As 2025 draws to a close, Stephan Pottel, Industry Director, Manufacturing, EMEA at Zebra Technologies, shares some predictions for the year ahead, highlighting advances in AI/ML and edge intelligence, sustainability and supply chain transparency.

Modern dairies rely heavily on automation for efficiency and consistency, yet when technology falters, resilience becomes critical. Here, Andrew Ritchie, technical sales manager at Technidrive, explains why manual overrides in three-phase systems are an essential safeguard for the dairy sector.

As automation becomes increasingly software-driven, engineering teams are looking to the IT department for guidance. One methodology in particular, DevOps, is beginning to shape how automation systems are developed and maintained, as Beth Ragdale, software business manager at automation and control specialist Beckhoff UK, explains.

Assured pallet stability has been a key achievement for one dairy farm in Lancashire, since its purchase of a semi-automatic rotating arm pallet wrapper. Supplied by automated packaging specialist Yorkshire Packaging Systems (YPS), the new equipment was purchased to wrap pallets of bottles of milk and complements the existing packaging machinery, previously supplied by YPS.

A new report released by BCC Research indicates that AI technology applied to areas such as contaminant detection, traceability and compliance is projected to grow at a CAGR of 30.9% by 2030. Anticipated to be valued at USD$13.7 billion, this will revolutionise food safety and strengthen quality control reports Phil Brown, sales director at Fortress Technology Europe.

Food and beverage plants increasingly operate with a blend of equipment generations: legacy machinery that has served reliably for years, and newer automation technologies designed to enhance efficiency, traceability and sustainability. This hybrid setup gives manufacturers flexibility to modernise gradually, but it also presents a growing challenge: how to maintain ageing assets while integrating more advanced systems without disrupting production. The experts at CJS Automation explain.

Sensor specification is an important consideration when choosing process monitoring and control equipment. However, in the following article, Juhani Lehto from Vaisala explains why the quality of a sensor can be difficult to determine from a spec sheet alone.

After a year of industry-wide innovation and technology advancements, the team at SolutionsPT has examined today’s top trends shaping industrial monitoring and control, in order to explain how they can help industrial operators scale their businesses. Solutions manager Andy Graham explains.

Plant-based processing to produce meat alternatives raises the stakes for inspection, as Miriam Krechlok, Segment Marketing Manager, Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection, explains.

Choosing the right pasteurisation regime and equipment for processing egg products is vital to minimise and prevent unwanted effects, as Matt Hale, Global Key Account Director, HRS Heat Exchangers, explains.