Automation Activation (July 13-26)
Kevin J. Harrigan | June 30, 2025
Automation isn’t evolving. It’s accelerating.
From high-tech assembly lines to smart warehouses, the rapid growth is reshaping how manufacturers compete, adapt and grow. We’ll look beyond buzzwords to examine how automation is tackling critical industry challenges, like reducing cycle times, enabling real-time decision-making, increasing accuracy and building supply chain flexibility.
Automation isn't a linear initiative with clear milestones, either. Each journey is different. Its value lies in how it's implemented, scaled and integrated with legacy systems, people and processes.
Expect deep dives into emerging technologies like industrial connectivity and distributed sensor networks, and also practical examinations about topics like maintenance strategies and cobots. Whether you're evaluating modular automation platforms or rethinking how AI fits into your production mix, the conversations ahead will offer foundations and thought fodder.
Let's explore.
Upcoming content
- Infographic: The humanoid robot landscape of 2025
- Using data and AI, not deadlines, to schedule machinery maintenance
- How smart warehouses are reshaping distribution networks
- Unleashing a new era of smart manufacturing
- Cobots are entering the clean room workspace
- Companies are betting on AI to help lift productivity. Workers need to be part of the process.
- 8 recent trends in predictive maintenance technologies
- Tips for calibrating large-scale sensor networks (July 22)
From the recent GlobalSpec archives
- AI and machine learning energize predictive maintenance in battery systems (June 2025)
- Mastering multi-axis motion control: Key strategies for complex movements (February 2025)
- Employing 5G for automation and industry (January 2025)
- Optimizing warehouse layouts for operational efficiency (December 2024)
- Automated QC is leveling up - thanks to machine vision (November 2024)
- Cobots in the manufacturing space (April 2024)
- Basics of industrial VFDs (December 2023)
- Automation and precision: The role of smart sensors (November 2023)