I own an Ioniq 6 electric vehicle since about a year ago. There was a soccer association meeting I wanted to attend in Lima, Ohio, and I thought I’d combine it with a stop in my old home of Sidney, Ohio. Sidney has no chargers. There is one location in all of Shelby County, Ohio located about 20 miles from Sidney at the Airstream Inc. Customer Center in Jackson Center (my home town). There were a handful of Level 2 chargers in Lima located quite inconveniently.
Let’s say that I’m sensitive to the availability of chargers off the beaten path.
A PR pitch about a company with a solution to adding electric power not only for EVs, but also temporary power for concerts or power outages caught my attention. So I interviewed CEO Tom McCalmont of Paired Power to get some details.
Let’s set a couple of other problems Paired Power solved.
You have probably driven past a “farm” of solar canopies. Constructing those is nontrivial. There is a concrete foundation, supporting structures, and mounting the solar panels. Workers must continually go up, mount a panel, come down, get a panel, move the ladder, and go up again.
Also, many companies and businesses would like to have a smaller installation maybe for just a couple of EVs in the parking lot. Or, maybe a city like Sidney, Ohio (Hi, Mayor Barhorst) could pop up a couple of stations to help attract people with EVs visiting the city for dining or shopping.
The leaders at Paired Power asked, what if we could change the design so that the supporting structure is also the lifting mechanism? What if we could design a station with a solar canopy and a battery maybe also hooked up to the grid for supplemental charging?
And, they did. They call it a microgrid. The product is Pair Tree. You must visit the website and see how two workers can set up a station in less than a day. It’s way cool.
From the press release that caught my attention:
PairTree’s technology stores green power from the sun and combines it with off-peak power from the traditional utility grid to deliver resilient, reliable, and sufficient energy for charging vehicles. With its colorful pop-up canopy design, PairTree is an American-made EV charger that delivers user-friendly and reliable green electricity.
PairTree is already being used by hundreds of everyday consumers, businesses, farmers, and government organizations for daily EV charging. PairTree even has an emergency backup plug for use during power outages.
This tale involves two of America’s largest automation companies—Emerson and Rockwell Automation.
Several years ago both added “and software” to their marketing tag lines.
I never thought I’d hear Emerson CTO Peter Zornio talk so glowingly about software. Now, that seems to be the company’s main message.
Meanwhile, Rockwell Automation went from telling me “it’s an experiment, Gary” to forging a deal with PTC to incorporate ThingWorx into Rockwell’s software suite enabling it to halt its own development. That led to Rockwell investing $1B in PTC leading to a seat on the board and closer looks at other PTC software. Its tag line in press releases added “and software.”
Rockwell hired software executive Brian Shepherd to head the Control and Automation group which included software. For a time Shepherd seemed like the go-to SVP.
Then stories of the increasingly deteriorating relations between PTC and Rockwell emerged. Evidently sales of ThingWorx were not what was expected by the parties.
Then, Rockwell acquires two software companies getting it into the cloud with Plex and FiiX. Then Rockwell divested its investment in PTC for $800M. And now Shepherd has left the company to “pursue other interests.” Replaced by someone with automation experience.
Oh, yes, the “software” tagline has long been replaced by digital transformation.
Meanwhile, I’ve received two new releases from Emerson extolling the benefits of software.
Maybe Marc Andreesen has moved on from his “software is eating the world” comment, but software in one way or another is “eating” the automation market.
All of the manufacturing automation and cybersecurity suppliers have been conducting market research that they are releasing for us all to get a sense of what customers are thinking. This one from ABB Robotics looks into the global automotive supply chain.
Global ABB Automotive Manufacturing Outlook Survey confirms automation and robotics are crucial to the future of the industry
New OEMs and start-ups lead the charge, while suppliers are lagging behind
ABB’s flexible and smart solutions make automation viable for companies of all sizes
A new global survey commissioned by ABB Robotics and conducted by Automotive Manufacturing Solutions (AMS) concludes that while automation is considered critical to the future of the automotive industry, many companies in the supply chain have yet to take advantage of the benefits offered by robotics and digitalization.
Almost all respondents (97%) believe that automation and robotics will transform the automotive industry over the next five years, with a similar number (96%) predicting that software, digitalization and data management will be equally significant. When asked about the pace of investment, most believed that new OEMs and start-ups were well ahead of the curve, investing either ‘very well’ (38%) or ‘quite well’ (28%), followed by legacy OEMs who were thought to be embracing automation ‘very well’ by 31%. However, only 7% believed that Tier 2 suppliers were making the necessary investment, with Tier 3 suppliers further behind with only 3%.
The ABB survey gathered opinions on a range of topics from a comprehensive mix of nearly 400 industry experts from vehicle manufacturers and suppliers at all levels of management and engineering as well as other key professionals throughout the automotive world.
I have begun working with a software company called Quickbase. Several companies have introduced me to low-code applications. Quickbase takes it to another level. Built in, not added on due to acquisition.
I’m on a panel discussion with two engineers who actually use the software. Their stories of how they use the software and the benefits of an easy way to add to the application when users ask for help are to the point.
Join me and others from our community at #Empower 2024 for a jam-packed day filled with big ideas, best practices, inspiration, and innovation built to support the work that we do, and the work we aspire to do. Register now and let’s do this together!
Robotics news seems to present itself all the time. I’m writing this from an independent coffee house in a small town in northern Illinois. The guy at the table behind me is quoting a robotic packaging system to a client. Weird.
ABB held a big unveiling day at its Auburn Hills, MI facility that had recently been refitted and upgraded. I attended virtually—just could not work out the logistics to make it physically. Impressive event.
In short:
Refit will support customers and ABB’s leadership in growing US robotics segments, including Packaging & Logistics, Food & Beverage, Construction, Lifesciences & Healthcare and Automotive electric vehicle production
New factory serves as US hub, developing and manufacturing AI-enabled technology to help businesses respond to labor shortages, global uncertainty and the need to operate more sustainably
Expansion is latest in over $30 million Robotics investment in the US since 2019 including Packaging & Logistics headquarters in Atlanta, Lifesciences and Healthcare Research Lab in Houston and Research and Development Center in San Jose.
The expanded facility reflects ABB’s commitment to long-term growth in the US market, which is predicted to follow global growth rates for robotics of 8% CAGR, as well as the company’s global investment to build Robotics and Automation capacity and create new, highly skilled jobs. This is ABB’s third global robotics factory expansion in three years across China, Europe and the Americas and is part of its efforts to further strengthen its local-for-local footprint.
With a 30 percent increase in facility space, the new Auburn Hills facility will enhance ABB’s ability to serve as the leading strategic robotics partner for its growing customer base. Through the new Customer Experience Center, ABB will showcase its leading hardware and software solutions, pioneering the latest digital and AI-powered automation technologies with customers, and developing and manufacturing next generation robots.
The expanded facility will support ABB Robotics’ specialist centers including its Packaging and Logistics hub in Atlanta, Georgia; its Life Sciences and Healthcare hub at the Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas; and AI Research Lab in San Jose, California. Complete with a new training center, the facility will educate over 3,000 workers and students each year, equipping them with the skills to thrive in a new era of AI-powered automation.
The amount of activity in the robotic sector continues to amaze me. Companies continue to exploit the power of partnerships to extend applications rather than trying to invent it all themselves (most companies don’t have that sort of funding to invest in extensive R&D). This news brings Comau, a Stallantis company, and RoboDK, a spinoff from the CoRo laboratory at ETS University of Montreal. I can remember Comau from my earliest trips to the Robot Show in Detroit in the 80s.
The news is that the latest version of Comau Roboshop Next Gen software now fully integrates with RoboDK robotics simulation and offline programming.
Comau users can now enjoy the benefits of RoboDK directly due to RoboDK’s integration into Comau’s Roboshop Next Gen software suite. This integration allows users to easily simulate and program robots using advanced CAD to path features, import 3D Models, detect collisions, integrate with external axes such as turntables and linear rails, support multiple robot cells in the same project, improved integration with CAD/CAM software and use advanced simulation features such as conveyors and grippers. This allows Comau robot programmers to easily use Comau robots for advanced manufacturing applications such as robot machining or 3D printing.
In addition to these technical benefits, the collaboration also introduces support for Realistic Robot Simulation (RRS), providing accurate path and cycle time estimates. This advancement aims to provide businesses with a clear understanding of robot behavior and precise cycle time details, ensuring more efficient and optimized robot operations.
