Partnership + Technology = youMTS

Year of a Unique Manufacturing Trade Show

The Validation Center and Showroom at Bluco were packed with even more energy than usual as we unveiled a new take on manufacturing technology shows on September 17 & 18, 2020.

The show offered attendees a way to recapture some of what they missed when IMTS and FABTECH had to be cancelled due to COVID-19. Named the Year of the Unique Manufacturing Tech Show (or youMTS), the event brought together eight enthusiastic partner companies to showcase their technology. But more than that, it gave participants a way to connect with some of the best problem-solvers in the industry.

“We provided a forum for people to come in and get a one-on-one experience with experts that are not ordinarily all in the same room,” said Brian Dodsworth, VP of sales at Bluco.  “It’s this collection of companies who are used to working together, who have collectively probably solved almost every manufacturing problem imaginable — and we all got to kind of geek out together and just problem-solve for our customers in real time. We got people thinking about new solutions they might not have been able to envision in any other setting.”

Solutions require combinations

Everywhere participants looked, they saw the result of powerful partnerships. A FARO laser projecting on a new Bluco 2D table mounted to an ALM headstock and tailstock positioner was just one example. “Our new 2D table is going to allow companies that need much longer runs of table space to achieve that with less weight and expense than they’d get with a 3D table,” said Todd Bennett, a Bluco Senior Sales Engineer. “You add laser projection to that and now you’re taking the guesswork out of where each part and each modular component go. Add the positioner and now you don’t have to lift heavy parts, or climb to reach them. Now all of a sudden you’ve solved all your manufacturing problems with one solid solution.”

In other areas of the Validation Center, attendees saw other cutting-edge combos that included new modular solutions, cobots, robotic welding, weld booms, autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs), dust collection systems, pulse welding equipment, and a variety of positioners. Take a look at just some of the examples below. And if you missed the event, don’t worry…we’re already planning the next one!