Beckhoff Automation, founded in 1980 and headquartered in Verl, Germany, is a pioneer in PC-based control technology. The company offers a broad spectrum of products, including Industrial PCs, I/O and Fieldbus components, drive technology, and automation software. Beckhoff's open automation systems are utilized across various industries such as machine building, building automation, and renewable energy, providing scalable and modular solutions tailored to specific applications. With a presence in over 40 countries and a workforce of approximately 5,500 employees, Beckhoff emphasizes innovation and quality, continually advancing technologies like EtherCAT, a high-performance industrial Ethernet system developed in-house.
PC-based control, the PC- and EtherCAT-based control and drive technology from Beckhoff, offers great potential for making machines and systems for the plastics processing industry work more sustainably. The software is based on the TwinCAT 3 Plastic Framework, the TwinCAT Analytics data analysis solution, and TwinCAT OPC UA for communication according to the Euromap standard.
Beckhoff Vision offers machine builders and end users a complete image processing system that covers all the necessary components from software to lighting. Seamlessly integrated into EtherCAT-based control technology, it opens up significant competitive advantages for users, including highly accurate synchronization with all machine processes, reduced engineering and hardware costs, and simplified commissioning and support.
The North American debut of the modular robot from Beckhoff, plus advances in cabinetless machine design and intelligent mechatronics, will provide a blueprint for adaptive automation in packaging.
Plant availability plays a crucial role in the process industry in particular, so building redundancy into automation technology designs is vital. This is why Beckhoff expanded its extensive range of solutions in this area to also include a software solution for redundant control operation: TwinCAT Controller Redundancy.
From June 28 to 30, 2022, Beckhoff will be appearing at The Battery Show Europe to show how PC-based control technology can make powertrain and battery cell manufacturing more sustainable, efficient, and productive. As a specialist in PC- and EtherCAT-based automation solutions, Beckhoff will be showcasing numerous highlights from the areas of industrial PCs, I/O and fieldbus components, drive technology, automation software, and control cabinet-free automation in Hall 10 at Booth E110.
With ATRO, Beckhoff is presenting a new concept for robotics applications. This is a modular system from which the right robot kinematics can be put together extremely flexibly for any application.
The MX-System from Beckhoff is a flexible, space-optimized and intelligent system solution that can completely replace conventional control cabinets, thereby opening up entirely new possibilities in plant automation.
Beckhoff achieves a new quantum leap in terms of machine flexibility with the innovative No Cable Technology (NCT) for the XTS intelligent transport system. This is made possible by contactless power supply and synchronous real-time data communication, enabling individual XTS movers to be expanded into mobile handling and processing stations.
The three existing PS power supply series from Beckhoff have been expanded to include new devices with a built-in EtherCAT interface within the PS2000 series. They make it easy to gather additional measurement and device data for comprehensive system monitoring, which can be used to increase availability and reduce downtime. As a result, the power supplies combine compact design and high performance with predictive maintenance functionality for the first time.
For the traditional opening tour of the Hannover Messe on May 30, 2022, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also visited the Verl-based company Beckhoff Automation.