Competence Days 2019: New technologies, new solutions

Insights into new technologies: In the Experience Center, the guests discovered the ByStar Fiber with a new cutting head, new features, and even higher performance.

A perfect opportunity to chat about new approaches in the fields of laser cutting, bending, automation, and software.

Over a period of two weeks, Bystronic welcomed 1200 guests from more than 50 countries to the Competence Days at its Swiss headquarters in Niederönz. The motto for the event was “World Class Manufacturing”. Bystronic thus provided an answer to the question of what sheet metal processing could look like in the future. Visitors experienced the most important trends and innovations in the fields of laser cutting, bending, automation, and software up close during live demonstrations and guided tours of Bystronic’s Swiss production halls for laser cutting and automation technologies.

For many customers, looking ahead to the future of their own sheet metal processing operations means: Being able to adapt to decreasing batch sizes and fluctuating order situations. Mastering cost and time pressure by applying the most efficient processes and systems available. And positioning themselves on the competitive global or local markets with leading technologies and manufacturing solutions.

Hardware and software open up new paths

Thanks to new technologies, metal and sheet metal products can now be manufactured more versatilely and profitably than ever before. In addition to the suitable hardware, software solutions are playing an increasingly important role in the sheet metal processing sector. In future, it will not be just the machines, but also the correct software that will determine competitive success. Software packages and digital process solutions help customers to make increasingly complex production processes transparent and profitable. This allows the costs, processing times, and quality of production processes to be optimized to achieve previously unattainable levels.

In a conversation that took place during the event, Bystronic CEO Alex Waser said: “Events such as the Competence Days are an important platform for our visitors to exchange ideas with Bystronic. This allows new ideas to be developed and existing visions to be refined. We talk to our guests about what is bothering them, what solutions Bystronic can develop for them, and what the next step for their production processes could be.”

For job shops, for example, the next step could be a powerful fiber laser with an automated loading and unloading solution to increase productivity. Or a fully automated material and data flow to enable virtually autonomous operation in multiple shifts. “Advanced users and large metal processing companies also think in other dimensions. Here we are talking about end-to-end solutions that cover cutting, bending, material handling, as well as process and data management.

In future, in its role as a supplier of integrated solutions, Bystronic will support users with the planning and implementation of such production landscapes,” Alex Waser explained. “With our experts in the Bystronic Solution Center and with a wide range of technologies, we meet our customers at their current level and help them take the next step.”

Seize opportunities and invest

The framework conditions of today’s sheet metal processing companies vary around the globe. And yet it became clear that the international visitors to the Competence Days 2019 also had things in common. Users in Europe, America, and Asia are currently facing the challenge of successfully aligning their manufacturing environments to demanding and unpredictable markets.

“Many of our customers face the question: Wait and see how things develop or invest right now,” Alex Waser explained. “We understand the obstacles. But we also see the opportunities for our customers. Companies that invest in new technologies now and that enhance their production processes can rely on powerful equipment when the next upward trend begins.” And that this upward trend will come is guaranteed. This was the wide consensus among the guests at Bystronic’s Competence Days.