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2022 Sustainability Report
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Southwire is Powering Transformation by Focusing on the Company’s Sustainability Goals

Southwire’s long-held commitment to sustainability has been evident throughout its history and was formalized with its first official sustainability report in 2007. Reflecting that commitment, the company recently launched its 2022 sustainability report. The report highlights all areas of sustainability at Southwire and showcases the company’s most significant impacts by focusing on its five core tenets – Growing Green, Living Well, Giving Back, Doing Right and Building Worth – which include actions to enhance safety performance, strategic initiatives, team member engagement, community involvement and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

5 Common Mistakes to Avoid when Implementing Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) in Your Facility

5 Common Mistakes to Avoid when Implementing Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) in Your Facility

As technology advances, autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) have emerged as valuable tools for improving efficiency and productivity in various industries. From warehouses to manufacturing facilities, these intelligent machines are revolutionizing the way manufacturers handle tasks and streamline operations. However, deploying AMRs successfully requires careful planning and consideration. In this blog post, let’s explore some common mistakes that people make when implementing autonomous mobile robots in their facilities and provide insights on how to avoid them.

Put to the Ultimate Test – Bending Tests

Put to the Ultimate Test – Bending Tests

In dynamic applications typical to mechanical and plant engineering or drive and automation technology, cables and wires are frequently subject to mechanical bending stresses. Although these stresses also occur in static installations, they are much higher in dynamic applications because the force and direction of movement are constantly changing. Such situations are pure stress for the cable. The wires, conductor insulation and jacketing material are squeezed on the inside and stretched on the outside, and the cable can tear. Degradation, up to and including cable damage, leads to faults and functional failures.

Recommendation for Automation: “Think big, start small.”

Recommendation for Automation: “Think big, start small.”

Modularisation, standardisation and automation – these topics will dominate again at this year’s EF|A – EPLAN Forum for Automated Engineering. The need for action in machine building and plant system engineering is higher than ever, which also helps explain the great interest in the run-up to this international event, with participants from more than twelve countries. In practice-oriented presentations, companies will be showing the next steps they’re taking on the pathway to automated engineering. Their motto: Think big!

Thinking Outside the Box: Why Energy-Efficient Enclosure Climate Control Units Are Important For Food and Beverage Manufacturers
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Thinking Outside the Box: Why Energy-Efficient Enclosure Climate Control Units Are Important For Food and Beverage Manufacturers

Poultry has been one of the food and beverage industry’s biggest growth areas in recent years, and projections indicate this growth shows no signs of slowing down — in fact, a recent report estimates the poultry market will grow by more than 6% annually through 2028. This is just one example — pet food and plant-based foods being a couple others — of why food and beverage producers need to unlock new levels of productivity and efficiency to meet customer demand and seize opportunities in new or emerging markets. With this in mind, let’s look at a couple of reasons why design engineers should consider energy-efficient enclosure climate control units when designing an automation infrastructure for food and beverage manufacturing sites.

8 Factors for Panel Builders to Consider When Choosing a Thermal Management Supplier
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8 Factors for Panel Builders to Consider When Choosing a Thermal Management Supplier

By: Kooltronic August 18, 2023 Building electrical enclosures presents many challenges. Considerations such as ingress protection, mechanical strength, component costs, National Electrical Code (NEC) compliance, and thermal management are equally important when building safe, reliable, cost-effective control cabinets. Panel builders may also face challenges related to the availability of materials, the complexity of the design,…

Terminal Strips: Easier Than Ever
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Terminal Strips: Easier Than Ever

If you build control panels, assembling terminal strips may well be your least favorite job. Even in a modestly sized panel, it’s not unusual to have dozens or even hundreds of terminal blocks for field connections. You have to mount those terminal blocks on DIN Rail, then label them. It sounds easy but it’s time consuming, mind-numbingly boring and there’s plenty of room for making mistakes!

SCADA Master Serves as Data “Hub” for Enterprise Software Integration
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SCADA Master Serves as Data “Hub” for Enterprise Software Integration

For smaller municipal utilities and co-ops, it can be a challenge to upgrade and automate existing distribution substations and support infrastructure due to constraints in space, budget, labor, technical skills, and system compatibility. Many still have not installed SCADA systems for the remote management and control of multiple substations.

Getting Projects Started Faster and More Efficiently

Getting Projects Started Faster and More Efficiently

With the EPLAN Engineering Standard, new and seasoned users alike can access example data and templates that facilitate using standards in projects. These include guidelines for installing the EPLAN Platform, standardized basic templates and macro project templates, project planning and design templates for typical tasks, and sector-specific best practices.

How A More Connected Ecosystem Can Help Material Handlers Process More Parcels

How A More Connected Ecosystem Can Help Material Handlers Process More Parcels

If there’s one aspect of the material handling industry that is complicating workflows for warehouses and distribution centers across the country, it’s how difficult it is to predict and plan for sudden increases in the number of parcels in the pipeline. Peak parcel volume can happen at any time, and challenges like labor shortages and increased operational costs only muddy the water material handlers have to cross in optimizing their sorting and distribution processes. A flexible and versatile industrial automation ecosystem can help material handlers accommodate these shifts quickly and efficiently.

Analyzing Backfeeding Events With the Help of Power Supply Data

Analyzing Backfeeding Events With the Help of Power Supply Data

Backfeeding is a physical process that is highly desirable in many applications, such as electric vehicles, for the purpose of energy recovery. However, in an industrial setting, backfeeding can be a problem and lead to costly system downtimes if the power supply units fail. In this blog article you will learn how power supply data can help you to identify those backfeeding events and take measures.

Migration Strategies for Supporting Legacy Automation
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Migration Strategies for Supporting Legacy Automation

For a period beginning in the late 1990s, Windows CE was a popular choice as a lightweight operating system for industrial control automation platforms. Now, with the industrial internet of things (IIoT) revolution upon us and new generations of embedded technologies available and rapidly emerging, many end users are in search of a path forward for their legacy systems such as those based on Windows CE. If you can relate, the good news is there are options!

Semiconductor Plant Cleanrooms
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Horton Automatics Cleanroom Doors Play Important Role in Groundbreaking U.S. Semiconductor Plant Development

Horton Automatics, a manufacturer of premium access solutions, is pleased to announce its continued support of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) in the construction of a groundbreaking semiconductor manufacturing plant in Phoenix, AZ. This collaboration signifies Horton’s commitment to supporting technological advancements and driving the growth of the semiconductor industry in the United States.

Pave the Path for Green Mining via IoT and Energy Optimization
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Pave the Path for Green Mining via IoT and Energy Optimization

Electricity costs already account for 20 to 30 percent of operation costs and are rising. Driving new efficiencies in how electricity is used and managed will have a massive payoff for mining operations. Mine energy efficiency begins and ends with the site’s power infrastructure and management. Using their field-proven solutions, Eaton can help you improve the bottom line while reducing scope 1 and 2 emissions, and keeping people and equipment safe.