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Automate 2011 iPad Winner Hails from Plastic Injection Molding for Medical Sector

POSTED 05/02/2011

ANN
ARBOR, Michigan – Plastic injection molding for the medical industry is a hot application for robots and machine vision, and Automate 2011 had many from that sector including Pat Shelly, Project Engineer from West Pharmaceutical Services who won the iPad giveaway from the Show. He hadn’t been to a show “just about automation” in years but the time was right when Automate came along.

“The show was very helpful for me,” said Mr. Shelly. “It was nice to see some of the new technologies, especially in vision and pneumatics.” He said that prior to Automate he mostly had gone to shows focused on medical devices rather than on automation.

West uses machine vision to inspect, measure and verify small plastic components. Of some 170 exhibitors at Automate 2011 nearly half were for machine vision.

Mr. Shelly was impressed by what he saw on the show floor and is open to the possibility of using products he encountered there. “One way we can use technology from Automate is to retrofit machines for injection molding,” said Mr. Shelly.

There were 7,945 participants at Automate 2011, with a large concentration from automotive, electronics, medical device, fabricated metals, food & beverage, consumer goods, aerospace and plastics industries. The Automate technical conference, which included machine vision courses, was also very strong with more than 400 participants interested in learning how to successfully apply automation.

Mr. Shelly was one of hundreds that entered the iPad giveaway. The Show sponsors, Robotic Industries Association, Automated Imaging Association and Motion Control Association awarded the prize.

Background on Show Sponsors
Automate 2011 is sponsored by Robotic Industries Association (RIA), the Automated Imaging Association (AIA) and the Motion Control Association (MCA).  Together, these trade associations represent automation manufacturers, component suppliers, system integrators, end users, consulting firms, and research groups.  In addition to the trade show and accompanying technical conference, the groups develop industry standards, hold industry networking events, collect market statistics, offer educational resources, and provide content-rich websites (www.robotics.org, www.machinevisiononline.org, www.motioncontrolonline.org).

Contact:  
Brian Huse
734/994-6088
Vision in Life Sciences This content is part of the Vision in Life Sciences curated collection. To learn more about Vision in Life Sciences, click here.