The 12th edition of Automation Expo
Published on : Monday 30-11--0001
I have seen and witnessed the evolution of Brand IED/Automation since it's inception. Started as core Instrumentation focus has now entered firmly in Automation and new area cutting evolving technology thanks to the open mind and readiness to improve and experiment new things by the management and eminent people guiding them. This has made the Brand stronger both Nationally and getting recognized Internationally. This was clearly noticed by large number of participants during 2017 Automation.
No doubt continuing on new technology will benefit us we cannot afford to forget core Group of Instrumentation in future exhibitions and an extra effort to ensure that leaders are seen in the way of stalls participate in coming exhibitions to bolster the Brand IED/Automation.
Regards ,
Deepak Edwankar.
Automation Expo 2017
From Technology Fair to Decision Making Forum
The 12th edition of Automation Expo held from August 09-12, 2017 at Mumbai marked the transition of the iconic show from a technology fair to a decision making forum.
The morning of August 09, 2017 witnessed frenetic activity at the Bombay Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC), decked with colourful posters and banners, as the curtains were raised on the 12th edition of Automation Expo. After months of planning, weeks of anticipation and a couple of days of hectic preparations at the venue by the exhibitors to do their booths, by 9 am everything was in place in the humongous Hall 1 where 525 booths were decked in all technical finery and ready for the Visitors who had started gathering outside and queuing at the counters, having come from all parts of India. So great was the enthusiasm that even the weather smiled and there was no heavy downpour during the four days of the exhibition, nor was the political agitation that had masses pouring into Mumbai on the morning of 9th August, cause any significant inconvenience.
As the members of Board of Governors, all eminent industry veterans with years of experience, led by Mr M Arokiaswamy, Managing Director, IED Communications and the architect of the Automation Expo series of exhibitions, walked towards the inauguration venue, a traditional troupe of folk performers played their instruments and a dancer pranced around with a dummy horse strapped around the body.
Amid all this pomp and gaiety began the Inauguration Ceremony, as Ms Jyothi, Director, IED Communications, recited a prayer seeking Blessings of the Almighty, welcomed all the guests and thanked all exhibitors and visitors. This was followed by the traditional lighting of the lamp ceremony.
Delivering the opening address, Mr M Arokiaswamy said, “I am pleased to welcome Mr B Narayan, Group President, Reliance Industries Ltd. In spite of his busy schedule he consented to come for the inauguration; Mr Richard Timoney – Chairman, Fieldcomm Group; Mr Sudershan Rao, Scientist-E/Director, Department of Science & Technology, New Delhi; Dr B R Mehta, Sr Vice President, Reliance Industries Ltd, and Chairman of the Board of Governors; all members of the Board of Governors; members of the Press; all exhibitors, and others. The Automation exhibition is growing year after year with the Blessings of God and your support. There is 25% increase in the number of exhibitors over the last year, 2016. Most of them are participating repeatedly and increasing their booth space. This shows the response they receive. Many of the exhibitors have their own success stories. We assure you better services, business contacts and exports in the years to come. For 2018, we will also have Hall 5, which will be for Robotics, IT in Manufacturing, Automation in Food Processing & Packaging, and other special exhibitor categories.”
In his Inaugural Address, Mr B Narayan, Group President, Reliance Industries Ltd, said, “With over 500 exhibitors the Automation Expo is a very large event and demonstrates the importance and relevance of the automation industry. Going back, we can trace the beginning of the Industrial Revolution which started with mechanisation, the second revolution brought in by electricity and mass production, the third with electronics – diodes, transistors and computers and the beginning of process automation, and now Industry 4.0 and its derivatives like Manufacturing 4.0, Logistics 4.0, etc., powered by the Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Cognitive Learning, Robotics, 3D printing or additive manufacturing, and many more concepts. Where does automation come into this? IoT consists of four elements – extremely developed sense of technology; accumulation of data and handling big data with Cloud technology; data analytics, interpreting and understanding it; and finally using this data with the help of mobile, hand held devices regardless of the location – all of which is related to automation.” Mr Narayan referred to India as one of the fastest developing countries where new investments are taking place with a lot of scope to introduce new technologies and the progressive policies followed by the government of the day to channelise these investments. He referred to the policy changes in sectors like pharmaceuticals and fertilizers to attract investments and enhance capacities, the progress in the Oil & Gas sector where there are a large number of PSUs and a few private players – all very active – and the power sector with all the reforms and new projects. Referring to the massive investments by Reliance in the third phase of the Jamnagar refinery and other such projects, Mr Narayan said, “Even if we consider just 5% of the cost of such projects for automation and control systems, this opens a huge opportunity for the industry and the bright future it portends.”
The formal part of the Inauguration Ceremony thus coming to an end, the VIPs moved to the entry to the main hall and the exhibition area for the ceremonial cutting of the ribbon. Later the organisers addressed the members of the Press for a formal briefing about the exhibition and the conferences and workshops organised concurrently over the four days of the event.
The visitor response, right from Day 1, was overwhelming with the counters all crowded with visitors, pre registered as well as those who had come without prior registration. A large number of booths had live demonstrations of various automated equipment and systems, which also had visitors thronging these booths in large numbers. For example, B&R Industrial Automation had on display the SuperTrak, fully integrated automation solution specially developed for 24/7 operation in harsh industrial environments.
Many used the opportunity for launching new products. Industrial Automation & Instrumentation specialist BECKHOFF – Powering Made by India for 10 Years since 2007 –launched Ex Proof I/Os and IPCs for Zone 2/22, and high end EtherCAT Measurement I/Os.
HBM Test and Measurement, a technology and market leader in products and services for an extensive range of measurement applications, launched its new load cells and also made a presentation during the product launch session about the efficacy of the HBM load cells.
Lapp India, which participated with the theme ‘The Art of Connecting’, focused on providing complete connectivity solutions for various applications with special focus on smart factories and used the event to showcase their product offering of industrial network components from one source for seamless and reliable connectivity. “For Lapp in India and globally, Automation is a focus segment. Cable and connection technology is the backbone of the smart factories of the future to ensure networked and customised production. At Lapp, it is always our focus to develop innovative technology to meet the challenges and requirements of customers in a production environment,” said Marc Jarrault, Managing Director – Lapp India.
Universal Robots showcased their products through their channel partners Alstrut India Pvt Ltd, Precimac Solutions and Rajdeep Automation Pvt Ltd. The company showcased the UR3 table-top robot meant for light assembly tasks and jobs that call for absolute precision, and the UR10, the largest robot arm in the UR family, which automates heavier weight process tasks with payload requirements of up to 10 kg. Mr Pradeep David, General Manager, Universal Robots, South Asia said, “The UR robots arms can automate virtually anything, we mean virtually anything; from assembly to painting, screw driving, labelling, packing, polishing, and injection and whatever other tasks you can think of.”
OMRON, a global leader in advanced industrial automation, curated its booth around the theme of SENSING & CONTROL + THINK, had on display robotics, SysmacAutomation solution with IIoT, vision & traceability, motion control, smart panel and safety solutions at the show. “We aim to bring in futuristic solutions that are built on the pillar of harmony between ‘Man and Machine’. Catering to many industry segments such as Automotive, Packaging, FMCG, Food n Beverage, Infrastructure, our solutions are based on ILOR+ S solution (Input, Logic, Output, Robotics + Safety) helping India meet the manufacturing needs of tomorrow,” said Sameer Gandhi, Managing Director, OMRON Automation India.
M B Control & Systems Pvt Ltd, leading innovators of premium energy management solution, announced its entry to the Smart Grid solutions along with new products, and showcased their one stop shop for energy management and instrumentation portfolio in power generation, transmission, and distribution, renewable industry, industrial plants, data centres, and commercial/residential buildings.
As for the visitors, they were happy about visiting a well organised show with record participation. “I have been visiting this show every year, and the number of exhibitors keep growing,” said Ganesh Nambiar, Assistant manager, Indian Pneumatic & Hydraulic Company, Mumbai. Dinesh Kumar Manikkan, Assistant Professor, Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, Tamilnadu, said, “I am a first time visitor to this show but have visited many other events, but I wish to say this is a really good one.” Concurring with that, Anil Behal, Proprietor, Grabner International, said, “This is the fourth time I am visiting this show in as many years and have always been impressed.” And so it was, with many takeaways for all visitors, and not forgetting the large number of students who also flocked to the exhibition. After all, they are the future of the country.
As for the organisers, they have their task cut out, gearing up for the next edition, Automation Expo 2018, and it is important to note the dates – from August 29-September 01, 2018.
Small Box
Concurrent Events at Automation Expo 2017
- The CEO Summit – 9th August 2017
- Pharma Conference – 9th August 2017
- IIoT Conference – 10th August 2017
- Machine Safety Interactive Session – 10th August 2017
- MSME Summit – 10th August 2017
- Cyber Security Conference – 11th August 2017
- Workshop on SIL & Machine Safety – 12th August 2017.
Student Innovators – Future Entrepreneurs
Students are the future of the nation and Automation Expo has always ensured that this group of contributors remains a crucial part of the expo. This year, Automation Expo took entrepreneurship and student innovators to a new level by providing an exclusive platform at the exhibition for innovators from all over India to demonstrate their works to key decision makers, influencers, and financiers from the Indian engineering, automation, and integration industry.
The Innovation pavilion was one of the most crowded with visitors all four days of the event and there were several inquiries received by the budding designers.
All the teams that participated were given the Innovation Awards:
Universal College of Engineering – Peltier Cooling System
Devarshi Pathak, Nikhil Mundfan, Niketan Patil and Sanket Kasar.
Vishwakarma Institute of Technology – Home Automation using IR remote, Bluetooth and GSM
Ms Shobha Vishwanath Kanade, Ms Namrata Virupaksha Jugale, Ms Anuja Narayan Shinde and Abhijeet Gurav.
BITS Pilani – Solar Panel Cleaning Robot
Ujjwal Aggarwal and Suraj Partani.
Universal College of Engineering – Multi Utility Power Generation
Deep Shah, Ms Sneha Sabariya, Ms Aniwarya Pawar and Indresh Pandey.
Universal College of Engineering – Smart Fridge
Ninad Gharat, Krish Bhagat, Rushabh Ramani and Mohit Chaudhary.
K J Somaiya College of Engineering – Panipuri Vending Machine
Amrut Chari and Rahul Kashyap.
Nettur Technical Training Foundation – Automated Wire Cutting and Sorting Machine
Balasubramaniam, Amal K V, Sathiya, Nainar and Sankar.
Universal College of Engineering – Smart e Dustbin
Bhavesh Joshi, Dhruvin Bhuva, Ms Prachi Choudhari and Chinmay Kolhatkar.
Awards Galore
Finally, it was time to recognise the efforts of the exhibitors for whom it was not just business but also a passion to excel in everything they do. The organisers had planned awards across various categories and these were presented at a colourful ceremony on 11th August, the penultimate day of the show, in the evening.
Awards were given across several categories and the winners…
Make in India
Platinum Rotork Controls Pvt Ltd
Gold Rittal India Pvt Ltd
Silver Axis Engineering
Made in India
Platinum Nagman Instruments
Gold Renu Electronics P. Ltd
Gold Vipal Enterprises
Silver Vital Electrocomp
Silver Falcon Control Systems & Automation Pvt Ltd
Silver Automation Artisans
Foreign Direct Participation
Special Award, Sanyo Deinki Co Ltd
Technology Award
FieldComm Group
Stall Category Above 70 sqm
Platinum Pepperl + Fuchs India
Gold Phoenix Contact (India) P. Ltd.
Gold Aventics India Pvt Ltd
Silver Nippon India
Silver Baumer Technologies India
Stall Category Between 30-70sqm
Platinum Chemtrols Industries Ltd
Gold WIKA Instruments India
Gold Triobotics Automation Solutions
Silver Finder India
Silver Igus India
Stall Category Below 30 sqm
Platinum EIP Enviro Level Controls P.Ltd
Gold Southco India Pvt Ltd
Gold MCI Robots
Silver Dehn India Pvt Ltd