Automate (trade show)

Automate (trade show)
Name	Automate
Status	Active
Genre	Industrial automation
Frequency	Biennial
Venue	Huntington Place
Location	Detroit, Michigan
Country	United States
First	1980s
Organizer	Association for Advancing Automation

Automate (trade show) is a major biennial trade exposition focused on industrial robotics and automation technologies, convening manufacturers, integrators, end-users, and service providers in the United States. The event brings together exhibitors and delegates from sectors such as automotive industry, aerospace industry, medical device industry, consumer electronics industry, and logistics. Automate functions as a marketplace for ABB, Fanuc, KUKA, Yaskawa, and other prominent firms, while also hosting thought leadership from institutions like Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and Carnegie Mellon University.

Overview

Automate showcases robotic arms, machine vision systems, artificial intelligence platforms, cobots from vendors including Universal Robots, Mitsubishi Electric, Denso and Schunk. Attendees often come from corporations such as General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Medtronic to evaluate manufacturing automation, safety systems, and industrial Internet of Things solutions from providers like Siemens, Rockwell Automation, and Honeywell. Program elements include product demonstrations, technical sessions featuring speakers from National Institute of Standards and Technology, NASA, and U.S. Department of Energy, and networking events with representatives from Bosch, Siemens Healthineers, and GE Aviation.

History and Development

The exhibition traces roots to regional automation fairs in the 1980s and grew alongside advances by firms such as Unimation, Fanuc, and KUKA. Growth accelerated in the 1990s with the rise of programmable logic controllers championed by Allen-Bradley and Siemens, and further in the 2000s as machine learning and computer vision matured at laboratories like MIT CSAIL and Stanford AI Lab. Mergers and acquisitions among companies including Emerson Electric, Rockwell Automation, and ABB influenced exhibitor composition, while policy discussions at World Economic Forum and International Federation of Robotics meetings shaped themes. The show evolved to include collaborative robotics following innovations from Universal Robots and research at Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute.

Exhibitions and Programming

Automate features exhibit halls with booths from system integrators such as TMEIC, Yaskawa Motoman partners, and end-to-end suppliers like Cognex and Keyence. Conference tracks often host panels with executives from Tesla, Toyota, Nissan, and supply-chain leaders like DHL and UPS, alongside technical presentations by researchers from Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, and California Institute of Technology. Live demos highlight use cases in additive manufacturing by vendors like 3D Systems and Stratasys, autonomous mobile robots from Boston Dynamics and Clearpath Robotics, and safety standards discussed with delegates from Occupational Safety and Health Administration and International Organization for Standardization. Workshops cover programming languages and standards such as ROS and ISA-95.

Industry Impact and Reception

Industry analysts from Gartner, McKinsey & Company, and Deloitte cite Automate as influential in procurement cycles for Original equipment manufacturers including Caterpillar and John Deere. Coverage from publications like The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Forbes, and trade journals such as IndustryWeek and Control Engineering frames the show as a bellwether for manufacturing renaissance discussions promoted at events like Hannover Messe and Consumer Electronics Show. Critics and labor organizations including AFL-CIO and think tanks like Brookings Institution engage on panels about workforce displacement and reskilling, often referencing reports by OECD and ILO.

Attendance and Demographics

Attendee profiles typically include engineering managers, plant directors, procurement officers, and C-suite representatives from companies like Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo, Amazon (company), and Walmart. International participation features delegations from China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and India, with exhibitors ranging from multinationals to startups backed by accelerators such as Y Combinator and Plug and Play Tech Center. Demographic analyses by event organizers and market research firms like Frost & Sullivan and Statista indicate growth in attendees from small and medium-sized enterprises and increased interest among academic researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Purdue University.

Organizers and Partnerships

The trade show is organized by the Association for Advancing Automation and partners with industry associations such as the Robotic Industries Association, Society of Manufacturing Engineers, and SME (organization). Strategic partnerships involve media outlets like Automation World, alliances with standards bodies including ANSI and ISO, and collaborations with economic development agencies such as Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and state-level entities like Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Sponsorships frequently come from corporations including Intel, NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Amazon Web Services.

Category:Trade shows in the United States Category:Robotics events