n NEWS May 2025 www.drivesncontrols.com 6 GLOBAL SALES BY the German automation supplier Beckho slumped by 33% in 2024, dropping from €1.75bn in 2023 to €1.17bn. This was a sharp change in fortune for a company that has usually achieved doubledigit annual increases in sales, and expanded at an average annual rate of 15% between 2000 and 2023. The company’s founder and owner, Hans Beckho , says that he had expected the dramatic drop-o in sales in 2024 because many customers had over-ordered during 2023 and “their warehouses were full”. He reports that incoming orders are now showing signs of recovery and expects the 2025 sales gures to be much better. “We have gone through the valley and are now moving upwards again,” he said at the Hannover Messe. “This is my sixth crisis in 45 years of business and almost all of them have followed a very similar pattern,” Beckho explained. “You can be sure that there will be a recovery, but you have to tackle the crisis head-on and see it as an opportunity for innovation and optimisation.” During 2024, there was a small decrease in Beckho ’s global workforce to 5,300 – including around 2,000 engineers. Despite the downturn, the company invested €80m in research and development last year – a similar amount to recent years. “We are intent on further expanding our position as a global automation technology company,” says Beckho . “We remain dedicated to our mission of evolving our portfolio with strong developments every year and introducing revolutionary new technology every ve to seven years.” At Hannover, Beckho unveiled several new and enhanced product lines, including: n a new generation of TwinCat PLCs with built-in chatbot functions (see page 20); n new multi-touch panel PCs with improved user-friendliness; n a new system to measure and analyse energy consumption; n an expanded portfolio of EtherCat Box modules for integrating intrinsically safe signals; n a machine vision camera connector that integrates up to 64 cameras directly into the TwinCat architecture; n an updated version of the TwinCAT 3 Motion Designer drives software with more functions and device options; and n a series of “vision unit illuminated” (VUI) compact cameras that incorporate illumination and focusable optics, simplifying installation and commissioning. Beckhoff’s revenues plummet by 33%, but are expected to rebound pWEG is expanding its capacity to produce LV motors in Italy. It is investing around €4m, most of this going on a new 6,600m² factory due to start operations in the rst half of 2026. The Milan plant will be around 22km from the WEG’s existing LV motor factory that it acquired when it bought the Cemp brand from Regal Rexnord in 2024. WEG operates two factories as well as a commercial branch in Italy, employing around 320 people. pEquipmake, the Norfolk-based developer of motors and drivetrains, has secured a £5m investment from Caterpillar Venture Capital and signed an agreement to develop drivetrain systems for Caterpillar. The investment ends plans for a possible sell-o. Equipmake has also won a £650,000 order from Sweden’s CorPower Ocean to develop a generator and silicon carbide inverter system for its wave energy technology. pKempston Controls has signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Electric to distribute automation products including VSDs, motion controls, PLCs, HMIs and robots. Kempston will also invest in training, technical and service support, and stock. It plans to target new markets including pharmaceuticals and food & beverage. Kempston employs 300 people and has distribution sites in Northamptonshire and Hudderseld, as well as manufacturing sites in Manchester and Holyhead. pABB Motion is taking a minority stake in a US-based AI start-up, UptimeAI, with the aim of transforming how customers manage the health and performance of motors, drives and related assets. The partners plan to combine machine learning (ML) and expert systems to provide insights into the health and performance of rotating equipment, thus improving failure prediction and health forecasting, and optimising maintenance. pDavenham Switchgear, the Irish LV switchgear manufacturer, is setting up a production site in Nottingham to target the large-scale datacentre market. The 9,290m2 facility is the Dublin company’s rst site in the UK. It is due to become operational later this year, will employ more than 100 people. Davenham, which has annual revenues of around €120m, was acquired last year by the French group, Legrand. The company has been operating for around 40 years in Ireland, where it employs around 350. pMclennan has formed a partnership agreement with US-based Lin Engineering, a subsidiary of the Moons’ group of motion control manufacturers. Lin’s range includes rotary stepper motors, linear actuators, brushless DC motors, micro DC motors and frameless torque motors, as well as paired gears and AGV/AMR drive wheels. NEWS BRIEFS NIDEC DRIVES HAS appointed Laurent Babaud as president. He has more than three decades of experience in motors and drives at Nidec, including leading European sales for Leroy-Somer and Control Techniques, serving as president of SSB Wind Systems and, most recently, leading Nidec Conversion’s global marketing, sales and European operations. Babaud follows Miles Ackerman who was appointed interim president of Welshheadquartered Nidec Drives last year, succeeding Anthony Pickering, who was promoted to president of Nidec’s Motion Platform. Nidec Drives was formed last year by the merger of Control Techniques and KB Electronics. “The appointment of Laurent is an exciting development for Nidec Drives,”says Pickering. “With his knowledge of the drives industry and his leadership skills honed within the Nidec Group, I am convinced that he has the passion, enthusiasm and tenacity required to lead the Nidec Drives business forward, driving new phases of strategic growth and long-term development. Babaud says he is “honoured to step into the role of president at Nidec Drives... I am ready to start writing the next chapter.” Hans Beckhoff: We have gone through the valley Nidec Drives appoints Babaud as president
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