Technological innovation is accelerating the pace of change in the industrial automation sector. Every year brings new tools, more intelligent systems and more integrated platforms. Industries that once operated on long innovation cycles are now expected to be agile, adaptive and digitally fluent. Companies that fail to keep pace risk falling behind, not only in productivity but also in relevance. Festo’s latest innovations, revealed through the Ramp Up Campaign, offer a blueprint for performance excellence, using the anatomy of a race car as an analogy to simplify and powerfully communicate how their technologies address industry challenges.
Much like in high-stakes formula racing, where every component of a race car, from the chassis to the steering system, must be fine-tuned for peak performance, your production line requires integrated, responsive and intelligent solutions to stay competitive. Let’s take a lap through the track of innovation, industry by industry, unpacking the driving force behind each automation solution and the competitive advantage it offers.
Pneumatic Motion Series: Crafted for the Winners’ Circle
In a competitive industrial landscape where speed, agility and sustainability define success, Festo’s Pneumatic Motion Series delivers cutting-edge solutions that keep industry players at the pinnacle of innovation. Just as a race car’s dynamic systems deliver speed and control, Festo’s motion components are similarly engineered to optimise performance on the production floor.
Compact cylinder ADN-S and AEN-S
The ADN-S compact cylinder, for instance, features a lightweight and space-saving design, similar to an aerodynamic chassis, enabling swift and efficient movement in confined spaces. Its space-saving design makes it ideal for environments where every millimetre counts, such as in test stations, simulation setups, or repetitive button-pressing applications with small loads.
Together with the AEN-S, these cylinders deliver robust performance with minimal material use, supporting sustainable production goals without sacrificing functionality. This reduction in material and weight lowers operational costs while enabling higher speeds and smoother operation, helping businesses streamline their processes and reduce environmental impact.
Pneumatic automation air supply: Superior airflow for peak performance
A race car relies on a compressed air reservoir to store pressurised air for critical pneumatic systems, such as gear shifting and Drag Reduction System (DRS) actuation. The same is true in industrial environments, where compressed air is the driving force behind many critical operations, powering essential functions such as actuation, control and safety. One key challenge in both contexts is ensuring a stable, efficient and cost-effective supply of clean, dry air even under high demand and dynamic conditions. Festo’s pneumatic supply components are designed to meet this challenge, delivering consistent and reliable airflow while optimising energy use.
Cost-optimised air preparation units: MS2-B, MS4-B and MS6-B
Festo’s MS-B series air preparation units are built to provide seamless air preparation and filtration for a wide range of industrial needs. With their compact footprint and modular design, these units come in three size variants: MS2-B, MS4-B, and MS6-B.
The MS2-B distinguishes itself with an externally added body housing, ensuring cost efficiency. Meanwhile, the MS4-B and MS6-B models incorporate a square polymer body with a transparent plastic bowl and a sturdy metal thread for enhanced reliability. Each size includes four essential functions: the LFR (filter regulator), electrical shut-off with soft start and LR (pressure regulator), providing flexible and precise air regulation.
Designed with cost-optimised features, the MS-B series offers an auto-drain function, which directly translates into reduced maintenance, less downtime and more efficient operations. In an industry where consistent air quality and reliable pressure regulation are non-negotiable, this type of functionality provides companies with a significant competitive advantage. Furthermore, the MS-B series is available in multiple sizes and integrates seamlessly into the broader MS Series, enabling a scalable, modular air supply system tailored to a wide range of industrial automation requirements.
Pneumatic automation control: Power, precision and performance
Discover the power of Festo’s Pneumatic Automation Control products, designed to transform your industrial automation solutions into a powerhouse of efficiency. When it comes to precision, the VTUX is your technical crew’s best friend. The VTUX offers reliability, simplicity and ease of integration. Whether it’s the classic VTUX-A-P with parallel communication or the advanced VTUX-A-S with serial communication and real-time diagnostics, these terminals represent a leap forward in pneumatic control. They enable smarter machines, reduce engineering complexity and deliver the responsiveness required in today’s competitive landscape.
Valve terminal VTUX-A-P and VTUX-A-S
Experience lightning-fast signal transmission with the VTUX-A-P valve terminal, which facilitates real-time parallel communication for seamless control, similar to when a car’s gearbox allows for swift, uninterrupted shifts. The Parallel communication is the classic type of multi-pin. Each valve coil is assigned a signalling line within the valve terminal. When controlled via IO-Link or the remote I/O system CPX-AP-A, the bus signal is split internally into individual channels for the valve coils.
Pushing the boundaries further is the VTUX-A-S introducing an innovative level of intelligence. Its serial communication architecture supports two-way data flow between the valve and the PLC, providing real-time diagnostics and performance feedback. This proactive approach to maintenance and troubleshooting drastically reduces unplanned downtime, giving customers a critical advantage in uptime-sensitive industries. The ability to control multiple valve coils within a single terminal, combined with advanced diagnostics and communication features, enables businesses to scale more efficiently, manage system health proactively and reduce engineering overhead. In an industry where agility and insight are currency, the VTUX valve terminal empowers organisations to stay ahead by transforming automation into a strategic advantage.
Pneumatic control and electric automation: Revolutionising automation
The central intelligence and command system of industrial automation is revolutionised by the MPA combined with the CPX-AP-A, and the VTSA combined with the CPX-AP-A. Embrace the future of industrial automation with this powerful combination, ensuring your operations stay ahead of the curve.
MPA combined with the CPX-AP-A and VTSA combined with the CPX-AP-A
MPA-S is a comprehensive solution that handles every aspect of your automation and control needs. Its highly communicative nature allows for the addition of numerous functions. When combined with the CPX, the MPA-S becomes a comprehensive tool for serial communication. The MPA-S CPX-AP-A, with its exceptional integration and high connectivity, functions as a cutting-edge telemetry system, continuously monitoring and optimising automation processes in real time.
The system’s ability to integrate functions and manage diagnostics for up to 128 solenoid coils and 64 valve positions, along with its integrated pressure sensors and proportional pressure regulators with the multiplexing option, contributes to its comprehensive nature.
Its integration of functions and diagnostics management streamlines operations and facilitates quick troubleshooting, minimising downtime and maintenance costs. The integrated pressure sensors ensure precise monitoring of pressure levels, while proportional pressure regulators enhance process accuracy and energy efficiency. Additionally, the multiplexing option allows for efficient resource utilisation, reducing equipment and installation costs. Overall, these characteristics contribute to a more reliable, cost-effective automation solution that enhances productivity and operational performance.
Festo Electric Automation Solutions: Steering and control
In a race car, the steering system is crucial for controlling the vehicle’s direction with precision, enabling it to navigate tight corners and adapt to the track in real time. In modern race cars, nearly all controls are integrated into the steering wheel, placing precision and control right at your fingertips. This enables drivers to make split-second adjustments for peak performance. Similarly, Festo’s Electric Automation products, including servo drives and controllers, serve as the intelligent steering system in Industrial Automation. They offer unmatched control, flexibility and precision in motion control, ensuring that processes run smoothly and efficiently.
Servo drive CMMT-AS and CMMT-ST
The CMMT-AS is the precision steering system that keeps your automation on the perfect racing line, delivering seamless control and championship-level performance. Compact yet incredibly powerful, this servo drive delivers seamless point-to-point and interpolating motion control compatible with all major Ethernet-based bus systems. It is a universal servo drive for brushless servo motors with a power rating of up to 12 000 W. Like a high-performance race car’s engine, which fine-tunes speed and torque, the CMMT-AS ensures precise control for high-speed and high-torque operations.
The CMMT-ST is the nimble sprinter in your automation system. Compact and efficient, it’s 50% smaller than the smallest CMMT-AS model but still packs enough punch to handle precise point-to-point and interpolating motion tasks. It is ideal for economical positioning tasks and motion solutions with low power requirements of up to 800 W. Think of it as your lightweight racer: agile, economical and perfectly tuned for performance.
Process automation: Your critical fuel system for success
Fuel is the lifeblood of a car, providing the necessary energy to power the engine and keep the vehicle moving; without it, the engine simply won’t run. Much as a car relies on the precise delivery of fuel and lubricants for optimal performance, efficiency and smooth acceleration, industrial processes depend on precision fluid control.
Quarter-turn actuator DFPD
Festo’s Process Automation solutions are built with this mission in mind. At the core of this innovation is the DFPD, a new benchmark for quarter-turn actuators. The DFPD can be used as an individual actuator or as part of a Festo automated process valve system. Designed for ball valves, butterfly valves and air dampers, the DFPD ensures accurate rotation, secure sealing and consistent operation, even under the most demanding industrial conditions.
With torque ranging from 10 to 2300 Nm and rotation angles of up to 180°, this actuator easily adapts to a variety of process applications, whether managing corrosive chemicals in the pharmaceutical sector, maintaining hygiene in beverage production or regulating water flow in treatment facilities.
What sets it apart and enhances customer competitiveness is its modular design and ease of integration. The compact rack-and-pinion mechanism, particularly in the single-acting version, simplifies installation while offering a highly durable and low-maintenance solution. With standardised interfaces such as NAMUR VDI/VDE 3845, it integrates effortlessly into existing systems, accelerating deployment and scalability.
Festo collaborates with CHW Design to model a production-accelerating Crate Stacker
Festo’s VTUX valve terminal empowers organisations to stay ahead by transforming automation into a strategic advantage. This strategic value was recently demonstrated in a real-world application by CHW Design, an established specialist in bakery, packaging and conveying systems. With more than two decades of machine design and manufacturing expertise, CHW embarked on a new project to develop Crate Stackers designed to boost efficiency and shorten production times for end users, a critical factor for customers operating in fast-moving, high-volume environments.
CHW’s interest in Festo’s VTUX valve terminals was sparked during a customer-led product day focused on pneumatic control solutions. Impressed by the VTUX’s multiprotocol capability, which supports both Profinet and IO-Link, they immediately recognised its potential to streamline integration with their existing PLC platforms. The VTUX’s lightweight design and the ability to mount it outside the control panel added further appeal, aligning perfectly with CHW’s need for flexibility and compact installation on the Crate Stacker.
Shortly after CHW’s product day, CHW requested a quote for 10 complete systems, including VTUX units for each build. Festo’s responsiveness and technical support played a crucial role in securing the order. Festo’s sales engineers and automation application engineers sat with designers to finalise the bill of materials and deliver a tailored quote that met all technical and logistical needs. With a strict production timeline in place, CHW needed a partner who could not only meet their technical criteria but also deliver reliably and quickly. Festo’s ability to fulfil those expectations without compromising on quality or cost-effectiveness proved decisive.
Once complete, the new Crate Stacker machines will provide CHW’s customers with a more innovative and faster stacking solution, directly reducing production time while offering high reliability and a simplified control system architecture. This embodies Festo’s mission to provide advanced, responsive automation that keeps customers ahead of the pack. This project further illustrates how innovative pneumatic automation, driven by collaborative engineering and product excellence, can bring industrial concepts to life and help businesses stay competitive in an ever-evolving market.
Festo continues to provide precision-engineered components, flexible systems and innovative thinking that enable customers to not only meet today’s demands but also innovate their solutions, accelerate their market position and dominate the industry.
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