Headquartered in Columbus, IN, Cummins Inc. manufactures engines, generators, and components for trucks and tractors, such as turbochargers, exhaust systems and filtration products. Cummins engines can be found in trucks, buses, recreational vehicles, construction and agricultural equipment, military vehicles, and even large boats. The company tallied $23.6 billion in sales in 2019.

There are no unimportant or unnecessary parts in an assembly. Each component within a product, be it large or small, simple or complex, has been delegated there by an engineer to perform a specific task.

Manufacturers are turning to collaborative robots in record numbers to solve automation challenges. But what is a collaborative robot, and how can this technology be safely applied to screwdriving processes?

Automation has become easier than ever with collaborative robots. No longer do you need to be a degreed engineer to program robots to handle assembly, screw driving, welding, sanding or inspection tasks. Cobots are user friendly, easy to program and flexible enough to be moved to different areas of your facility.

Manually installing plastic clips in automotive interior trim components is a tedious and physically demanding task. That makes it an ideal application for a collaborative robot.

Robots are an important piece of the Industry 4.0 puzzle. Tomorrow's smart factories will depend on new types of machines, such as collaborative and mobile devices that are interconnected. Artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing and data analytics will also make industrial robots more reliable than ever.

ABB variable frequency drives (VFDs) are used in a variety of industrial and commercial applications to improve productivity and energy efficiency in mechanical systems run by an electric motor.

Ford Motor Co. has begun testing a human-like robot, called Digit, with two arms and two legs for loading and unloading delivery vans.

Tacoma, Washington-based Tool Gauge manufactures precision metal and plastic components and assemblies for the aerospace industry. With long-term customer contracts that can't be renegotiated, Tool Gauge turned to automation to help mitigate and contain staffing costs in a tight labor market.