Research & Insights

By: Evan Mounts, Engineering Market Director

The Wright Team recently had the opportunity to attend The International Manufacturing and Technology Show at McCormick Place in Chicago. Being that many of our clients are in the manufacturing space, and the fact that this show was first held almost 100 years ago in our hometown of Cleveland (fun fact), we felt it necessary to share our thoughts on the show overall.

Here’s our 3 biggest takeaways from IMTS 2024:

1.) Networking is back in a BIG way and better than ever
Crazy to think that a little over four years ago, we were all locked in our homes and confined to our computers for human interaction. Applications like Zoom and Microsoft Teams were our only lifeline, and it seemed at that moment that shows like this may be a thing of the past.

I remember our team’s first foray back into large events like this back in 2022, and although everyone seemed so happy to be out of the house and starved for human interaction, there was still an underlying fear that came with being back in large crowds.

Fast forward to today; The halls of McCormick Place were filled with travelers and manufacturers from all around the world, bustling with energy and enthusiasm. Our team was able to have some amazing conversations, and although the virtual landscape has been a major value add to businesses, still nothing beats face to face human interaction.

2.) Industry 4.0 is here
If there are any Charlie and the Chocolate Factory fans out there, remember when Mr. Bucket lost his job at the toothpaste factory to the dreaded Robotic Toothpaste Capper? Well, no need to worry, Collaborative Robots are here!!!

On the automation floor, we saw booth after booth displaying their co-bots, allowing for human-robot interaction within your manufacturing plant. Although, based on Fanuc’s massive display and countless others, I don’t think we’ll be doing away with larger, industrial robots anytime soon.

Artificial Intelligence also took center stage, and it seems that’s its uses for optimizing business operations are endless. Just don’t give HAL too much power within your facility. (Ok, I’m done with the movie references)

Machine Learning continues to be a hot commodity as well, and it seems that more and more companies are seeing the value in implementing these different technologies into their industrial processes.

3.) AUTOMATE TO SURVIVE!!!
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last 30 years, our entire world becomes more and more automated by the day. As I type this now, my smart watch just told me it was time to stand up and my phone has buzzed twice with messages that were read to me through my headphones. (What a world)

For many companies (especially small ones) automation still seems like a cost that they simply cannot afford. Although that is still somewhat true in some cases, there are so many Factory automation technologies out there that are plenty cost effective and will garner a significant ROI in a shorter period then one might think.

Much like everything else in our lives, there are so many options out there to choose from, and to continue to ignore the simple fact that automating processes in today’s world is a necessity is a scary proposition, and one that may not bode well for your business long term.