Lockheed Martin leads 3 million USD investment round in Q5D to make tooling to automate wiring harness manufacture.
Bristol, UK, 12 April 2024: Q5D Technology, a company specializing in hardware and software tools for automating wiring harness manufacture, announced today the successful closure of a $3 million investment round, led by Lockheed Martin Ventures, the venture investment arm of Lockheed Martin Corporate, a global aerospace and defense company. Q5D has developed robotic tools combined with sophisticated computer-aided design and manufacturing software, enabling the autonomous addition of wiring and printed electronics directly onto product surfaces. This automation offers not [...]
Q5D opens Technical Assessment Centre to help customers implement wiring automation
Bristol, 14th March 2024 – Q5D, a manufacturer of robots for wiring automation, has opened a customer Technical Assessment Centre (TAC) at its Portishead, Bristol, UK facility. The TAC is designed to help customers with feasibility studies, design for manufacturing, and prototyping as they transition from traditional wire harnesses to full automation. It has already attracted several major automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers into that sector, some with projects running into 2025. Q5D’s CY1000 robot cell automates the addition of electrical wiring [...]
Q5D wins £918,169 ‘Made Smarter Innovation’ grant from Innovate UK for collaborative software development for wiring harness automation robot
Bristol, 5th March 2024 – Q5D, a manufacturer of wire harness automation equipment for additive manufacturing, has secured £918,169 in grant funding for the company and its partners to further develop the software that drives the CY1000 wiring automation robot announced earlier this year. The grant is shared with its partners in the project, the Manufacturing Technology Centre, an independent research and technology organisation, and Emixa, a digital transformation specialist and the leading Siemens Partner in Europe. The CY1000 5-axis CNC robotic handling [...]
Four reasons why automating wiring harness production is critical to electrification
Electrification is a critical trend in the quest for a net zero economy. This process is accelerating, encompassing everything from transport to buildings, and industry. Wiring harnesses – the component enabling the transmission of power and data – are critical to this transition. Here Chris Elsworthy, Chief Technology Officer at Q5D, explains why automating the production of wire harnesses is essential to meet the growing industry demand. 1. There’s no electrification without wiring Buzzwords like “electrification”, “e-mobility” and “electric vehicles” [...]
IET Excellence and Innovation Awards recognise Q5D’s ground-breaking wiring robot
Bristol, 17th October 2023 – Q5D has been shortlisted as a finalist for the 2023 IET Excellence and Innovation Awards in the ‘AI and Robotics’ category. These prestigious awards recognise ground-breaking innovations and best practices in engineering, science, and technology. This year, the social and environmental impact of the competing technologies was a core consideration for the judges. The IET (Institute of Engineering and Technology), headquartered in London, is a professional engineering body representing more than 154,0000 engineering and technology professionals in 148 [...]
Q5D to show first public demonstration of wiring automation robot for eliminating manual harnesses at the Advanced Engineering show
Bristol, 11th October, 2023 - Q5D will give the first public demonstration of its CY1000, 5-axis additive manufacturing robotic cell on stand Q162 at the Advanced Engineering Show at the NEC from November 1st to 2nd, 2023. The CY1000 automates the addition of electrical wiring and connectors to increasingly complex products. Through the additive manufacturing process, called ‘Electrical Function Integration’, the robot mitigates the need for traditional wire harnesses, which are large, heavy, costly, and often unreliable. It integrates bare [...]
Q5D shortlisted for ‘Start-up of the Year’ in the Elektra Awards for developing a robot that automates the integration of wiring into electrical products
Bristol, 10th October 2023 – Q5D has developed a robot to automate the addition of wiring and printed electronics to products, eliminating the need for wire harnesses. The company’s work has now been recognised by Electronics Weekly’s Elektra Awards judges, where the company has been selected as a ‘Start-up of the Year’ finalist. The wiring in many electrical and electronic products is currently made and installed by hand. Over the last few years, Q5D, has developed a unique additive manufacturing process that [...]
How automation will shape the future of the wire harness industry
The wiring harness industry is experiencing rapid change due to the technological advances of electrification, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Industry 4.0. Increased functionality means a higher demand for power and data connections in modern appliances, products, and vehicles. As a result, the wire harness market is growing rapidly. Transparency Market Research forecasts a wire harness market of $200 billion by 2031. The productivity of wiring harness manufacturing is a critical issue. The challenge caused by electrification Historical wire [...]
AMRC Journal Issue 16 – LiveWire
Issue 16 of AMRC Journal contains an article about the £1.8m LiveWire Project lead by Q5D. Our Journal features all of the latest developments from the AMRC and its partner companies, as well as the latest hot topics from across industry. Latest issue: AMRC Journal Issue 16. PDF download In this issue: We celebrate some of the technical innovations which our people are delivering to help restore manufacturing as the engine for economic growth. We take a look at how the [...]
Press release: Q5D launches CY1000
Robot for automating wiring harness manufacturing boosts productivity by up to 3X Bristol, UK, 25th April 2023 – Q5D, a manufacturer of wire harness automation equipment for additive manufacturing, has launched its first product, the CY1000. The CY1000 features interchangeable heads for a variety of functions including 5-axis additive manufacturing for wiring and polymers. The 5-axis CNC additive manufacturing robotic cell solves the most challenging automation issue: how to automate the addition of electrical connections in increasingly complex products. Traditional [...]
Andy Smith appointed as Non-Executive Director
We are delighted to welcome Andy Smith who joins Q5D as a Non-Executive Director. He brings to the Q5D board over 30 years of sales and business development expertise in the Electronic Manufacturing Services (EMS) industry. Andy has worked for multiple Tier One companies and has held various senior roles including After Market Services Sales, Manufacturing Services Business Development and Operations Management.As part of his multiple roles in the EMS industry, Andy has focused on P&L management, developing high growth [...]
CPI investment
PRESS RELEASE Q5D continues revolutionising wire harness production with new investment Bristol, 26th January 2023 - Q5D, a leading innovator in wire harness automation, has secured critical investment from technology innovation catalyst CPI, to continue revolutionising the production of wire harnesses. The investment from Enterprises, CPI’s private investor engagement and ventures arm, will enable Q5D to advance its innovative additive technology, helping maximise resilience, productivity, and sustainability in the wire harness supply chain. Wire harnesses are critical to many applications, [...]
Q5D Feature article in IMECHE magazine Professional Engineering
2022 Issue 4 of Professional Engineering includes a 4 page spread about Q5D written by Tom Austin-Morgan 19th July 2022 The feature discusses the problems with the current state of the art in wiring harness production and how Q5D will change the way this broad industry operates. The author Tom interviews Stephen Bennington – Q5D CEO who details the challenges and outlines our approach. The title pages plus the 4 page spread captured from the magazine below. Read the web [...]
UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund : CEO Spotlight
CEO Spotlight: Steve Bennington, CEO of Q5D “Keep going – perseverance is important”. Steve Bennington, CEO of @Q5D, speaks to @UKI2S about his journey in science ventures and engineering. CEO Spotlight: Steve Bennington, CEO of Q5D - UKI2S (ukinnovationscienceseedfund.co.uk)
