The Robot Industry Podcast

Hello everyone and welcome to The Robot Industry Podcast (edition #138). We are glad you are here, and thank you for subscribing.

Today, I welcome Louis Lapierre to the podcast; he works for a company called Mecademic Robotics, and they build very precise industrial robots for medical devices, photonics, aerospace, consumer and electronics industries. Their robots are used in assembly, attachment, dispense, material handling and much more.

How did you get in this industry? 

Tell us about the history of Mecademic.

What type of robot did the company launch with?

You are building your robots in North America, correct?

What markets are you serving? Is that changing?

What is different about your manufacturing philosophy (you build your own circuit boards)

Your products are small but highly accurate & precise; why is that?

Can you tell us a bit about your software or lack of software?

End of arm tools, partnerships, etc.

Let’s talk about teach pendants.

Use cases:

Where are Mecademic robots used?

Desktop factories?

Unique markets like watch manufacturing?

I know you cannot talk about many of your customers, but what are some of the processes?

What are your thoughts about the future of robotics?

Did we forget to talk about anything?

How can people get a hold of you and find out more about Mecademic?

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, Jim Beretta on LinkedIn or you can use [email protected]

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor Ehrhardt Automation Systems.

Warm Regards,

Jim

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

Welcome to the podcast (#137) My guest today is Shaun Edwards the CTO of Plus One Robotics.

We are going to be talking about Robotics Foundation Models, RFM for short.

Welcome to the podcast Shawn.

Shawn for those who don’t know about your background, can you tell us about what Plus One Robotics is and some of your experience at Southwest Research Institute / Willow Garage?

Let me set this conversation up. 

Vayu Robotics recently announced its ditching LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology and leveraging foundation models for their newest delivery robot. 

This announcement comes on the heels of Covariant announcing RFM-1, its Robotics Foundation Model that promised general intelligence for robotic control across tasks and environments earlier this year.

What is ROS?

What is a Foundation Model?

What does it take to create a foundational model?

We are in the beginning of foundational models, is that true Shawn?

What is the lifetime or lifespan of a foundational model?

Where are we in the cycle of foundational models?

What are some of the Gaps, Risks and Rewards?

Why should we be concerned?

One of the big challenges is that people are investing in an unproven environment? Are we talking about employees and investors, startups CEOs?

What is next for these foundational models?

Shawn have we forgotten to talk about anything? Can we talk about some latest developments at Plus One Robotics?

You have won a couple of awards and some money, too. A billion picks and a new product. Congratulations!

How can people get a hold of you and find out more about Plus One Robotics?

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, Jim Beretta on LinkedIn or you can use [email protected]

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor Ehrhardt Automation Systems.

Warm Regards,

Jim

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

Welcome to the podcast (#136) My guest today is Ben Huigenbois, he is president of BOS Innovations in London, Ontario, my home town. From Ben's LinkedIn: Experienced President with a demonstrated history of working in the industrial automation industry. Experienced and skilled in leadership, organizational development, ERP system development, skills development, project management, strategic planning, technology deployment, sales and marketing.

Ben, welcome to the podcast, thanks for joining us. How did you get interested in automation? Give us a bit of your background.

Tell our audience about BOS Innovations? What is it that you do, that is what type of automation are you building?

What have you seen change recently in automation systems?

What are your customers asking for that they may not have in previous years?

Our podcast today is going to be about reducing RISK in automation systems. This is an important conversation because reducing risk for both an integrator and an end customer is critical, can you comment?

What are some of the risks that manufacturers face? How about the integrator or machine builder?

How can manufacturers reduce their risk?

Abating risk takes time and money, correct?

Where do you start when it comes to identifying risk areas?

Let’s talk about remote support, something that I know is very important to you and your customers.

What are some of the challenges for remote support?

You have recently moved your entire operations, and thank you for the tour, it is a beautiful facility.

You are also launching a subsidiary but separate business called TrueLight [TrueLight Machine Vision Integration]. Can you tell our audience about the need and the focus on TrueLight? They are a separate business, correct.

Did we forget to talk about anything? 

When you are not automating, innovating, building systems and vision,  what do you like to do, hobbies?

How can people get a hold of you and find out more about BOS Innovation?

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet.

My info:

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

[email protected]

Welcome to the podcast (#135), Jennifer. I am glad to have you. Can you tell me about Jennifer Apicella?

The Pittsburgh robo-ecosystem is a globally recognized powerhouse of more than 125 advanced technology companies, offering 7,300+ high-impact jobs across 18 industry verticals.

How did you get involved in robotics?

Pittsburgh, it seems both likely and unlikely to be a robotics hub. Tell us about the city.

Is there a synergy between members and / or board members?

How did the city turn into a robotics HUB? How long did it take?

Let’s talk about some (of your) numbers: members, money, sponsors, etc.

Funding, where do you get your funding?

What is the main reason that startups join PRN?

What is the profile of a perfect member?

Who are some of your new and hot robot companies? Do you see any patterns or areas of interest (humanoid vs mobile robots)

What are some of your challenges in being in charge of PRN?

What kind of facilities do you have?

Tell us about some of the programs that you run?

How important are events to your members?

Do you charge for membership?

Are there other robot or automation hubs in the world  that you like? Amsterdam? Waterloo? California?

What is next for PRN?

When you are not organizing robotics and events, what do you like to do?

https://www.robopgh.org

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferapicella

Our sponsor for this episode is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected] eh rh ar dt automation dot com

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing produced today’s podcast and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffrey Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor, Ehrhardt Automation.

Best Regards!

Jim

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

info@customerattraction

Welcome to The Robot Industry Podcast #134. It is my pleasure to introduce Nipun Sharma from Appetronix to this edition of the podcast

We have met before, you and I, on the Canadian Food Innovation project. We made a movie together Robotics in Action, Seeing is Believing.

Nipun Sharma is a visionary entrepreneur and the Co-Founder and CEO of Appetronix, an innovative company revolutionizing the food service industry with fully autonomous robotic quick-service restaurants. By integrating advanced machine learning and data science, Appetronix creates delicious, made-to-order meals without the need for on-site staff, offering a glimpse into the future of dining.

With more than 17 years of leadership experience in the restaurant and food manufacturing sectors, Nipun has successfully managed more than ten restaurant brands across multiple cuisines, including both quick-service and full-service concepts. His expertise extends to operating food production facilities, enabling a seamless connection between supply chains and consumer dining experiences.

His professional journey began on Wall Street, where he honed his skills in investment banking and private equity. A graduate of McGill University, he transitioned to the food and beverage industry, taking on executive roles and serving as Chief Operating Officer for global public restaurant chains. His strategic vision and operational acumen have driven growth and innovation, solidifying his reputation as a leader in transforming traditional business models through technology.

Nipun is passionate about redefining the dining landscape and advancing the integration of robotics in the restaurant industry, making him a pioneer at the intersection of technology, hospitality, and culinary excellence.

Nipun, How did you get into the industry? 

Is it food or is it robotics & automation?

Tell me and our listeners how you transitioned from pasta to pizza and SJW to Appetronix.

Why Pizza? How big is pizza and automated pizza market?

Who are your partners… Donato’s, Agape, AlleyCorp, Abuma Manufacturing and Grote?

Your first location is an airport in Columbus OHIO, correct?

What were some of the big challenges for machine or system #1?

What kind of robots are you using?

How many pizzas can you make an hour?

Lets talk about DATA?

What does the future look like for Appetronix? Are there other foods, other form factors?

Did we miss anything?

If someone wants to find out more about how they can put one of your units into their facility, how do they get a hold of you?

When you are not creating value and inventing new ways to eat food things, what do you like to do?

Some notes:

Appetronix has entered into an exclusive partnership with Donatos Pizza and its sister companies Agápe Automation and the Grote Company to launch a fully-autonomous pizza vending machine (from press release). I know that www.abuma.com is also a manufacturing partner.

https://www.linkedin.com/company/appetronix

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nipun-sharma-to

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/appetronix-formerly-sjw-robotics-partners-with-iconic-donatos-pizza-to-pioneer-fully-autonomous-restaurant-experience-301876809.html

Our sponsor for this episode is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected] eh rh ar dt automation dot com

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing produced today’s podcast and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffrey Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor, Ehrhardt Automation.

Best Regards!

Jim

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

info@customerattraction

Welcome to podcast #133 with my guests Armin Khatoonabadi and Yi Li from Maple Advanced Robotics Inc., located in Richmond Hill, ON. Some exciting news is that the company has been awarded the Hannover Messe Robotics Award for their AI-driven robotics platform for fast and code-free programming platform.

Armin and Yi, welcome to the podcast. 

Yi Can you tell our audience a bit about you?

Armin, your turn.

Armin you have recently just joined Maple Advanced Robotics, from Apara.ai, correct?

Yi, can you tell us how you got started?

Can you tell the audience about MARI and what is making your offering so different in the industry?

What is MARI’s Scan & Go workflow?

What are your proprietary technologies?

Can you give our listeners some examples of what applications uses are out there (case studies)

What are some trends in the industry?

Award question?

Have we forgotten to talk about anything?

How do our listeners get in touch with you?

Maple Advanced Robotics Inc. Unit 17, 80 West Beaver Creek Rd, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1H3

https://maplerobotics.com

Our sponsor is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected]

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor:  Ehrhardt Automation Systems

My info:

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

        Ben, welcome to the podcast.

        You are a lawyer by trade, and you have worked in different roles, at the former Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation, which is now called Palladyne AI, and in fact recently came back from retirement to lead the company. Please tell us a bit about yourself and why you decided to come back to the company.

        Let’s talk about the elephant in the room…Palladyne AI is formerly Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation. The company was previously focused on commercializing robotic hardware such as teleoperated robots, exoskeletons and an underwater robot, as a result of 30+ years of development work, government contracts and the acquisition of RE2 (“R-E-Squared”). However, the company recently re-branded as Palladyne AI and is now focusing on AI software. Why this pivot?

        Do you have any regrets about going public via a special purpose acquisition company back in 2021?

        Tell us about your team… How many people do you currently have working at Palladyne AI?

        Where is Palladyne AI located?

        Can you talk about Palladyne AI’s technology and how it is differentiated from other AI solutions for robotic automation?  

        What is the value proposition of the Palladyne AI software?

        How much of Palladyne’s current AI solution is based on the robotics development work from Sarcos?

        Palladyne AI is “hardware-agnostic” – what do you mean by that, and how do you accomplish it?

        Who are Palladyne AI’s customers and the industries you are primarily focused on?

        Can you give us any examples of projects the company is working on or has announced?

        Where do you find new customers?

        Can you give us your perfect bull’s eye customer?

        What is your vision for the future of the company and the product roadmap?

        Outside of leading a public AI company, what do you like to do in your free time?

        Is there anything else you would like to discuss?

https://www.linkedin.com/company/palladyneaicorp

Our sponsor is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected]

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor:  Ehrhardt Automation Systems

My info:

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

Welcome to The Robot Industry Podcast, #131. For this edition of the podcast, I have two people from the same company: MIR, or Mobile Industrial Robots.

I caught up with Jean-Pierre Hathout the CEO at MIR, at the Automate show, and later I had a conversation with Kevin March who is our local Area Sales Manager. I thought it would be interesting to join the two conversations - one at a trade event and one about sales and applications.

Enjoy the podcast.

https://mobile-industrial-robots.com

Our sponsor is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected]

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me, jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor:  Ehrhardt Automation Systems

My info:

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON

Micah Estis Green is the Founder and CEO of TAILOS, an inventor of a robot vacuum named Rosie. His company is based in Austin, TX . He is top 30 under 30 and has been covered in lots of magazines including Forbes and other industry periodicals.

First Micah, tell me about Shark Puncher - I have to ask.

You have taken a break from Cornell, is that correct?

How did you get involved in automation and robotics > and you have been building robots for a while?

Tell our audience about your company and how you got started.

You are located in Austin. Is this important?

What are some of the surprises you have experienced commercializing a robot?

Tell us about Rosie (by the way, I love that name).

Can you educate us about the hotel industry, where is the pain? Who is the buyer? It is a competitive industry. 

What about the guest experience…

How do people find out about you?

What is your sales process, if I am a Hotel Operator, what do I do? Can I test out a unit?

Why not just install a bunch of iRobots?

What is the ROI of a Rosie?

Are you selling Rosie by the piece or is this a raas model?

Do people see Rosie or is she just used during housekeeping?

Do cleaners like Rosie?

Let’s talk about data and the importance of data to your clients? 

What things are we not seeing about Rosie, when you have an IOT device in hotel rooms?

You have over 1000 units deployed (congratulations!), who are your customers, where are you finding success?

How are you delivering Rosie to your clients? What is the start up time to get going?

How many robots do you usually deploy at one time?

Is there a lot of mapping and programming involved?

How long does the battery last and when do you charge Rosie?

What about spare parts, if a robot stops working?

What is the addressable market for you?

What is next for you?

When you are not innovating, building robots and cool things,  what do you like to do, tell us about your hobbies? 

How can people get a hold of you and find out more about Rosie and Tailos?

Our sponsor for this episode is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected] eh rh ar dt automation dot com

Our co sponsor is Anchor Danly. They are the leading manufacturer and distributor of robot and automation bases, high quality die sets, components, Blanchard Ground steel plates, and metal fabrications used in the production of tools, dies, and molds for metal working and plastics injection molding, mining and construction equipment, and general fabrications.

I would like to acknowledge A3: the Association for Advancing Automation. they are the leading automation trade association for robotics, vision and imaging, motion control and motors and the industrial artificial intelligence technologies.  Visit Automate dot org to learn more.

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Today’s podcast was produced by Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffy Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsors:  Ehrhardt Automation Systems and Anchor Danly.

My info:

Happy Friday, everyone. I am in Montreal today finishing up the ADM Montreal 2024 for my client Informa. I am excited to release the latest episode (#129) of The Robot Industry podcast with my friend, Ray Osborne from Anchor Danly. Ray is based in Nashville and services parts of the southern USA on behalf of Anchor Danly. AD is a client and Ray knows a lot about engineered steel and servicing his clients.

Before we get to our episode today I wanted to let you know about a NEW podcast that I am starting called Automation Matters. It is about the front end of the automation business whether you are a builder, integrator, distributor or robot OEM this is for you. This new podcast is about sales, marketing, business development, strategy and much much more and I am excited about Automation Matters. More on that later.

Ray - welcome to the podcast. How did you get into this industry?

Tell us about Anchor Danly, I have seen their signs for years in Cambridge and always wondered what they built or made. 

You have something in common with the person who started AD, namely drums and music/

What is a Die Set?

What is a Tooling Plate?

What is a Dial Plate?

What is a steel frame?

You also sell components for die sets, what kind of components are these?

At AD you build a lot of special Machine bases, tell our audience about these

Blanchard Grinding - you have 35 grinders, why is this steel treatment so popular?

What types of products do you build for robot integrators and machine builders?

Trends in the industry?

Have we forgotten to talk about anything?

How do our listeners get in touch with you?

How can people find you if they want to find out more about Anchor Danly?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-osborne-b84ba71a

Our sponsor for this episode is Ehrhardt Automation Systems. Ehrhardt builds and commissions turnkey solutions for their worldwide clients. With over 80 years of precision manufacturing they understand the complex world of robotics, automated manufacturing, and project management, delivering world-class custom automation on-time and on-budget. Contact one of their sales engineers to see what Ehrhardt can build for you [email protected] eh rh ar dt automation dot com

If you would like to get in touch with us at THE robot industry podcast, you can find me jim beretta on LinkedIn.

Customer Attraction Industrial Marketing produced today’s podcast and I would like to thank my team: Chris Gray for the music, Geoffrey Bremner for audio production, my business partner Janet and our sponsor, Ehrhardt Automation.

Best Regards!

Jim

Jim Beretta

Customer Attraction & The Robot Industry Podcast

London, ON but today, downtown Montreal