Automazione Intelligente

There are several intrinsic qualities that Meccanotecnica Umbra has demonstrated over the years. Among them is its ability to integrate, exploit and therefore put into practice insights and skills that emerge even indirectly. Ideas therefore emerge from a constant two-way flow of information between research and production that can become milestones in the group's development. This is where Automazione Intelligente was born. It came from an insight of our Chairman and the realisation over time that from being advanced users of automation, we could become producers of automation, thereby enhancing both our identity and the work we have had done together over the years with our partners and suppliers.

Our wealth of knowledge then led us to become a key player in the world of intelligent, customised and non-standard industrial automation in a constantly evolving market, where the challenge is not just to supply machinery, but to also design solutions able to meet complex needs, by integrating advanced technologies with next-generation software. As users and co-developers of technologies, we know what it takes to create automation that is able to identify and solve the main problems in their design and use. It is a vision which has gradually become more concrete over these years of development as we have diversified our production which is once again emblematic of our corporate identity of excellence, where audacity leads to concrete results.

For almost 60 years now, Meccanotecnica Umbra has distinguished itself as a leading manufacturer of mechanical seals with a very large degree of customisation in a highly specialised sector that requires precision, innovation and the ability to continuously adapt to new requirements. Its ability to establish itself as a benchmark for quality and reliability, through processes of collaboration and continuous expansion, amongst other things, have forged our well-known identity as a firm that always meets the highest standards.

These years of experience have brought with them a vast wealth of technical expertise, not only in our core business, but also in the management and optimisation of the production processes involved in the production of mechanical seals. That is, we have developed a great deal of experience as users of automation, which has naturally added to the group's already huge pool of knowledge with a new factor that has translated into a new strategic vision. In a relatively short period of time this vision has generated a very real business diversification strategy, as we have acquired deep awareness of the advantages of exploiting our vast wealth of knowledge to develop what is now becoming a new business and commercial initiative. This now represents not only an opportunity to expand our market, but also a response to the challenges of an industry in which automation and customisation are increasingly central.

Meccanotecnica Umbra has invested heavily in automation over the years, mainly by purchasing advanced solutions from suppliers and partners, but also by progressively developing customised technologies in-house.

And the specific nature of our requirements, linked to our particular production, has once again proved to be a strong distinguishing feature. While many companies can rely on standard machines to automate their processes, the need for customised production and specialist designs led Meccanotecica Umbra to co-design special and specific production lines jointly with our automation suppliers, as we succeeded in developing know-how and a particular expertise in the automation of specific processes. To design machines that can automate production requires a deep understanding of both the end product and the production process. This is why, as Meccanotecnica Umbra has acquired experience as a user of automation, it has often had to assist its automation suppliers with direct support to develop machines appropriate to the specific requirements of the seals it manufacturers. This whole constant and fluid process led to a question that became a turning point for the company:

why not put this expertise to use and become a direct supplier of automation?

The shortage of standard automated solutions for the mechanical seal industry was a decisive factor in bringing us to this conclusion. In fact, unlike other industries where ready-to-use machines and production lines can be found due to the existence of a large number of manufacturers with similar requirements, the small number of mechanical seal manufacturers worldwide and their specific production volumes leads to the demand for highly customised systems. Each machine must be designed basically from scratch to suit the specific characteristics of the products to be designed and the volumes required. This has led us to develop tailor-made solutions for our projects, acquiring technical expertise over the years that extends far beyond our own particular sector.

At the same time, industrial automation has undergone a radical transformation over the years. Whereas in the past mechanical design represented the heart of automation, today the focus has shifted decisively to the integration of software and hardware, with a clear preponderance on programming. Meccanotecnica Umbra has adapted to this change, moving from an approach based mainly on mechanics to a model in which programming and the use of advanced devices play a central role.  One example is multi-axis robots. These complex machines with up to 20 rotating axes capable of performing complex movements with great precision have replaced many traditional mechanical systems. The complexity of the software developed to manage them is clear and is added to by the availability of technologies such as PLCs (programmable logic controllers), smart cameras and advanced sensors, which allow processes to be monitored and optimised in real time.

Therefore, if today we can proudly speak of Automazione Intelligente, it is because we have willingly made a transition that is a natural development of our skills acquired over decades of work.

We have succeeded in combining and integrating Meccanotecnica Umbra's traditional expertise with new opportunities without losing sight of the company's core values, which continue to tell our story of technical excellence and adaptability.

The birth of Automazione Intelligente strengthens our vision of the group’s entire ecosystem: experience, growth and knowledge acquisition are factors that have always been fully exploited and which can produce new business realities and consequently new business opportunities. Automazione Intelligente was born with the clear objective of providing custom automated solutions, designed to meet specific needs, just as that which Meccanotecnica Umbra’s manufacturing does. It requires the ability to adapt to complex contexts by integrating advanced technology and multidisciplinary skills. It therefore again forms part of the DNA of this new division of the company. What distinguishes us is our vast experience as users. We have been using and co-designing machines for our automation needs for decades and therefore we understand the operational needs of our customers and are able to design solutions that are not only technologically advanced, but also practical and intuitive for the operator who will then use them. The approach by which we came to define this new business initiative is designed to be used where real barriers exist in the development and management of automation processes. In fact, our experience as machine users enables us to think by putting ourselves in our customers’ shoes to find concrete responses to any critical issues that may arise. 

Traditionally investment management is a crucial issue because the start-up of a new production line involves high costs, which may be disproportionate to initial volumes of production. In situations where these volumes grow slowly over time, the investment to cover the required capacity at full production can be high, and the ramp-up therefore requires a response that is able to adapt to operations in different environments. Our approach integrates different technologies designed to meet customer requirements, such as the use of robots and cobots for component and product handling, for the creation of a limited number of operating stations able to perform the different operations of a process (assembly, vision, measurement, marking, etc.).

Components are then transported via electromagnetic platforms, such as linear or flat electric motors, with which measurements can also be made on the finished product.

Ours is a modular model of all-electric automation that allows customers to start production with lines that are initially simpler and that can be scaled up over time for more complex operations. These prove efficient both in cases of complex systems with low throughput (i.e., low cost, small footprint and easily duplicated), and also in cases of technologies that operate in complex environments, reproduce actions requiring human intervention and have a high degree of programmability so that they can change their behaviour appreciably without the need for significant mechanical redesign.

Another problem area, which is becoming a priority in the design and use of automation processes, is software programming and management. In a context where the modularity and versatility of the machines allows them to be used in complex processes, it is easy to understand how the quality of the programming is a pivotal factor in achieving the full development of a process’s potential and making an investment pay off to the full. It is therefore of paramount importance not only to ensure that the coding is of high quality, with use of all available tools to assist this process such as Artificial Intelligence, 

but it is also equally important to provide customers with clear specifications and full documentation for maintenance and the ability to make changes to the code without recourse to the supplier so this can be outsourced and further development can be achieved even for those without full knowledge of the entire project.

Often the absence of detailed specifications has been the cause of long development times, resulting in much of the code only being written after the machine is already assembled. Consequently the lack of software documentation needed for maintenance or improvement has created barriers which prevent work being done on the machine without assistance from those who wrote the code. Our solutions, however, use software design based on finite state machine theory. Designs based on finite state machine theory involve the generation of “worksheets” which represent the different states of automation of which, in general, there may be very many. Software able to generate these states in a simple, visually friendly and clean manner and capable of producing machine language coding in a mechanical manner therefore becomes essential. In view of the absence of this type of software on the market, we have started to develop it in-house at MTU and expect to have a first working version available in early 2025. We write the code of each individual finite state machine using deterministic coding or with the use of artificial intelligence, which saves considerable programming time, and even go as far as using simulation environments that reproduce the entire operation of the system by executing the PLC code.

A key project in the evolution of this process was the development of the Mini Kit production line. Thanks to a regional call for tenders and a ministerial research project, we were able to develop this automated line, designed and manufactured entirely in-house by Meccanotecnica Umbra over time, using robots, artificial vision systems and advanced data management. This confirmed the validity of our conviction that we have great potential in the automation market as we move from being users to suppliers.  All the people with whom we work came together in this project, such as University of Perugia with whom we have a long-standing partnership, to explore new technologies, such as the magnetic levitation systems we use in our robotic islands.

This type of technology, which eliminates contact between moving parts, is particularly promising for applications in sterile environments or those requiring extreme precision.

It is a development that therefore integrates the best of existing solutions, adapting them to specific customer needs as it combines the best that mechanics and software design can offer together.

We were first customers and then partners in the development of machinery for the automation of industrial production processes and now we are developers and suppliers. And we can do this well by integrating a user perspective into the design process of the solutions we offer. It all originated from the keen insight of a businessman, who has guided an endogenous development process which today enables us to select and adapt advanced technologies, such as multi-purpose robots, vision systems and magnetic levitation technologies in order to offer an automation solution that plays a decisive role as a “general coordinator” as it integrates hardware and software to create complete solutions. As we have already said, our approach to automation enables us to address the main problems when it comes automating production processes, i.e. growth in required quantities, optimisation of investments and transparent and shared software management and machine programming.

With the launch of its Automazione Intelligente brand, Meccanotecnica Umbra has moved beyond the boundaries of its traditional sector, which is opening up new possibilities in different, high-tech fields. Although the company’s experience, even in terms of automation processes, is mainly rooted in the production of mechanical seals, the skills developed over the years have proven to be perfectly applicable to other sectors, which have similar needs, such as pharmaceuticals, electronics and packaging. 

The pharmaceutical sector, for example, requires machines able to operate in sterile environments, where extreme cleanliness is a must. In these situations, even the slightest release of particles or the presence of mechanical friction can pose a risk. 

The technologies developed by Automazione Intelligente, which include non-contact handling systems and advanced zero-wear materials, meet these requirements perfectly.

These same principles also apply to the electronics sector, where precision and product integrity are essential, or in the context of packaging production, an area where is a need for great flexibility and modularity. 

Automazione Intelligente’s systems enable the creation of compact and scalable product lines, ideal for the manufacture of consumer goods such as perfumes, oils or packaged pharmaceuticals. The ability to quickly adapt production lines (writing new code) to new requirements enables a dynamic response to market demands, making Automazione Intelligente an ideal partner for companies operating in this sector.

The research that has brought us this far is moving forward constantly, as is the process of dissemination and sharing with our partners. Collaboration with the University of Perugia is not limited merely to technological development. 

Automazione Intelligente participates actively in workshops and joint projects, sharing its expertise and receiving valuable feedback to further improve its solutions.

This also allows us to position the brand as an innovative and proactive player, capable of anticipating market trends. Participation in these events is also an opportunity to build relationships with potential customers and partners, thereby expanding our network of contacts and consolidating the reputation of our brand.

The steps ahead of us are clear and consist of building a substantial order book, which would be the starting point for the brand's real expansion in the market. Another key objective is the development of increasingly intelligent solutions. Automazione Intelligente is investing in simulation tools with which to test machines virtually before construction, thereby reducing costs and development times. This methodology, made possible, amongst other things, by the introduction of artificial intelligence in software coding processes, represents a real revolution in the field of industrial automation. We like to think we are going through a crucial new phase in the history of Meccanotecnica Umbra, not just a commercial operation, but a paradigm shift, which sees the company committed to transferring its experience and expertise to new markets, new projects and new successful developments.