Looking back at the Automation Forum 2026

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Tim Schöllmann | 30.07.2026

Exclusive expert meeting hosted by KEB in Barntrup and Heilbronn

Two events focused on automation and drive technology: At the Automation Forum 2026, KEB Automation offered customers and partners a platform for professional exchange, practical insights, and concrete ideas. At both KEB’s headquarters in Barntrup and its Heilbronn location, the agenda featured current topics shaping the plant and machine engineering sectors – ranging from the requirements of the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) to technological advancements in electric motors.

“We’ve had positive experiences with a series of expert meetings at KEB in the past. I am all the more pleased that we were able to repeat this event format again this year. The goal was to familiarize our customers with topics that have very practical implications for their day-to-day business,” says Sebastian Wietzorrek, sales engineer at KEB, who was involved in organizing the meeting.

In June, the Automation Forum was first held in Barntrup, Germany. Here, participants had the opportunity to take part in a factory tour the day before the actual expert meeting. In addition to electronics manufacturing, the main Barntrup site also houses production facilities for brakes and clutches. This allowed the visiting customers and partners to experience firsthand how drive controllers, servo drives, filters, permanent magnet brakes, spring-applied brakes, and much more are manufactured. The kick-off to the Automation Forum was rounded off with a group dinner.

The following day, guests were presented with a varied program that, among other things, highlighted the practical importance of electromagnetic compatibility (EMC). Typical challenges were discussed, as well as proven solutions in product and application design. In keeping with the theme, a live demonstration was conducted in the company’s in-house EMC laboratory. Among other things, KEB drive controllers are tested there for electromagnetic compatibility to verify whether the drives are immune to interference – or whether they might interfere with other components. The CRA and its implications for mechanical engineering were also discussed. Given that the CRA will be fully implemented throughout the EU starting in December 2027, it was important to address open questions and concerns in order to be prepared for the upcoming changes.

A Variety of Topics at Two Locations

The transition from three-phase asynchronous motors with gearboxes to synchronous reluctance motors was also on the agenda. Experts from KEB’s gearmotor plant, among others, provided fascinating insights and highlighted the added value from the user’s perspective. The expert meeting in Barntrup was rounded out with a look at HMI, IIoT, and cloud solutions in automation, as well as a discussion of how data can be transformed into transparency and real benefits for various applications.

In mid-July, another expert meeting took place in southern Germany, in Heilbronn. Since 2018, this city has been home to a regional center for application engineering, sales, and technical support at KEB, and development teams for HMI and IIoT are also based there. “In Heilbronn, too, we were pleased to welcome numerous guests from the plant and machinery engineering sectors. Not only were the presentations by experts for experts fascinating, but so were the networking opportunities and discussions among attendees. This is exactly how knowledge transfer takes place – to the benefit of us all. I would like to thank all participants and our speakers for the successful Automation Forum 2026,” summarized Wietzorrek.

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