OMRON Corporation is advancing control-panel solutions to address the era of labor shortages, seeking to reduce the workload involved in on-site design, commissioning and maintenance while increasing flexibility. In 2026, it will launch the environmental-resistant Model S8NR-S/S8R-BB and the NXR-S Series.
In 2016, OMRON Corporation introduced "Value Design for Panel," a concept for control-panel solutions, and has since worked to make devices inside control panels smaller and standardized in size while reducing wiring time. The aim was to evolve control panels, the heart of equipment, into a form that is easier to design, manufacture and maintain, thereby improving the entire on-site workflow.
Labor shortages are currently worsening at manufacturing sites, with shortages becoming apparent among personnel who design equipment, manufacture control panels and handle maintenance. In the automotive industry and elsewhere, a single production line may use several hundred to 1,000 control panels, while the aging of skilled technicians and labor shortages are obstructing the transfer of know-how.
As manufacturers respond to the shift to EVs, fluctuations in demand and geopolitical risks, the role of control panels is changing from designs focused on stable operation to equipment capable of responding to change. To reduce the burden of design, commissioning and maintenance, it is becoming important to combine functions placed inside the control panel with functions placed near the worksite.