5 Top Industrial Automation Companies

Industrial automation is the use of advanced technology and machinery to automate tasks like packing boxes and assembling goods that would’ve traditionally been performed by a human. It can improve quality and efficiency in a variety of industries, while also enhancing safety and cutting down on costs. Here are some top industrial automation companies developing robotics, smart factory technology and other innovations to improve operations.

Rockwell Automation develops and deploys automation technology for manufacturing in a huge array of industries. It offers highly specific solutions like yield optimization for protein processing lines, which work via robotic capabilities that increase how precisely high-value cuts of meat are sliced, and industrial automation for newspaper printing presses to improve printing quality and efficiency.

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ABB specializes in electrification and automation engineering, developing robotics and factory and machine automation for use across industries. Its focus is on flexible manufacturing and smart machinery, which it bills as "the factory of the future." Its Distributed Control Systems are meant to boost industrial plants into digitized and automated 24/7 operations with little waste and efficient energy use. On the robotics end, over 300,000 ABB industrial robots are at work across the globe.

Honeywell works in aerospace, building tech and performance materials and safety solutions. An early adopter and developer of automation in the industrial context, the company uses proprietary warehouse automation to reduce margins and decrease reliance on human labor. Honeywell automation solutions include conveyor systems and controls to move materials through production stages, pick-to-light systems for order packing, palletizing and depalletizing machines to load and unload products and materials and robotics for distribution and fulfillment.

Fanuc makes automation products and is best known for its industrial robots. The company also makes CNC, or computer numerical control, tools and machines, such as laser cutting machines, spot and arc welding robots, wire slicing machines and an electrical injection molding machine known as the Roboshot.

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KUKA makes robotic systems for manufacturing automation. Working in industries that include consumer goods, electronics, automotive and healthcare, KUKA offers a range of robots that are customized according to client needs and conditions. Every KUKA robot is designed for the specific industry and application it will be used in and the environment and human interaction it will work with. Additional options, like customization for payload and mounting position ensure that every KUKA robot is poised to do the job at hand.