research.
Now that we have greater visibility of how 2024 will pan out, in the wake of numerous industry trade shows and discussions with executives, we have revised our forecasts to reflect this. Our prediction for a soft 2024 for global manufacturing followed by a “strong-ish” recovery next year is mostly holding. The message we received from trade shows is that order books are shrinking, but we forecast an upturn in manufacturing activity towards the end of this year or into the beginning of 2025, leaving many territories in a better-than-expected position. However, until there is a recovery, it is difficult to judge how strong or sustained it will be.
Although we predict a recovery will take place during 2025, it is not immediately clear where this will come from and we have introduced a small downward revision in our projected growth for China in 2024 (from 2.8% in the previous edition to 2.4%). With China contributing almost half of the total manufacturing market’s value and currently propping-up overall growth at a global level, any revision or turbulence in the Chinese market will have a significant impact on the global outlook and could see a small contraction in the MIO compared with 2023.
There are still imponderables when it comes to how and when recovery in global manufacturing – and within the manufacturing machinery segment in particular – will take place. China is experiencing a series of economic challenges and when and how successfully it overcomes these will have a significant bearing on the global outlook. Global political unrest and elections such as the US Presidential Election in November will also have a bearing on outcomes for the manufacturing industry. However, all the signs point to there being a recovery in the not-too-distant future and a growing optimism about it happening in the first half of 2025. This is backed up by our discussions with industry professionals and attendance at international trade shows.
by Gary Mintchell | Jun 21, 2024 | Commentary, News
Market niches that open when incumbent companies grow large and mature leaving opportunities for startups hold interest for me. I’ve been watching for this situation for the past few years as the automation market matures with consolidating companies and slow market growth.
Marketing people for a company just exiting stealth contacted me. I just had an enjoyable conversation with CEO Andrew Baker about the opportunity the founders saw in the analog semiconductor market. There appear to be lucrative niches that are too small for the incumbent companies but can be profitable for a right-sized company. Hopefully, Orca Semiconductor will be that type of company in the right type of market.
Their first product is coming out quicker than comparative development in a large company. This is an advanced power management IC for health wearables, hearables, and other connected devices
Orca Semiconductor on June 20 emerged out of stealth mode as the first analog semiconductor provider to deliver the personalization and high-level support, demanded by customers, that “Big Analog” are neglecting. Founded by experienced analog IC solution innovators who have spent decades in the industry, Orca also announced it is sampling its first product, the OS1000, the most advanced PMIC (power management integrated circuit) in its class developed for health wearables, hearables and other connected devices.
“Companies developing vertical solutions are frustrated with the lack of customer support and customization available from ‘Big Analog’” said Andrew Baker, CEO of Orca. “We will address this gap head on. Orca will be nimble and adept at attacking and filling this void. We are committed to delivering industry leading customer service and customized analog products that will speed time to market for innovative smart health and smart factory solutions.”
I am not getting into the weeds of the specs. But if you are designing small electronic devices, check them out.
Targeted at wearable devices, health wearables, hearables and other connected devices, the OS1000 delivers the following features:
Li+ Battery Charge Management
- -5.5 to +20V charging power source protection
- Charge Safety: JEITA thermal monitoring and multiple safety timers
- User configurable Step Charge
- Power Path
Two Low Iq Buck Converters
- 300mA @ 0.5V to 3.0V
- Up to 4 voltage level DVS controlled thru I2C or fast GPIO
Two Low Dropout Linear Regulators
- Optional Load Switch mode
- 100mA @ 0.9V to 3.3V
System Support
- 2µA Iq with 2 buck converters operating (no load)
- 150nA Shelf-Mode
- Flexible regulator startup sequencing
- Power button support
- 4 GPIO with user assignable alternate modes
by Gary Mintchell | Jun 14, 2024 | Commentary, News
My old friend Jim Pinto wrote a regular column for me at Automation World magazine. He was fond of predicting that Rockwell Automation had to be acquired because it had grown too large to grow at a respectable rate.
He based that on two articles from the Harvard Business Review.
He was partly right and partly not. Rockwell, along with all the other major industrial automation suppliers, have grown and matured. They can no longer maintain large rates of growth. The market has long since matured. But they are too large and have too fixed of a corporate culture to be acquired. All they can do is continue to look for smaller companies to acquire and build their service organizations.
They should not feel lonely. Here is one of my favorite writers, Om Malik, on the latest status of the large technology companies. Same song, different verse.
Whether it’s Apple, Google, or Amazon, most of these companies are facing the tyranny of large numbers. But if you are a regular reader, you already knew that. Apple is looking at “services” to boost its revenues. “Apple is reporting revenue of $90.8 billion for the March quarter, including an all-time revenue record in Services,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, when announcing the company’s quarterly earnings. Services grew 8% on an annual basis, while hardware sales were down. The good news is that Apple continues to push and innovate on the core technology front — the latest M4 chip being a good example.
Mega-Growth for Apple and others is now in the rearview mirror. “If you’re making hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue, you can’t really double it every year,” I said on the podcast. This is a natural evolution for the industry, as companies reach a point where their sheer size makes it difficult to maintain the rapid growth rates that investors have come to expect.
This new reality for technology giants such as Apple, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft involves grappling with the challenges of being mature companies that have massive existing revenue streams. There are no more markets to conquer — these companies are the market. AI will definitely make these companies more profitable by enhancing efficiency and reinforcing their advantages. However, it is not quite clear how the market will eventually evolve.
That’s why in the industrial technology niche, there is only me as an independent (well, my colleague Walt Boyes has restarted his Insider newsletter). The magazines all still exist, but at reduced size. Most of the ads are purchased by master distributors. That tells me there’s not a lot of growth anticipated in automation, and that engineers reading those magazines mostly are buying parts. That also means not a lot of new products requiring new production lines—whether in factories or processing.
It is the same in the IT market. I dabbled working with units of Dell Technologies and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Their interest in the manufacturing sector waned. They are trying to push the envelope with faster, more powerful compute. Oh, and also services.
Looks like we are in an era of stability and maturity until the next big thing—which will come from the next big need. This may be robotics, software, and medicines to help an aging population.
by Gary Mintchell | Jun 10, 2024 | Automation, Commentary, Networking, News
Ah, so go markets. Bitter enemies at the start many years ago. A gradual coming together. And now one big happy organization. FieldComm Group completes acquisition of FDT Group technologies. It all had to happen. I’m sure the member companies did not want to continue paying dues to multiple organizations. It’s a win all the way around. As well, they kept Steve Biegacki on to head up Strategic Integration—something for which he should be good.
From the press release. FieldComm Group, a leading figure in global industrial automation standards, today (June 10, 2024) announces that is has completed the acquisition of FDT Group’s assets including the FDT/DTM technology standards. This significant transaction underscores FieldComm Group’s dedication to addressing industrial device management challenges across the entire industrial automation market, ultimately enhancing operational efficiency for vendors and end users.
With a comprehensive suite of technologies including Information Models, the Field Device Integration (FDI) standard, and well-established communication protocols like HART, HART-IP, WirelessHART, and Foundation Fieldbus, FieldComm Group’s market offerings serve the entire process automation sector. The addition of FDT/DTM technology, a widely deployed device integration standard across process and factory automation markets, adds new technologies to the portfolio, completely addressing the industrial automation hierarchy.
The obligatory comment by the CEO:
“As digitalization transforms the automation industry by breaking down barriers between operation technology and information technology, the integration of factory and process automation devices becomes both more important and more difficult. Our aim as a standards organization is to add intelligence to the device integration process, with an ultimate goal of making it simpler,” stated Ted Masters, President and CEO of FIeldComm Group. “Ends users and suppliers will benefit greatly from this acquisition by having a single standards development organization responsible for the full spectrum of device integration from the simplest sensor to the most complex field instrument.”
Strategic Integration:
As part of the acquisition, FieldComm Group announces the formation of a Strategic Integration Committee (SIC), under the leadership of industry expert Steve Biegacki, former Managing Director of the FDT Group. The SIC will drive advancement of integration standards, including FDT/DTM and FDI, ensuring proactive management and maintenance of these technologies. The committee will initially be composed of FieldComm Group Board-level company representatives, with planned expansion to include representatives from other Standards Development Organizations (SDOs). The SIC aims to collaboratively work to preserve the existing installed base and chart a standardization roadmap for a unified device management platform, ensuring interoperability across existing protocols as well as future technology evolution, including OPC UA FX.
Our focus is on unified device configuration and a migration path to the future,” said Steve Biegacki. “At FieldComm Group, we are committed to seamless integration and enhanced operational efficiency for the entire automation industry.”
by Gary Mintchell | May 10, 2024 | Business, Commentary, News
I devoted Tuesday this week to exploring Automate, the robot/vision/automation trade show produced by A3. Six miles of walking and many conversations later, a sense of the state of the industry and a few of the players visited me.
One thing to note was where consolidation is and has taken place. The cobot revolution has matured with the small innovative companies acquired by large corporations.
Interesting to delve further into Rockwell Automation’s latest strategy by visiting Otto, the autonomous mobile robot company recently acquired. It is going deeper into discrete manufacturing rather than broader into other technologies—sort of the opposite of Siemens. I wonder if that reflects on the differences of the American and German markets.
Conversations with Beckhoff Automation, Inductive Automation, and Opto 22 revealed how companies can be successful without selling out to a huge corporation. Independents like these still have a place in the market.
Thinking about the market consolidation of the past say five years, I saw this piece from technology writer, thinker, and former VC, Om Malik. I remember reading his columns in Red Herring maybe 20 years ago and have followed his work ever since. Here are some thoughts he had reflecting on Apple’s recent iPad event and the resulting ad. These thoughts are relevant to our market. Think of companies you know who are in the incremental improvement stage.
Apple is no longer making iconic products that are trying to find their place in our lives through clever messaging. The Crush ad is the output of a mega-company that still doesn’t realize that it permeates all aspects of our modern lives, including our retirement plans. When you are as large as Apple (or any other Big Tech giant,) mediocrity of action creeps into every aspect of your business.
Now it is trying to be a company that has to keep selling the newer, more incremental versions of those products to keep growing, so long as it can feed the quarterly earnings monster. It has to keep the stock flying high. Apple is now a $2.75 trillion company — and it has to do everything it can to keep itself there in that elite club. It is getting harder and harder.
Apple is not alone. Its big tech peers Amazon and Google are finding growth much more challenging. They are doing things that make them less likable by the day. And like them, Apple too, is primed to stumble!
