Preparing the published article.
Festo: Motion, Handling and Control Components for Automation
Festo combines pneumatic, electric and digital automation with configured handling systems. Review EXCM positioning, CMAD application evidence and the engineering scope of each offer.
Company identity and relevant business
Festo is an automation business headquartered in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany. Its 17 April 2026 corporate overview, issued by Festo SE & Co. KG, describes pneumatic, electric and digital motion technologies. This profile focuses on industrial components and integrated handling subsystems. The group's technical education activities are distinct from the engineering and delivery scope of an industrial automation quotation.
Choose the handling-system boundary
Festo's handling systems page describes supply ranging from selected components to assembled systems, with Cartesian configurations covering one, two or three-dimensional movement. This gives buyers a make-or-buy decision. Specify whether the requirement is an axis, a coordinated motion package or an assembled mechanism. A handling subsystem does not automatically include fixtures, process tooling, protective measures or integration into the production line.
EXCM positioning in electronics testing
The Visatronic application account describes an EXCM planar gantry positioning a test needle, with an EGSK electric slide lowering it onto the circuit board. This is a specific supplier-reported PCB-testing application. It illustrates the division between horizontal positioning and the contact movement; its reported results should not be generalized to every payload, probe arrangement or production environment.
CMAD in battery disassembly
In a 29 May 2026 case announcement, Festo describes its CMAD servo-pneumatic position controller in Liebherr's battery-cover unscrewing system. The account links the component to control of the gripping tool's clamping jaws. The complete disassembly system is attributed to Liebherr. Festo's contribution should not be mistaken for a separately supplied, fully qualified battery-recycling facility.
Size the motion for the actual task
Provide stroke, payload, centre of gravity, duty cycle and the required settling time. Include tool forces, cable loads and the orientation of every axis. Ask the engineering team to compare electric and pneumatic approaches using the process requirements and available utilities. Catalogue motion capability needs confirmation in the complete mechanism, especially when accuracy, speed and stiffness must be achieved simultaneously.
Define the controls and documentation
Identify motors, drives, sensors, valve equipment, motion control and the connection to the machine controller. Agree signal names, fault handling, homing and safe recovery after interrupted motion. Request configuration files, mechanical drawings and the documentation for the delivered combination. A configurator output helps establish an engineering baseline; it does not resolve every machine-level operating or acceptance requirement.
Supply and integration responsibility
Clarify the quoted level of assembly, the customer-supplied items and the work remaining at the destination. Confirm documentation language, service access, spare parts and procedures for substituting components. Include air preparation and consumption where relevant, alongside electrical infrastructure. Manufacturer case studies show possible applications, while lead time, regional availability and performance commitments need a project-specific offer and agreed test conditions.
Build a useful acceptance plan
Test the full process with representative parts and working conditions, including start-up, repeated motion, changeover and recovery. Separate axis performance from accepted production output. Define who assesses machinery hazards and approves later modifications. Use Write a Robotics Buyer Brief, review Components, Control & AI, or prepare a Robotics RFQ. Official sources were reviewed on 10 September 2026.