78 Million New Job Opportunities by 2030 but Urgent Upskilling Needed to Prepare Workforces

World Economic Forum - The Future of Jobs Report 2025, published today by the World Economic Forum, reveals that job disruption will equate to 22% of jobs by 2030, with 170 million new roles set to be created and 92 million displaced, resulting in a net increase of 78 million jobs. Technological advancements, demographic shifts, geoeconomic tensions and economic pressures are the key drivers of these changes, reshaping industries and professions worldwide.

Extended voltage range and additional braking option

Beckhoff - The AMP8620 supply module and the AMP8805 distribution module are now also available with an extended voltage range for the AMP8000 distributed servo drive system from Beckhoff. There is also an additional option for controlling the holding brake for the AMP80xx distributed servo drive.

Application Park shows off diverse robotics applications

Hannover Messe - Modern robots are increasingly taking on high-precision tasks that require maximum accuracy. Thanks to the use of artificial intelligence, they are becoming increasingly flexible and intelligent, and can handle far more complicated tasks than just a few years ago. Around 30 companies will be presenting exciting and modern applications at the Application Park.

Siemens unveils breakthrough innovations in industrial AI and digital twin technology at CES 2025

Siemens - Siemens is showcasing its vision for the future where data, AI and software-defined automation will converge to enable unprecedented flexibility, optimization and continuous improvement across the world’s industries, for companies of any size. This ambition is at the heart of Siemens' presence at CES 2025. Siemens – the global leader in industrial software –demonstrated how its technologies are empowering customers to take bold leaps in industrial innovation.

Complex regulation is hindering long-term investment in the European industry, according to new Deloitte scorecard

Deloitte - Almost one in three European companies (32%) considers regulation a major barrier to long-term investment. That is one of the conclusions of Deloitte's recent research. The research has been structured in a scorecard, which provides an overview of several priority areas. It reveals that the complexities of the European industry are posing significant challenges, which is also reflected in Belgium.

Starter flag for the H2Eco Award

Hannover Messe - In the run-up to HANNOVER MESSE 2025, Deutsche Messe AG and the German Hydrogen Association (DWV) are now jointly inviting entries for the H2Eco Award. This is set for presentation on 1 April 2025 on the stage of the Public Forum Hydrogen + Fuel Cells EUROPE during the world's leading trade fair for industry. The closing date for companies and institutions to submit their entries for this prestigious award is 10 February 2025.

EtherNet/IP Concurrent Connections for Critical Applications Now Available with CIP Safety

ODVA - ODVA is pleased to announce that the CIP SafetyTM on EtherNet/IPTM technology has been enhanced to allow for the use of Concurrent Connections for applications requiring both high availability and functional safety. Concurrent Connections allow for communication redundancy between multiple producing and consuming devices for the most critical automation processes.

Control runtime and engineering with a significant leap in performance

Beckhoff - Beckhoff is enabling a real leap in automation technology performance with TwinCAT PLC++. Both engineering and runtime can be accelerated, while the well-known TwinCAT advantages of consistent integration, compatibility, and openness continue to be delivered. In combination with easy switchover and the retention of existing TwinCAT functionality, this results in significant added value – the “plus plus” for the user.

IO-Link Opens Up New Areas of Application

Profibus & Profinet International - IO-Link is continuing on a highly expansionary course of growth. This is expressed both by the number of nodes and the variety of different devices. IODDfinder now lists more than 11,000 different devices, making it the largest database for sensors and actuators with IO-Link. With 700,000 accesses per month, IODDfinder has become a primary tool for the IO-Link community.

A Standardized Plug System for PROFINET over SPE

Profibus & Profinet International - With its array of technologies, PI (PROFIBUS & PROFINET International) stands for a multitude of innovations and cross-manufacturer interoperability - starting with the connectivity of plugs and cables. This has already been achieved today with two- and four-pair Ethernet cabling, but now the story of success continues with Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) - a plug connector for industrial automation.

Demand for machine tools has stalled

VDW - Orders received by the German machine tool industry in the third quarter of 2024 were 16 percent down on the same period last year. Orders from Germany fell by 17 percent whereas those from abroad dropped by 15 percent. Orders received in the first three quarters of 2024 were 23 percent down on the same period last year. Domestic orders were 10 percent lower. Orders from abroad were 28 percent below the previous year's figure.

World's largest battery cell manufacturers report against harmonised sustainability performance expectations

Global Battery Alliance - Ten consortia, led by the world's leading battery cell manufacturers, successfully complete the largest pre-competitive effort to establish harmonised battery passports achieving a new milestone towards more transparent and sustainable battery value chains.