Tuesday 5th April 2022
Morning session:
10.30am:
Opening presentation by The High Value Manufacturing Catapult (HVMC)
Katy Riddington, Skills & SME Director HVM Catapult
HVMC will be opening the conference programme with an overview of the current situation facing UK manufacturing.
11.15am:
Bringing Intelligence to Manufacturing from SMB to Gigaplants
Andrew Kinder SVP, Industry & Solution Strategy Sales, infor/ David Threlfall, CIO of Britishvolt
As manufacturers of all sizes seek to take advantage of increasing digitisation, connectivity and automation, what technologies available today will help you take advantage? This panel explores some of the most impactful technologies for smarter manufacturing and supply chains and the role of data in solving old problems in new ways. The session also includes a Q&A with David Threlfall, CIO of Britishvolt who will soon complete the production of the UK’s first Gigaplant in Northumberland.
Afternoon session:
12.30pm:
Robotics and Automation: A New Perspective
Mike Wilson Manufacturing Technology Centre Chief Automation Officer
The adoption of robotics and automation in the UK continues to lag the progress being made in all major countries throughout the world. The MTC has recently concluded a study which identifies recommendations to address this situation. We are now looking to work with all stakeholders to develop actions to accelerate the adoption of robot solutions to ensure our future prosperity.
1.15pm:
How to Minimise Machine Asset Downtime with Sensor-Based Solutions
Martin Sime, IIOT Systems Engineering Manager, Sensata
As machines have become smarter and more intuitive as part of the digital transformation initiatives in factories, so has the need to accurately monitor their health, efficiency, and performance. Join this session to learn more about how you can minimise machine downtime in your industrial setting with new and smart sensor-based solutions, which help reduce operational costs, increase productivity, and optimise performance in smart factory and smart building applications.
2.00pm:
Wake up to Automation
Nikesh Mistry, Sector Head for Industrial Automation, GAMBICA
It is clear that a dramatic increase in investment in robotics and automation will be essential if the UK is to remain competitive and achieve the productivity levels required to attain the growth needed to sustain our economy. This seminar will set out the positive impact that future investment in automation and robotics can have on UK competitiveness.
3.00pm:
Safe Human Robot Collaboration
Jamie Thomas CMSE (TÜV Certified Machinery Safety Expert) CECE (TÜV Certified Expert CE Marking) - Pilz Automation Technology
The increased interest and adoption of collaborative robots, also known as cobots, is being driven partly by the digital revolution. Many of the benefits of using cobots are very similar to those of traditional industrial robots: repeatability, accuracy, productivity, whereas the question of safety requires some careful consideration as new safety concepts permitting or foreseeing actual human-cobot collision have emerged. As with most dynamic situations, realisation of a safe and compliant application must be done on a case-by-case basis.
3.45pm:
Cost Savings in Vacuum and Compression
Rolf Hilfiker, CEO of Pneumofore
When it comes to the supply of compressed air and vacuum for industrial applications, operational costs can have a huge impact over the years above the initial investment. In this seminar, we will focus on all the key factors that should drive the purchasing evaluation in order to make a better choice in terms of predictable operational costs and the lower TCO.