The research team presented the new robot to the public on the occasion of a visit to the Garmisch Research Centre by Judith Gerlach, Minister of State for Health, Care and Prevention.

On a stable, mobile base, the upper body of the new care-assist robot is attached to an extendable lifting column with arms located on the right and left-hand sides of the column. Above the arms is a head with alert eyes that blink from time to time. The new generation of Garmi has various sensors: cameras are mounted at eye level to detect movements in the environment; a lidar at leg height keeps objects in the immediate vicinity at a sufficient distance; and in future, 3D cameras will secure and coordinate the movements of the two arms. There is also a screen at chest height.

‘"he new Garmi understands language, develops a plan independently and brings a patient something to drink," says Alexander König, whose team developed and implemented the new platform. Based on the new design, the first forward-looking functionalities have now been developed. The MIRMI professor says: "A robot must be functional and operable, but must also have an appealing appearance. That's why we are collaborating with design experts."

Robotics engineer König sees his Garmi research team as an integrator that brings technology and design together. This includes, for example, precise grasping functionality (perception) and the ability to arrive at the exact location where a task is to be performed (navigation). The design should also support people in interacting and communicating with the robot while conveying trust and safety.

"While the original Garmi was designed as a versatile research platform, the new Garmi has been specifically developed for the care context," says Annette Diefenthaler, professor of design and transdisciplinarity and director of the Munich Design Institute (MDI), who worked with an external partner to develop the design of the new robot.

The robot is more like a mobile platform than a humanoid. "But it was clear to us from the outset that it should come across as friendly and approachable – with subtle human-like features," says Diefenthaler.

The new platform does not look like a human being: ‘It’s a friendly creature that controls technology. This allows the machine to fade into the background while the robot creates an emotional connection.’

The new Garmi can pick up objects from the floor, but also retrieve them from up high. Unlike the first-generation Garmi, the face and screen are separate. In future, when a doctor is connected for a remote examination, their head will appear on the screen, just like in a video call. The next step is to make the new Garmi safe for use in both care facilities and the home environment of senior citizens. Bringing a drink to a thirsty person is only the first step. ‘Helping people get up, enabling communication and participation in social life, reminding them to take their medication – the possible applications are wide-ranging,’ says Prof. König.

www.tum.de/en/

Fyous has outlined in a new whitepaper how this new category of manufacturing addresses the tooling bottlenecks that hinder both traditional injection moulding and industrial-scale 3D printing. This new approach resolves the long-standing challenges of affordable mass customisation, facilitating truly agile, high-speed manufacturing.

Featuring tens of thousands of precisely controlled pins that reconfigure to create temporary tools in minutes, polymorphic machines can function as injection moulds, forming tools and work-holding fixtures. By eliminating the need for fixed tooling, which often takes months to deliver and accounts for up to 98% of part costs at low to medium production volumes, these machines support rapid prototyping and more economical production of bespoke products.

Joshua Shires, CEO of Fyous, states: “Polymorphic manufacturing is a fundamental change in production capability that delivers the agility of additive manufacturing with the quality, scalability and throughput associated with high-volume processes. This foundational shift in manufacturing technology represents the dawn of a new manufacturing category, making it possible to produce high volumes of unique, one-of-a-kind items as quickly and profitably as traditional mass-produced batch processes.”

Ben Morgan, Interim CEO of the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), comments: “Following our first experience with polymorphic manufacturing for our workholding project, the far-reaching potential of this technology became clear. It offers a practical new route to fast, flexible manufacturing, and we’re excited to explore how it can be applied across a wide range of industries”

According to Fyous Polymorphic manufacturing is poised to revolutionise various sectors, with several manufacturers already exploring its potential:

• Dental aligner manufacturers could completely eliminate the single-use 3D-printed moulds associated with every aligner they produce. This could save millions of kilograms of plastic waste and as much as £1 billion in production costs annually.
• Innovative footwear manufacturers can use Fyous’s technology to produce custom shoe lasts. Polymorphic processes eliminate the milling stage required to produce lasts, which often wastes more than half of the material, and reduce plastic waste to less than 7.8%.
• In aerospace, the rapid tooling reconfiguration offered by this technology supports frequent design changes and significant cost reductions in low-volume production runs. Aerospace manufacturers can create and enhance aircraft parts without waiting weeks and spending tens of thousands of pounds on new tooling they might only use once.
• In healthcare, polymorphic technology enables the rapid, cost-effective production of patient-specific medical devices while contributing to sustainability gains.

To download Fyous’s whitepaper, Polymorphic Manufacturing: The Critical Factor for Mass Customisation, visit:

www.fyous.com/technology

Standard families are manufactured in painted mild steel, 304 and 316L stainless steel, aluminium, polycarbonate and GRP. For systems that are going to be exported to North America, many products have UL and cUL listings, an important consideration when specifying components for an export project. With IP ratings from IP65 up to IP69 and equivalent NEMA ratings, there is almost certainly a standard family to suit just about any application. 

In addition to general purpose industrial enclosures, there are ranges optimised for specialist requirements: corrosion resistant enclosures, hygienic enclosures for regular high temperature and pressure washdown, operator interface enclosures and flange disconnect enclosures. Modular IP sealed wireway and cable trough systems in mild and stainless steel are also manufactured. Free-standing racks and cabinets, thermal management solutions, power distribution systems and small electronic enclosures are also featured in the industrial enclosure portfolio.

Hammond also have an extensive in-house modification capability for OEM projects, reducing time to market and avoiding having to over-order standard enclosures for modification by third party contractors.

To see an overview of our product range, click here. To contact us to discuss a specific project requirement, call +44 1256 812812, email [email protected] or [email protected]

ADVANACES IN material science and digital technology are impacting asphalt production. Among these innovations, one of the most widely discussed in recent years is self-healing asphalt. Research led by Swansea University has shown how incorporating biomass waste into asphalt allows microcracks to completely heal in less than an hour. Laboratory trials suggest this approach could extend road life, reducing the need for resurfacing and lowering whole life carbon emissions. 

Further research published in ScienceDirect shows that bio-based rejuvenators, produced from waste oils, vegetable derivatives and biopolymers can restore aged asphalt binders and improve performance, offering a sustainable path to longer pavement life.

Although the research highlights significant benefits, their effectiveness depends on how well plants can manage these more complex mixes. Advanced mixes tend to be less forgiving than traditional hot mix asphalt. Temperature stability, mixing time and energy input play a greater role in determining final material behaviour. Variations that may once have been acceptable can now undermine performance, placing greater emphasis on consistency and process control within a plant.

Digital feedback in plant operations

At the same time, digital technologies are changing how asphalt performance is assessed once it leaves the plant. The UK Department for Transport increasingly uses laser-based surface texture measurement, sensor-equipped survey vehicles and predictive condition monitoring tools. 

Research and guidance published by National Highways shows that automated condition surveys using SCANNER and TRACS data can identify changes in road condition before visible defects appear, supporting a planned rather than reactive approach to maintenance.

This growing volume of performance data is beginning to influence decisions back at the plant. When production parameters can be reviewed alongside in-service performance, producers gain clearer insight into how adjustments at the mixing stage affect long-term outcomes. To support this, asphalt plants must be capable of collecting and interpreting process data in real time. 

Automation and modern control systems play a central role here. Continuous monitoring of mixers, motors, fans and conveyors allow operating conditions to be adjusted dynamically rather than relying on fixed setpoints. 

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), advanced energy management practices, incorporating digitalisation, real-time process data and automated control can provide durable and scalable improvements in industrial energy performance across sectors.

Precision, efficiency and sustainability

Energy efficiency has become inseparable from both cost control and sustainability and efficiency improvements are one of the fastest and most cost-effective routes to industrial carbon reduction. 

Without precise control of energy input, many of the environmental benefits associated with these materials risk being eroded during production. Smarter automation and better data visibility help ensure that process conditions remain within tighter tolerances, supporting consistent quality while reducing unnecessary energy use.

As materials science continues to advance, the demands placed on asphalt plants will only increase. New formulations require production systems that can respond to changing material behaviour without sacrificing throughput or reliability. Flexible automation architectures, integrated sensor networks and adaptable drive systems will also become standard features of modern plants.

Meeting these demands relies on precise, responsive plant equipment. High-efficiency electric motors, AC inverter drives and PLC-based control systems allow producers to maintain tight process control while reducing energy consumption and mechanical stress. 

Simultaneously, integrated automation solutions that coordinate mixers, conveyors and material handling equipment help reduce variability and support consistent production as mix designs become more sophisticated.

This is where experience in industrial drive technology, automation and control system integration is essential. Applying these technologies in a practical production environment allows asphalt plants to translate advances in materials science into reliable, repeatable processes on the ground — supporting both performance and sustainability goals as the industry moves toward intelligent infrastructure.

technidrive.co.uk

As part of this partnership, Tezmaksan has commissioned its second CubeBOX automation line at UFC Automotive’s tractor clutch production facility. The new installation marks a significant step in UFC Automotive’s digital transformation journey, facilitating continuous, robot-assisted production and delivering measurable improvements in efficiency, quality and manufacturing sustainability.

The partnership builds on more than a decade of cooperation between the two companies and reflects a shared commitment to modernising Turkish manufacturing through automation. According to The Global Economy, industry represented 25.94% of Turkey’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, highlighting the sector’s strategic weight and the growing need for modern, digitally driven production technologies.

UFC Automotive manufactures tractor clutch systems for both domestic and global markets as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and original equipment supplier (OES). Due to the critical functional role of clutch systems, the company prioritises precision, stability and traceability in its production operations.

“We’ve partnered with Tezmaksan as a reliable partner to help bring our production processes into the digital transformation era,” said Can Çetin, partner at UFC Automotive. “With Tezmaksan’s technical support and systems, we integrated the system without hesitation, and we’ve already seen an increase in productivity.”

The new CubeBOX robotic automation system continuously feeds three different CNC machines for 22 hours per day, automating a process previously requiring three operators. This transition has allowed the company to boost productivity by 35 per cent and increase cost savings by 50 per cent across its tractor clutch production.

By adopting a second CubeBOX system, UFC Automotive aims to secure higher process consistency, minimise manual handling and ensure sustainable, repeatable production quality.

“Turkish industry has enormous digital transformation potential and our work with UFC Automotive is a strong demonstration of what can be achieved with practical, well-engineered automation,” said Hakan Aydogu, Group CEO at Tezmaksan. “Our CubeBOX systems feed multiple CNC machines for extended periods, supporting efficient, operator-friendly production.”

UFC Automotive plans to continue its investment in digital transformation with Tezmaksan in upcoming projects, reinforcing its goal to increase efficiency, ensure quality and maintain competitive in both domestic and international markets. 

“Collaborations like this allow us to combine our automation expertise with the real production needs of manufacturers,” explained Aydogdu. “Our goal is to make advanced CNC automation accessible to a wider range of companies and to support their transition toward more efficient, reliable and data-driven production.”

www.tezmaksan.com

Tura is purpose-built to meet the stringent perception requirements for vehicle-based night vision, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), and autonomous vehicles (AV) that demand high performance, low supply risk, and cost-effective thermal solutions.

The automotive-qualified Tura features a new, high-performance passive 640 × 512 resolution far-infrared (FIR) sensor with industry-leading sensitivity critical for detecting and classifying pedestrians, animals, and other vulnerable roadway users. It delivers perception far beyond headlights in complete darkness and through challenging conditions such as fog, smoke, sun glare, and headlight glare.

"Safety and reliability are non-negotiable pillars of autonomous technology, and Tura sets a new industry benchmark with compatible FuSa features starting from the sensor," said Paul Clayton, president and GM, Teledyne FLIR OEM. "We have manufactured more than one million automotive thermal camera modules over the last twenty years for driver warning systems and will continue to provide a high-volume, cost-effective solution."

Teledyne FLIR OEM and Valeo, a key technology partner of mobility players around the globe, previously announced their collaboration, and “Valeo and Teledyne FLIR will deliver the first Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) B thermal imaging technology for night vision ADAS. This system will complement Valeo’s large range of sensors and rely on Valeo’s ADAS software stack to support functions such as automatic emergency braking (AEB) at night for passenger and commercial vehicles as well as for autonomous cars.”

Tura enhances lifesaving pedestrian automatic emergency braking (PAEB) and helps provide a smoother, safer ride. It also supports the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 127, which requires higher-speed nighttime test scenarios where existing AEB systems struggle.

Teledyne FLIR OEM thermal cameras are also deployed in fully autonomous vehicles. In addition to delivering forward-looking perception data, multiple thermal camera modules can be integrated to enhance 360-degree situational awareness. This enables reliable detection of heat-emitting objects—such as people, vehicles, and animals even in low-visibility conditions.

www.oem.flir.com/tura

Digid sensors are believed to be the world’s smallest – and are set to become even smaller: Digid’s technology roadmap forecasts future production of sensors that are just 10nm long.

This nanoscale sensing technology provides the key that will unlock the potential of multiple emerging markets, including physical AI and humanoid robots. In robotics, for instance, Moravec’s paradox – that robots struggle with tasks which humans find easy, such as handling a delicate wine glass – has persisted in part because robot hands lack the billions of nerve endings on a human finger.

Now Digid offers the opportunity for machines to mimic human sensory capabilities: its nanoscale printed sensors can be applied to surfaces such as a robot’s shell in arrays of up to 16 x 16 sensors.

Other applications for Digid sensors include: 

• Force sensing on the blade of a scalpel in robotic surgical equipment
• Temperature sensing on the tip of a temperature probe used in minimally invasive surgery
• Temperature sensors embedded inside battery cells, for safety and performance monitoring
• Biosensors for detecting biological objects such as viruses, or the chemical markers of drugs in the bloodstream.

Dr Konstantin Kloppstech, chief technology officer of Digid, said: "With the start of mass production of Digid sensors, the opportunities to embed sensing on almost any surface or in almost any device have become limitless. Our sensor is so small that it cannot be seen with the naked eye. Now it is up to the imaginations of design engineers to dream of uses for sensing where sensing has never before been possible."

For each design project, Digid supplies a custom sensor and sensor assembly backed by hardware and software integration support. The sensor provides either a voltage or resistance measurement output via an I2C interface. Digid signal processing software converts the raw measurement outputs to useful temperature or force data.

As well as their nanoscale dimensions, Digid sensors also offer negligible self-heating or other distorting effects on sensor readings, and highly accurate and linear measurement outputs.

Minimal digital overhead is required – unlike for other types of sensor, Digid nanoscale sensors require no compensation for drift or other non-linearities

digid.com/contact

The collaboration brings together two complementary offerings with a shared mission to help customers in the United States, and around the globe, lower the cost, complexity, and time it takes to deploy robotics and industrial automation at scale. 

HowToRobot operates what is reported to be the world’s largest automation sourcing platform with more than 20,000 suppliers and expert support helping companies understand what robotics solutions will work for their organisation while also defining project requirements and streamlining deployment. This simplified approach allows customers to cut automation costs by up to 50% and launch robotics solutions four times faster. Holman recently launched a new robotics division, which combines solution design, flexible financing, and lifecycle asset management, enabling customers to launch faster, scale smarter, and maximise the long-term value of their investment with less complexity. 

Through this collaboration, HowToRobot and Holman are able to provide a seamless, end-to-end pathway for automation, making it easier for businesses to move from planning to deployment, manage their automation fleet, and scale solutions with lower risk and greater financial flexibility.

“We’re extremely proud of the investment Holman is making in our company,” said Søren Peters, CEO of HowToRobot. “There is a significant need in the market for making robotics and automation more accessible. The Holman Robotics team certainly shares this strategic vision, and together we look forward to helping customers embrace automation much faster while also eliminating the usual financial and technical roadblocks.”

The investment, which is effective immediately, supports HowToRobot’s continued development of tools and capabilities that make automation more accessible for customers. This includes further development of its AI-driven quotation tool and digital workflows that guide customers from defining their needs to matching with suppliers, obtaining and comparing budgetary and firm quotes, and ultimately selecting a vendor. The funding will also support the company’s transition toward a SaaS-based model and expanded commercial operations in key markets, such as the US and UK.

“For more than a century, Holman has been at the forefront of embracing innovative technologies that have the potential to deliver additional value to our customers,” said Holman’s VP of Robotics Joe Foster. “This investment and collaboration with HowToRobot will further strengthen our groundbreaking robotics offering, allowing Holman to leverage decades of experience managing complex assets to deliver a holistic approach to automation that bundles hardware, data integration, management software, and ongoing support into a single, streamlined solution.”

HowToRobot.com

The contract represents a significant commercial validation of alternative motor winding materials as OEMs seek to reduce exposure to copper supply chain vulnerabilities. With approximately 50% of global copper refining capacity concentrated in a single region, automotive manufacturers are actively exploring technology pathways that offer greater supply diversification.

The UK Government's Critical Minerals Strategy (November 2025) validates these concerns, projecting copper demand to increase from 922,200 tonnes in 2027 to 3,619,000 tonnes by 2035, nearly doubling over the period. The strategy identifies copper supply chain concentration as a strategic vulnerability and commits up to £50 million to support innovation that delivers supply chain diversification.

AEM's technology replaces conventional copper windings with compressed aluminium conductors, leveraging aluminium's established global supply infrastructure and reduced geopolitical concentration risk. The approach maintains power density performance while delivering operational efficiency gains through electrodynamic performance characteristics that contribute to reduced energy consumption per kilometre. 

James Widmer, CEO of AEM, said: "OEMs are evaluating motor technologies not just on performance metrics, but on strategic supply chain resilience. Our aluminium winding architecture addresses critical sourcing vulnerabilities while delivering measurable efficiency improvements and enhanced end-of-life recyclability."

The commercial engagement follows AEM's recent tier 1 supplier agreement for its rare-earth-free SSRD motor technology, indicating growing industry momentum toward materials diversification in electric drivetrain components.

AEM's compressed aluminium winding technology delivers several engineering benefits over conventional copper designs. The material availability advantage is significant: aluminium refining capacity is geographically distributed across multiple regions, reducing single-source supply chain exposure that has become a strategic concern for automotive manufacturers.

Manufacturing flexibility improves through lower material costs and established aluminium processing infrastructure, enabling more diverse supplier qualification. Operational efficiency gains are achieved through enhanced thermal performance characteristics that contribute to reduced energy consumption per kilometre.

End-of-life processing advantages include clean separation of aluminium and steel components, which enables higher-value material recovery without metallurgical contamination. The circular economy benefits are also substantial: recycled aluminium requires 95% less processing energy than primary production, supporting automotive manufacturers' scope 3 emissions reduction targets.

The automotive industry's increasing focus on supply chain resilience reflects multiple strategic concerns. Copper price volatility has introduced significant cost uncertainty into electric motor bill-of-materials, while geopolitical factors affecting mineral processing capacity create potential production continuity risks.

Alternative motor winding materials offer manufacturers strategic optionality in component sourcing, potentially enabling parallel supply chain development and reducing dependency on single-material architectures.

Widmer added: "UK engineering innovation is providing automotive manufacturers with technically validated alternatives to conventional motor designs. This partnership demonstrates that supply chain diversification and performance optimisation are not mutually exclusive objectives."

advancedelectricmachines.com

Nathan Charles, head of customer experience at managed IT and cyber security partner OryxAlign, explores why traditional defences are losing ground as attackers adopt AI-enabled methods, and how engineering and manufacturing organisations can adapt their security strategies to stay resilient.

Legacy tools under strain

Traditional tools built on signature updates or static rules were never designed to match the pace or instability of modern attacks. AI alters code constantly and reshapes its own signals in ways that unsettle tools which depend on stable, recognisable patterns.

Automated scripts test weak points at high frequency and generate rapid chains of intrusion attempts that leave teams sifting through alerts. This creates a landscape where familiar tools still have value yet struggle to provide the confidence that many organisations need when adversaries no longer work at human speed. In engineering and manufacturing environments, this pressure is often intensified by a mix of legacy systems, specialist equipment and networks that were never designed for constant exposure.

Recent analysis from security researchers reports “78 per cent of CISOs now admit AI-powered cyber-threats are having a significant impact on their organisation”, which reinforces the growing limitations of traditional controls.

Rising impact in Britain

Across the UK the impact is already visible. The Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025 shows that organisations reporting a breach face a mean cost of £3,550 for their most disruptive incident, while a government-commissioned study places the wider economic impact of cyber attacks at around £14.7 billion each year. These figures show that routine incidents still carry weight for organisations across the UK. They also reveal a shift in how attacks unfold.

Automated probing shortens the gap between an initial scan and a serious attempt to breach a system, which forces incidents to gather pace and draws heavily on operational teams. As this tempo increases, older tools struggle to keep their footing and leave practitioners working with less room to anticipate the next stage of an intrusion. For manufacturing and engineering teams, this compression of response time can sit alongside production demands and safety considerations, adding further strain during active incidents.

AI reshapes monitoring

A further challenge appears once AI begins to influence how organisations monitor their environments. Automated tools now scan networks and endpoints for unusual activity, although their outputs often need human context before teams can trust what they see. These systems can present signals that sit close to normal operational patterns, which makes it harder for practitioners to judge whether a change in behaviour deserves closer attention. 

Attackers also use AI to produce misleading indicators that mimic trusted activity or disguise a malicious sequence inside ordinary network traffic, which makes early recognition far harder for automated systems. Without oversight, teams risk either ignoring subtle signals or chasing false leads that drain resources during busy periods.

Building stronger visibility

Security therefore rests on a blend of clear visibility and confident human judgement, supported by processes that help teams act without hesitation. UK engineering and manufacturing organisations benefit from monitoring that builds a steady picture of system behaviour under routine conditions.

Lifecycle planning also supports this picture by keeping endpoints current and reducing the presence of devices that sit outside managed oversight. These adjustments give teams a steadier view of network activity, even as automated tooling produces a heavy flow of alerts. With a clearer picture in front of them, practitioners can step into developing incidents earlier and guide responses with more confidence.

Sharper social threats

Another pressure on security teams comes from the steady rise in social-engineering attempts. Recent global research notes that in 2024 “there was a sharp increase in phishing and social engineering attacks” and that “Generative AI is augmenting cybercriminal capabilities”. These messages often pass through standard filtering and reach staff who may not expect them.

Automated tools can support the screening process, although their outputs need human review to avoid misjudging messages that share traits with legitimate correspondence. As these attempts grow more polished, organisations benefit from awareness training and monitoring practices that keep pace with the evolving character of these attacks.

AI-driven intrusion methods continue to advance, yet organisations can adjust their thinking to meet this change. Traditional tools still hold value, although their protective strength relies on how they sit alongside real-time monitoring and the routine maintenance that keeps systems predictable enough for practitioners to read them with confidence. For engineering-led organisations, maintaining this balance is increasingly part of operational resilience rather than a standalone IT concern.

Further information on approaches that support stronger cyber resilience is available at:

www.oryxalign.com/cyber