New breed of robots to be introduced across north of England

Citation

(2007), "New breed of robots to be introduced across north of England", Industrial Robot, Vol. 34 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2007.04934aab.003

New breed of robots to be introduced across north of England

New breed of robots to be introduced across north of England

The UK's first centre for robotics in the food industry is being launched and will demonstrate highly advanced robots with a grip sensitive enough to pick up slices of cucumber or tomato without damaging them.

Managed by the University of Salford, when fully operational next January, the Yorkshire centre will have full time engineers able to demonstrate technology to interested food manufacturers and engineering companies.

By September 2007, it is hoped that an engineer will be available to go out and engage with these industries and show them the advantages of food automation to their companies.

By automating the food production process, Northern English companies can gain an advantage over their competitors in terms of cost, production time and efficiency. The food and drink industry has an annual turnover of £100 billion so any advantage can transform a company's fortunes.

The new £1m plus centre is funded by development agency Yorkshire Forward and Salford will operate it in conjunction with Leeds University. The University of Salford already has a proven track record in the field as it was designated the National Centre for Advanced Robotics Research in 1987 and founded its own Food Manufacturing and Engineering Group in 1998.

Professor John Gray who heads the University's robotics centre said: “The University of Salford is committed to real-world, practical work of this kind and has developed strong links with the food industry over the years.”

“The ultimate aim of this project is to create a national centre to support all British food companies in making better use of automation.”

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