News Bites: Pneumatic and Electric Motion Control Technologies on Display at PACK EXPO 2026
Welcome to News Bites, where I bring you a collection of recent news relevant to the hydraulics and pneumatics industry. Through the brief synopses and analysis contained in this piece, I aim to help you stay on top of what is going on in the fluid power industry as well as other technological areas of interest that may aid your own work in a quick and easily digestible manner. Like what you see, have suggestions for improvements or your own news to share? Email me at [email protected] to let me know!
This week's News Bites has a theme, the biannual event PACK EXPO International 2026 which takes place October 18-21. North America’s largest event for packaging and processing, the event brings together suppliers, machine OEMs and many more who serve these applications.
Packaging and processing are key customer markets for the fluid power as well as broader motion control sector, making PACK EXPO an important show for many of Power & Motion’s readers.
Like many industries, packaging and processing are moving toward higher levels of automation and increased use of digital solutions to help meet growing demand for goods. And technology suppliers are having to develop solutions which meet these and other industry requirements.
Collected here are highlights of some of those technologies that will be on display at PACK EXPO 2026 from the fluid power and motion control sector to help you understand where technological developments are at for packaging and processing applications.
Bosch Rexroth Exhibiting Conveyance and Automation Solutions
At PACK EXPO 2026, Bosch Rexroth plans to show drives, conveyors, palletizing and automation technology for packaging applications.
Among its conveyance technologies on display will be the VarioFlow plus and VarioFlow belt conveyors. A demo area for these products will provide attendees the chance to see first hand how they work and whether they may be a fit in their own application.
The VarioFlow plus demo will be a spiraled exhibit that includes a downward slope to a buffer table to help demonstrate the flexibility and space-saving benefits it provides. In addition, this conveyor will be integrated into a complete palletizing solution featuring Bosch Rexroth aluminum framing and a new Kassow Robots KR 1824 cobot to help represent the shift toward increased cobot adoption within the industry.
It also helps demonstrate how companies like Bosch Rexroth can offer fully-system solutions, something that is becoming increasingly important in various industries to help reduce design time for customers.
On the automation side, Bosch Rexroth intends to show its ctrlX AUTOMATION platform, which offers integrated, modular automation solutions.
The company also plans to show its ctrlX DRIVE cabinet-free system that eliminates the need for a control cabinet, another growing trend within industrial applications, to help reduce space claim.
Emerson Demonstrating Pressure, Motion and Control Solutions for Various Packaging Applications
Emerson plans to show its latest precision compressed air motion control, electric motion and handling, and integrated control solutions at PACK EXPO 2026. These solutions can be used for a range of packaging applications such as PET and glass blow molding, filling and sealing.
Technologies on display will include:
- AVENTICS proportional valves, dome regulators and blowing blocks engineered to improve high speed reliability and quality in PET and glass molding.
- Afag feeding and handling systems and FDA-certified proportional valves that offer greater flexibility, hygiene and precision in TFFS lines.
- Customized filling valve units, pusher units and smart sensors designed to improve throughput and food safety on filling lines.
The Emerson booth will also feature a hybrid motion demo which combines servo drives, motors, electric actuators and pneumatics to show how these various technologies can be brought together in a single automation system. Doing so allows machine builders to get the speed and precision of electronic actuation with the flexibility and compliance of pneumatic actuators and grippers.
As Chelsea Krause, Vice President, Fluid & Motion Control at Emerson, noted in a recent interview with Power & Motion, in today’s machine designs it’s not always about making a choice between pneumatic or electric. “Increasingly, it's about selecting and combining the right technologies for the application,” she said.
And this is what the hybrid motion demo at PACK EXPO will help demonstrate.
Emerson’s booth will also feature a demonstration of its AVENTICS proportional valve technology offering tight pneumatic control for high-speed packaging processes. A washdown demonstration will also be available for attendees to see how the company’s AVENTICS CL Series valve platform can be used in high-pressure cleaning environments like those in food and beverage processing and packaging applications.
Enidine and Compact Automation to Showcase Range of Motion Control Solutions
ITT Inc.’s Enidine and Compact Automation brands will show its wide range of motion control technologies, from actuators to shock absorbers, at PACK EXPO 2026.
Among the various technologies Enidine plans to show will be its new Corrosion Resistant Series (CRS) of adjustable and non-adjustable stainless steel shock absorbers. These components are designed for general industrial, harsh-environment, and washdown applications, enabling their use in a wide range of packaging applications.
The CRS hydraulic shock absorbers feature an outer body and hardened piston rod made from 17-4PH Stainless, ensuring their durability while helping to protect other system components.
Meanwhile, Compact Automation will show its various actuation technologies including electric and pneumatic actuators, both of which are commonly used in various packaging machinery applications.
Some of the actuation technologies that will be on display include:
- Turn-Act Rotary Vane Actuators comprised of a single moving part to provide zero backlash, no loss of motion and smooth rotation throughout an extended product lifecycle.
- NIASA Electric Actuators developed in partnership with NIASA to deliver precise and safe linear movement, regardless of speed.
- Highly engineered custom pneumatic components that provide precise motion control for unique automation and packaging applications requiring non-standard solutions.
Festo Displaying Newest Motion and Gripping Technologies
The Festo exhibit at PACK EXPO 2026 will feature the company’s latest motion, gripping, connectivity and handling solutions.
For applications utilizing caustic cleaning chemicals, high-pressure washdown, and constant moisture where use of electric motion technology has been limited, Festo will be showing its new hygienic EPRF stainless-steel electric cylinder and EMMH-AS stainless-steel servo motor.
Both devices feature IP69K protection levels, enabling them to withstand use in these applications. They can be integrated with Rockwell, Siemens, Beckhoff, and Festo PLC architectures to provide linear and rotary motion for packaging lines in the food & beverage industry, pharmaceuticals and more.
Festo’s exhibit will also include a demo that brings electric and pneumatic automation together under simulated washdown conditions. The new EPRF electric cylinders and EMMH-AS servo motors will be part of this demo and operate alongside an IP69K MPAC pneumatic valve manifold and stainless-steel pneumatic actuator to show how electric and pneumatic technologies can be used in combination with one another while meeting washdown requirements.
At the show the company also plans to introduce its complete line of HPSX adaptive grippers. The grippers feature soft silicone-based fingers which can adapt to delicate objects of various shapes and sizes that need to be handled such as strawberries, mushrooms, peaches, melons, and glass.
Because the HPSX is can handle objects of various shapes and sizes, a tool change is not required each time a different object moves along the production line, allowing the same cobot to be used as desired.
Other new technologies on display will include the Seamless Connectivity 2.0 that allows OEMs to move from one PLC platform to another without re-engineering the underlying motion and I/O system.
An interactive demo at the Festo booth will allow attendees to try out this capability by enabling them to unplug one PLC and plug in another to show how they can switch between use of Rockwell Automation, Siemens, and Beckhoff controllers.
Siemens to Unveil Next-Gen SINAMICS G Drives
Siemens will introduce the next generation of its SINAMICS drives family at PACK EXPO 2026. Four new models are being introduced to the family:
- SINAMICS G200, a general-purpose model,
- SINAMICS G210C, a compact drive for targeted machine applications,
- SINAMICS G210X, an advanced model optimized for pumps, fans, and compressors, and
- SINAMICS G210, a versatile and “all-round” drive for continuous motion tasks.
The G200 and G210 drives will be demonstrated at Siemens’ PACK EXPO booth.
For use in standard industrial applications such as pumps, fans, conveyors and processing machinery, the SINAMICS G200 drive is designed to support easy and efficient implementation. It has a compact design for space savings, supports Profinet, and includes integrated safety and cybersecurity functions.
The SINAMICS G210 is intended for use in applications requiring continuous motion, including moving, positioning, processing and compressing. It combines motor openness, modular hardware and software as well as flexible communication options for adaptability to various machine requirements.
About the Author
Sara JensenSara Jensen
Executive Editor, Power & Motion
Sara Jensen is executive editor of Power & Motion, directing expanded coverage into the modern fluid power space, as well as mechatronic and smart technologies. She has over 15 years of publishing experience. Prior to Power & Motion she spent 11 years with a trade publication for engineers of heavy-duty equipment, the last 3 of which were as the editor and brand lead. Over the course of her time in the B2B industry, Sara has gained an extensive knowledge of various heavy-duty equipment industries — including construction, agriculture, mining and on-road trucks —along with the systems and market trends which impact them such as fluid power and electronic motion control technologies.
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