Location: Pesaro, Italy

Segment: Machine Building

Challenge: The quality and standards of the machine required updates and modernizing

Solution: Install innovative, reliable and aesthetically pleasing pushbuttons

Results: A cost-effective design that vastly improves the user experience and adds value to the entire machine

Challenge

Simplify and improve the user's life, safety and enjoyment of the machine

Biesse initially approached Eaton to discuss the company's need to revise the general aesthetics of its woodworking machinery. In particular, both parties identified that the most important aspect of any redesign would need to focus heavily on the user's experience of the machine. This is because the machine's interface with the operator is what gives the user the most amount of feedback on the quality of the machine in its entirety.

So the overall objective of the project was to find pushbuttons for the operator that had an innovative look and feel. Their fronts needed to be flat and aesthetically pleasing, in line with wider developments and trends in the market, as the most common style of pushbuttons that protrude from the machine's dashboard has become obsolete on their machines.

Biesse pays a great deal of attention to the type of experience the user has when interacting with its machinery. Which is why the user' experience, reliability and aesthetically pleasing design were paramount considerations when looking for the new pushbuttons to integrate on the new machines.

"Biesse needed to rely on a partner who could offer 360- degree assurances: a partner that boasts a whole range of automation products and that could deliver quality products sourced globally," notes Alberto Carrotta, Automations Manager at Biesse. "This is why we chose to work with Eaton, as both our companies share the same goals: we are both geared to innovation and able to offer advanced solutions."

Carrotta also stresses that Biesse's dashboard designs are very similar on all of its machines. "This simplifies the user's life, as they rapidly learn to interact with and safely use the basic functions on machines belonging to different manufacturing processes. So, for example, the start and stop functions on all Biesse machines are performed in the same way."

Finally, the solution had to be competitive in the woodworking segment. At the same time it needed to be easy to install and had to meet the highest IP standard. Which is why, until very recently, it was still uncommon to see pushbuttons that, as well as being appropriate for industrial applications, were as beautifully designed as those that you find on an elevator, or in other areas of life.

Results

A delightful user experience

Biesse successfully demonstrated Eaton's RMQ Flat Front pushbuttons design at the world's leading woodworking fair, XyleExpo, a vitally important opportunity for the company to stand out from the crowd. Eaton's RMQ pushbuttons on the control panels were a key component in helping Biesse's machines stand head and shoulders above its competition.

"Most importantly, from the point of view of the device's aesthetically pleasing design, the Eaton pushbutton, thanks to the attractive design with a satin metal ring and its compactness, has been considered to be the one that offers the user the best experience in terms of look and feel," says Paolo Valentini, Manager of Industrial Design & Engineering at Biesse.

"Within the woodworking market, Biesse was one of the first companies to pay close attention to the aesthetic pleasure of the machines. And, as you can see from the results of the collaboration with Eaton, Biesse still works in this direction today, offering 'functional design' that is suitable for the industry but is, at the same time, safe and enjoyable for our users."