Awarded for process-oriented assembly

The Institute for Individual Manufacturers (ife) has awarded HARTING Applied Technologies the "Innovation Prize Batch Size 1+" and the "Board of Trustees Prize". The jury praised the company's strategic approach of designing assembly systems not around the product to be manufactured, but around the optimal process.

HARTING Applied Technologies' approach is as obvious as it is forward-looking: in dynamic and rapidly evolving markets, flexible assembly systems are an enormous advantage because they can be quickly adapted to different products and product variants. This shortens development time, increases productivity and thus reduces the total cost of ownership. HARTING therefore develops special-purpose machinery that is geared towards the manufacturing process – not just the product to be manufactured.

This makes it easier for plant operators to integrate new components and functions such as robotics or network technology, simplify quality assurance and make optimum use of their resources. The result: faster time to market, lower product launch costs and a scalable solution that adapts to growing requirements without major modifications.

"In special-purpose machinery construction, the focus is always on innovations that offer customers tangible competitive advantages," says Markus Pessara, Global Director Special Purpose Machinery at HARTING. Together with Volker Huckriede, Head of Special Purpose Machinery, he accepted the award on behalf of the project team. The award ceremony took place during the "Innovator of the Year" gala evening at the Hilton Hotel in Berlin.

The "Batch Size 1+" Innovation Award and the Board of Trustees Award are presented annually by ife – Institut für Einzelfertiger GmbH. The aim of the network is to promote innovation in custom manufacturing and to recognise companies for outstanding solutions that combine efficiency, sustainability and future viability. The jury consists of experts from industry, consulting and academia.