Strong partnerships are built on more than products. They are built on trust, collaboration, and a shared commitment to helping customers succeed.
Those principles guided our recent Robotics & Automation OEM Channel Partner Event, which brought together distributors from around the world to explore our motion stack strategy and exchange market insights while identifying new avenues for growth across our portfolio.
Channel partners are an extension of our commercial and technical teams, helping connect customers with the right solutions through their local presence, application knowledge, and trusted relationships.
Many channel partners have built deep expertise in specific technologies and applications over the years. A key objective of the event was to broaden that perspective by showcasing our full Robotics & Automation portfolio, including the motion stack that represents the breadth of our motion technologies, such as motors, sensors and servo drives. By bringing together complementary products and capabilities, we help customers solve complex automation challenges with more complete, integrated solutions.
Through training sessions and application discussions, along with portfolio reviews, attendees gained greater visibility into complementary capabilities and new solution opportunities.
As Eric Klein, Vice President of OEM Sales emphasized during the event, understanding how these technologies connect enables stronger customer conversations and more comprehensive solutions, allowing us to bring greater value to the customers and markets we serve.
Throughout the event, discussions extended beyond products and technologies. Partners shared insights on market trends, regional growth strategies, customer challenges, and successful applications, providing valuable perspective.
Facundo Lay, Director of Product Management, noted that channel partners work closely with customers every day and have unique visibility into emerging needs as well as evolving market dynamics and high-value applications. Bringing together partners, commercial teams, product managers, and application engineers from different regions created a powerful forum for exchanging ideas and uncovering insights that can be applied across markets to drive future success.
The event also gave partners an opportunity to visit our site in Apex, North Carolina, and experience firsthand the capabilities that support our Robotics & Automation business. One of the highlights of the week was welcoming visitors to the facility where our integrated stepper motors will now be manufactured and providing a behind-the-scenes look at our operations. The tour demonstrated our ongoing investment in technology and capabilities that support customers worldwide.
Looking ahead, our focus remains on three key priorities:
- Strengthening partner training and enablement through expanded product education, sales tools, and technical resources.
- Improving communication and transparency around product roadmaps, lead times, support channels, and business updates.
- Accelerating motion stack adoption through demonstrations, reference designs, and cross-portfolio solutions that help solve real-world customer challenges.
The most rewarding outcome was seeing partners leave with a stronger understanding of our portfolio and fresh ideas for serving customers. It was a pleasure to host so many channel partners from around the world and spend time discussing the innovations shaping the future of robotics and automation. Their engagement and willingness to exchange best practices made the event both productive and inspiring.
Innovation happens faster when people come together to exchange perspectives and build on shared experiences. By investing in partner education and improving communication, along with accelerating motion stack adoption, we can create stronger opportunities for partners, customers, and for the industries we serve.
By Swapnil Mane, Vice President & General Manager, Robotics & Automation