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New developments in AI, hydrogen technology, robotics and cyber security, among others, are showing themselves to be decisive for the course automation companies should take anno 2025. Surely this much emerged from Pilz GmbH's annual press conference. From this latest edition, we remember above all that a world of lightning-fast evolution, especially in the domains cited, brings with it an inexorable demand for even more adaptability and flexibility.
Traditionally, Pilz's annual ‘Pressekonferenz’ means a parade of both board members and some of its domain specialists, each giving a very upholstered account of the current reality and market situation. So it was this year too; we remember the following highlights:
The past financial year marked a difficult period for the entire Pilz Group. In 2024, for instance, the automation company achieved sales of ‘only’ 341 million euros, which represented a 21 per cent drop compared to 2023. The continuing weak demand for capital goods was certainly no stranger to this, according to Susanne Kunschert, managing partner of Pilz GmbH & Co KG. “Then it comes down to maximum customer focus. And for Pilz, this means much more than just offering good technical solutions; we also offer proactive training and advice.” Moreover, Pilz is explicitly targeting sectors of the future, such as the hydrogen industry, and is also already testing the use of AI.
The Industrial Security training packages will be expanded, and Pilz will increasingly use a digital cloud service that will provide maximum support to customers in the implementation of the new machine regulation, the Cyber Resilience Act and NIS2, among others.
Thomas Pilz, managing partner of Pilz GmbH & Co. KG gave a very detailed account of the reinterpretation, or rather upgrading, of the CE mark: “The CE mark indicates that a product meets all relevant safety, environmental and health requirements, and has thus proven itself as a rock-solid quality guarantee for decades. So much so, that emerging countries like Brazil or India have meanwhile gratefully implemented the principle. The new reality of digitalisation, networking, robotisation and AI means that, among other things, the safety aspect of the CE story needs to be defined differently.”
Due to the rapid increase in cyber attacks and damage through manipulation, the new machine regulation will now also require protection against the damage of security functions, e.g. of controllers, and thus place additional demands on Industrial Security. An important fact, which for Pilz has been the driving force behind the further development and certification of high-quality systems according to the new machine regulation, the Cyber Resilience Act and NIS2. Simon Nutz, Consultant Industrial Security at Pilz, explained in detail how a company can best address this internally.
Finally, we cite the interesting contribution of Erich Wagner and Markus Locke, both Product Management Managers at Pilz. They emphasised the importance of sensors in automated systems. Because to be clear: Pilz products are not only found in the control cabinet. The company is also an absolute pioneer in the field of sensor technology, with its “PSEN” product line, for example. With sensors for position monitoring and the protection of access doors and maintenance valves, among other things, but also for surface and room monitoring.
To meet the various challenges in the application of sensors, a diversity of technologies are used, ranging from safety switches, electromechanical and electromagnetic interlocks to optoelectronic sensors such as safety light curtains, laser scanners or radar systems.
