Fastems has developed a compact stationary version of its Flexible Pallet System, allowing manufacturers to automate one or two four- or five-axis machining centres before expanding the installation into a larger flexible manufacturing system.
The Flexible Pallet System Stationary, or FPS-S, is designed to reduce the floor space and initial capital associated with conventional pallet automation. Fastems will present the system at AMB 2026 in Stuttgart.
Configurations support pallet loads between 500kg and 1,500kg and can be integrated with machine tools from more than 90 manufacturers. The system is suitable for machining centres with and without an existing automatic pallet changer.
Fastems’ Manufacturing Management Software controls production orders, pallet availability, machine schedules, and unmanned operation. The same software environment can continue managing the equipment as further pallet storage or machine tools are added.
The modular design addresses a persistent barrier to automation among subcontractors and specialist manufacturers. A fully developed flexible manufacturing system can increase utilisation substantially, but its capital cost, layout work, integration, and production planning may be difficult to justify where demand remains uncertain.
Beginning with one machine allows a manufacturer to prove fixturing, scheduling, tool management, and unattended running before extending the system. It also reduces the production disruption associated with installing a large automation structure around several machines simultaneously.
Pallet automation separates setup from spindle time. Operators prepare workpieces on an external station while the machine continues producing another component, reducing capacity lost to loading, alignment, cleaning, and manual changeover.
The benefit increases in high-mix production when several fixtures and jobs can remain available within the system. Software can select work according to due date, material availability, tool condition, programme status, and machine capability rather than following a fixed sequence established at the start of a shift.
Unattended machining still depends on process stability. A pallet store cannot compensate for poor chip evacuation, unpredictable tool life, unreliable probing, weak fixturing, or programmes that require frequent operator adjustment.
Automation often exposes process variation that would previously have been corrected informally beside the machine. Once the operator is removed, the system must detect, tolerate, or stop safely when those variations arise.
Fastems’ launch arrives amid growing competition around integrated machining systems. DMG Mori is taking an extensively automated portfolio to AMB, combining machine tools, pallet handling, robotics, additive manufacturing, inspection, and production software.
Meanwhile, Soraluce’s direct UK operation is supporting larger installations in which foundations, tooling, probing, extraction, automation, and operator training are treated as elements of one manufacturing system.
Machine tool competition is consequently extending beyond cutting performance. Spindle speed, torque, accuracy, and rigidity remain fundamental, while buyers increasingly examine how readily a machine connects to pallets, robots, tools, inspection equipment, scheduling software, and factory data.
Floor space can determine whether an automation project proceeds. Older factories often contain columns, low roofs, established services, restricted access, and machinery that cannot be moved easily.
A compact stationary system may fit where a rail-based pallet store or larger robot cell would require substantial building work. Expansion must still be considered during the first installation, leaving sufficient space and access for future sections.
Controls, safety zones, foundations, and material flow also need to accommodate the intended final layout. A modular system loses much of its value when the original configuration prevents later growth without extensive reconstruction.
Tooling capacity presents another constraint. An automated pallet system can queue more work than a machine can complete using its available magazine, requiring sister tools, breakage detection, tool-life monitoring, or central tool management before long unmanned periods become realistic.
Inspection strategy changes alongside automation. Probing can confirm workpiece position, measure features, and update offsets during machining, while external metrology verifies final conformance.
The process must distinguish between a result suitable for automatic correction and one requiring production to stop. Without that discipline, the cell may continue producing non-conforming parts efficiently.
Fastems is positioning FPS-S as an initial stage in a larger automation route rather than a reduced version of a full system. The design should appeal where companies need to improve machine utilisation but cannot commit immediately to automating an entire machining department.
The strongest installations will connect pallets, scheduling, tooling, inspection, maintenance, and workforce planning within one operating model. A compact system can extend productive hours, but only a controlled machining process can convert those hours into conforming, saleable components.
