Doug Dixon, VP of Business Development, 360Circuits

A surge in demand for electric vehicles and smart devices presents a promising future for our business. We are being challenged with increasing miniaturization and density of components and are seeing increasing interest in developing technology for smart factories.

Manufacturers are demanding reduced operator intervention and expect equipment to be designed to self-optimize based on real-time downstream feedback. Predictive maintenance based on actual machine needs will need to replace planned, time-based maintenance.

ITW EAE is rapidly developing technology to address these challenges:
• MPM is in the final stages of developing the Edison II ACT™ (Automatic Changeover Technology).
• Camalot has introduced an Advanced Tilt and Rotate dispensing system.
• Electrovert has just released the new Auto Adjust Exit Wing for its wave soldering machines.
• Vitronics Soltec now has True N2 to Air Switching for the Centurion™ Reflow Oven.
• We are rapidly developing interface solutions for Industry 4.0/MES.

There are many other developments in progress that will address the automation and self-optimization demands from our customers. Our mission is to make advances in these areas as quickly as possible to solve customer pain points while ensuring that we find the best solutions that are stable and proven before release.