Follow Us
Copyright MHI © 2025 | All Rights Reserved
DESCRIPTION
Solutions Community members are Industry’s thought leaders on automation, software, hardware, equipment and services that support a fully integrated supply chain. This includes suppliers, integrators, consultants, media, academia and users. They collaborate on solutions worldwide and in virtually every major manufacturing and distribution sector. The philosophy of the Solutions Community is to support MHI’s mission of providing a unique venue where suppliers of material handling equipment and technology can collaboratively work with the user community to improve the marketplace for all. All participants adhere to a safe harbor no-buy, no-sell environment to openly discuss topics of mutual interest, including best practices, lessons learned and other information. Goals of the Solutions Community include: Identifying, developing and disseminating forward-looking value propositions for Material Handling and Supply Chain practitioners; Identifying market trends and challenges in Material Handling and Supply Chain operations in order to develop timely and relevant solutions; Providing a forum for discussion of business and technology trends; and, Establishing strong connections between Members of the Group with the community of Supply Chain and Material Handling product and service providers, as well as organizations and individuals interested in Solutions Community activities; A basic tenet of the Solutions Community is to create a non-commercial environment that fosters networking, relationship building and the open exchange of information. Mission To engage and collaborate with suppliers, practitioners, and stakeholders in timely discussions towards supply chain solutions. Vision Inspiring evolutionary excellence in the supply chain through diverse stakeholder collaboration. Members meet regularly to exchange ideas and develop Information Systems solutions for Supply Chains. Solutions Community Programs include: Engagement on an ongoing basis with: The User community. Adjacent communities such as: Consultants, Market Research Firms, Vertical Market Organizations, supply chain associations, academia, and regulatory agencies. Developing educational and seminar materials for presentation to interested communities. Providing public relations outreach on behalf of MHI relative to solutions. Authoring solutions blueprints and white papers Proactively responding to media to positively share information with the marketplace and position ISSG. Establish thought leadership on how information system solutions support the U.S. Roadmap for Material Handling & Logistics.. Conducting surveys on technology trends and developments To enable organizations to achieve material handling and supply chain excellence by facilitating the delivery of meaningful, innovative and practical information.
VALUE STATEMENT CSS MISSION & VISION STATEMENT Mission: Vision: To promote the market growth, awareness, and effective use of traditional and emerging conveyor /sortation technologies in manufacturing, warehousing, distribution within the supply chain. To be the trusted independent authority for practitioners and suppliers on market trends, technology developments, and applications through: ▪ Education On key features, advantages, and emerging technologies ▪ Challenges Addressing issues affecting our marketplace through practitioner outreach ▪ Resources Development and distribution of educational materials ▪ Collaboration Of manufacturers & technology providers ▪ Promotion Promotion of career opportunities within the industry VALUE STATEMENT To CSS Customers To CSS Members Trusted since 1971 as Leaders in the design, manufacturing, and supply of Conveyor and Sortation Systems Equipment, Components, and Technology. Unique networking opportunities. Investing in conveyor and sortation solutions in unique ways over time, including giving back through college scholarships, and practitioner and manufacturer education. Can provide practitioners with access to a wide range of perspectives and solutions, and as a collective of manufacturers, are genuinely invested in customer success. LEARN MORE ABOUT CSS MEMBERS >> Provide opportunities for industry education, leadership, and increased market presence. Lend your company the collective credibility of its industry leading members that has been established over its over 50 years as an organization. Provide exposure to practitioners. Access to data on industry trends, emerging technologies, and other market intelligence data. JOIN CSS TODAY >> 1 Market Intelligence 2 Networking & Access to Industry Peers CSS MISSION & VISION STATEMENT - Market forecasts and economic indicator monitoring - Industry commodity forecasts - Leadership development - Networking with other subject matter experts throughout the industry - Trend monitoring - Peer to peer interaction which promotes collaboration and industry betterment 3 3 CSS Members are recognized as Market Leaders - Offer collaborative responses to regulatory changes - Are invested in the promotion, safety, and success of the conveyor and sortation systems industry - Have been recognized as industry leaders since 1971 - Are Subject Matter Experts 4 Increased Exposure to Practitioners & Increased Business Opportunities - Web-based case studies provide potential solutions and increase engagement with practitioners - Blogs for Industry Awareness and Promotion - Practitioner Educational Publications OUR STRUCTURE
CONTACT PERSON
PRODUCT CATEGORIES
BRANDS & PRODUCTS
Festo
ISLANDIA, NY, March 6, 2024 — Festo shows the company’s world-leading electric and pneumatic components and systems at MODEX 2024. Festo solutions enable intralogistics motion automation – pushing and sorting, gripping and picking, and lifting and conveying. MODEX 2024, March 11-14, Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Booth #C4476. “No material handling competitor comes close to Festo’s breadth of electric and pneumatic components and systems, robust supply chain, and ease of commissioning systems into the top control architectures,” said Frank Vanderpool, Industry Segment Manager, Logistics Systems, Festo. “Festo’s one-stop-shop brings products to market faster, with less engineering overhead.” Bin Picking Festo showcases a dynamic demonstration of 7-axis robotics in a simulation of efficient bin picking. The demo features two robots on a 7th axis for high-throughput bin picking within a compact footprint. The robots are from two different manufacturers, which demonstrates the flexibility of Festo’s controls. The company also emphasizes its innovative bin-picking grippers, including the adaptive shape gripper DHEF, the adaptive finger gripper DHAS, and vacuum gripping solutions. Pushing and Sorting The Festo Simplified Motion Series (SMS) electric axes are comparable to pneumatics in cost and ease of installation, yet deliver the advantages of electrics. SMS axes offer lower energy consumption than pneumatics and generate a wealth of data. SMS axes deliver two-position motion through onboard controls. Or through IO-Link, a standard SMS feature, these axes can be programmed for infinitely variable positioning for flexible pushing and sorting. For areas where pneumatics is the optimum cost/performance solution, Festo features its DFSP pneumatic stopper cylinder, the DSNU ISO standard round-body cylinder with self-adjusting end position cushioning, and the compact, double acting ADN for fixed or self-adjusting cushioning. Lifting The rugged ELGA and ELGC actuators, EMMT-AS one-wire servo motor, and innovative multi-protocol servo drive CMMT-AS offer the ideal package for Z-axis motion. Easily add additional Festo axes and gain X and Y motion for lift and position capabilities. This solution offers low vibration and high rigidity. Festo’s New Remote and Decentralized I/O Platform Festo shows both the CPX-AP-A distributed I/O and CPX-AP-I decentralized I/O. Whether physically attached on-terminal or connected via cable, all components such as PLCs, valves, motors, drives, and I/O appear to the programmer to be incorporated within one smart terminal under a single IP address. Having the entire distributed and decentralized I/O topology under a single IP address significantly reduces hardware and installation costs while lowering system complexity. Since many PLCs come with a limited number of IP addresses, the Festo solution means more capabilities are possible per PLC. Festo is a leader in adopting and applying IO-Link, and customers will find IO-Link capabilities integral to the new I/O automation platform. This I/O platform is ideal for effective conveyor control. Productivity Tools Festo engineering productivity tools for electric motion include: • SMS solutions finder • Electric Motion Sizing for error free sizing of linear and rotary electromechanical systems • Festo Automation Suite for simplified commissioning • Festo configuration tool for the CMMT-AT and CMMT-ST servo drives, and • PartdataManagers – all CAD data in 2D/3D for 33,000 products. Festo features the Handling Guide Online productivity tool for configuring 1D, 2D, and 3D linear planer motion systems. As the motion system is being configured, the Festo Motion Control Package (FMCP) software automatically designs the multi-axis control panel. The FMCP control panel enables the setup of a multi-axis system in days, not weeks. Mechatronic Training From the Industry Leader – Festo Didactic Festo Didactic, the training arm of Festo, has developed the Festo Learning Experience, Festo LX, a digital learning portal. Festo LX offers training module access where and when it is needed and makes it easy to create individual learning experiences for trainers and trainees. “Festo components move goods dynamically and reliably – no matter how large or small, heavy or light, robust or highly sensitive,” said Vanderpool. “We offer efficient automation solutions for intralogistics all the way from operationally reliable components to ready-to-install systems and the services to match. Festo ensures that end users can transport their goods reliably, day in, day out.” Visit the intralogistics page on the Festo website for additional details. For more information on the advantages of working within the Festo ecosystem of less engineering overhead, fast time to market, seamless connectivity, and high-quality components, visit www.festo.us. About Festo U.S. Festo is a leading manufacturer of pneumatic and electromechanical systems, components, and controls for process and industrial automation. Celebrating 50 years in the U.S., Festo Corporation has continuously elevated the state of manufacturing with innovations and optimized motion control solutions that deliver higher performing, more profitable automated manufacturing and processing equipment. Through advanced technical and industrial education, Festo Didactic Learning Systems and its partners prepare workers for current and future manufacturing technologies. Contact Frank Vanderpool Industry Segment Manager frank.vanderpool@festo.com
ISLANDIA, NY, March 14, 2023— Festo displays the company’s latest electric automation innovations at ProMat 2023, March 20-23, McCormick Place, Chicago, Booth #N8118. By standardizing on Festo electric motion, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) not only gain design symmetry and a sleek, high-tech look for their Intralogistics systems, they can also manufacture more compact, flexible, and high-performance solutions. Through partnership with Festo, OEMs simplify their design and acquisition process for faster time to market; rationalize inventory for lower carrying costs; reduce risk because of interoperable, high-quality components; and improve customer support through Festo global logistics. Electrics with the simplicity of pneumatics Festo features at ProMat the Simplified Motion Series (SMS) electric axes, an innovative engineering and manufacturing breakthrough. SMS axes are comparable in cost and installation ease with pneumatics. These machine-mounted electric axes offer the added advantages of low energy consumption and the data generation characteristics of servo electrics. SMS axes feature a motor with integrated servo drive and IO-Link. No other supplier offers a line of electric axes with comparable capabilities, advantages, and price of the SMS. Axes are available in ball screw, toothed belt, mini slide, electric cylinder, piston rod, and rotary actuator configurations. Users commission two-position actuation in minutes via onboard push buttons with no additional software needed. SMS axes have infinitely variable positioning accessible through IO-Link. IO-Link also delivers operational data for improved quality and predictive analytics ? another key differentiator compared to pneumatic actuators. Festo’s decentralized I/O integrates into the host PLC CPX-AP-I decentralized I/O seamlessly integrates with Ethernet communications networks from Rockwell, Beckhoff, Siemens, and other leading PLC manufacturers. CPX-AP-I modules accommodate over 80 digital and analog input blocks, valve manifolds, and IO-Link master modules for extensive control and data acquisition capabilities per interface. CPX-AP-I allows over 150 feet distance between modules, which is advantageous for Intralogistics systems covering sizeable areas. The extensive range of Festo and third-party I/O gives OEMs the capability to create unique customer solutions. Productivity tools Festo engineering productivity tools for electric motion include SMS solutions finder, Electric Motion Sizing for error free sizing of linear and rotary electromechanical systems, Festo Automation Suite for simplified commissioning, Festo configuration tool for the CMMT-ST motor controller, and PartdataManagers – all CAD data in 2D/3D for 33,000 products. These tools are free and accessible online. At ProMat, Festo features the Handling Guide Online productivity tool for configuring 1D, 2D, and 3D linear planer motion systems. With Handling Guide Online, engineers using operational parameters such as speed, torque, size, and load can specify a gantry robot in as little as 20 minutes and receive a CAD file, quote, parts list, and delivery information at the end of the design session. The Handling Guide Online tool ensures components are appropriately sized for the application and interoperate. Gantries arrive as easy-to-assemble kits with a unique customer part number. Unique customer-linked part numbers simplify reordering and field support because every component ties back to the part number for easy identification. Gantry robots for small footprint pick-and-place applications At ProMat, Festo demos an EXCT linear gantry robot rated at 90 picks/minute with an accuracy of + .004 inches (0.1 mm). Linear gantries, like EXCT, are specified using Handling Guide Online. These units excel at fast, flexible positioning. Located above the workspace, gantry robots are a more compact robotic pick-and-place solution than either SCARA or Delta robotics and are accurate within the entire workspace. Festo gantry robots feature a low profile and a low center of gravity, both ideal attributes for smaller workspaces. The demo pairs the EXCT robot with a Festo Motion Control Package (FMCP) designed control panel. FMCP auto-configures control panels based on Handling Guide Online generated data. Festo ships FMCP control panels fully assembled with components mounted and wired. OEMs simply connect power and communications cabling to the robot and use function block programming to teach the pick-and-place motion. FMCP reduces gantry robot/control panel setup from days to hours. FMCP is a game changer in terms of engineering and assembly productivity. For more information on the advantages of working within the Festo ecosystem of less engineering overhead, fast time to market, seamless connectivity, and high-quality components, visit https://www.festo.us. About Festo is a leading manufacturer of pneumatic and electromechanical systems, components, and controls for process and industrial automation. Celebrating 50 years in the U.S., Festo Corporation has continuously elevated the state of manufacturing with innovations and optimized motion control solutions that deliver higher performing, more profitable automated manufacturing and processing equipment. Through advanced technical and industrial education, Festo Didactic Learning Systems and its partners prepare workers for current and future manufacturing technologies.