Festo introduces an online 3D CAD configurator

By Mike Santora | August 30, 2023

Festo continues to enable original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to lower engineering and purchasing overhead and bring machines to market faster with the company’s new online 3D CAD Configurator for pneumatic actuators and associated accessories such as fittings, lengths of tubing, and sensors.

The tool is intuitive and easy to use. Once the actuator is selected from a choice of either cylinder, drive with guides, or semi-rotary drive, the engineer simply points and clicks on accessory hot spots to identify and select each accessory. The configurator ensures compatibility between actuator and accessory and eliminates any possible error in type code.

Knowing that customers rely on assured component availability, this new productivity tool focuses exclusively on the in-stock and quick-ship core range of Festo pneumatic actuators and accessories. The core range in the configurator’s database includes the company’s most widely applied pneumatic components and some of its most innovative ones.

Actuators and accessories are shipped in a one-bag kit with a single unique Festo ID number covering all components in the kit. A unique identification number makes for fast and easy reordering. Kits are shipped to North American customers from the Festo Global Production Center in Mason, Ohio. The unique part number is recognized by Festo globally to ensure replacement kit availability wherever the machine is located.The tool supports the most common CAD formats for OEM workflow compatibility. The single CAD file of the actuator/accessory assembly simplifies the design process by eliminating individual CAD files for the various components. The tool also consolidates and simplifies parts lists.

Once the actuator and accessories are selected, ordering is seamless as the tool links directly to the Festo online shop. The shop provides price, shipping information, and bill of materials.

Core products in the configurator’s database include the design-award-winning SDBT-MSX proximity sensor. The SDBT-MSX is the world’s first programmable proximity switch with automatic switching point setting for fast setup.

The DGST pneumatic mini slide is one of the most compact units on the market. The DGST slide and yoke plate are machined from a single piece of aluminum, ensuring low torsion and accurate alignment. Smaller, lighter parts like the DGST contribute to reduced footprint and more energy-efficient machines.

Other compact offerings include the new ADN-S ultra-compact double-acting cylinder, which is 36% shorter and 20% lighter than similar actuators. The DSNU-S round body metric cylinder is up to 40% slimmer, 35 mm shorter, and 50% lighter than its ISO counterpart DSNU yet has the same bore and stroke. The DSNU-S is ideal for space-constrained applications.

FESTOwww.festo.com