If you’ve ever spent time deep in the industrial automation space, you know Robotic Tending Magazine isn’t just another trade publication. For anyone working in parts handling, machine tending, or robotic integration, it’s the go-to resource for what’s working, what’s broken, and what’s next in the field. As a supplier who’s been working with the magazine for the better part of a decade—first pitching ad space, then co-developing content, and now supporting their production workflows—one question comes up constantly at industry tradeshows, in Zoom check-ins, and even over coffee at automation conferences: “Are there any interviews in Robotic Tending Magazine?” Robotic Tending Magazine
I get it. Interviews make trade publications feel less like a catalog of part numbers and more like a conversation with the people actually doing the work. When you’re trying to justify investing in a new robotic tending cell, you don’t just want to read about specs. You want to hear how a plant manager in Detroit got their 20% uptime increase, how a systems integrator in Ohio solved a tricky material handling bottleneck, or what a robotics engineer at a Tier 1 automotive supplier has on their 2024 roadmap. And for a lot of automation professionals, Robotic Tending Magazine’s interviews aren’t just a nice extra—they’re the reason they pick up a copy at all.
Let me set the record straight: yes, Robotic Tending Magazine is packed with interviews, but they’re not the fluff-filled “CEO soundbites” you see in some tech publications. These are interviews that take time. The team doesn’t grab a 15-minute Zoom with a marketing director to cram in a quote about “disrupting the industry.” They show up. For on-site interviews, they’ll spend half a day walking a factory floor, watching a robotic tending cell run, asking follow-up questions that come up while the robot is loading parts, not just sitting at a conference table. For remote interviews, they’ll block out 90 minutes—no rushing, no “we have to wrap up in 20” pressure. That’s why the interviews feel authentic, not scripted.
Take the last print issue, for example. The cover feature was with a plant supervisor at a mid-sized appliance manufacturer in Indiana that switched from manual machine tending to a 6-robot cell for their dishwasher door fabrication line. A lot of publications would have focused on the up-front cost or the ROI timeline. But Robotic Tending Magazine’s editor spent three days at the plant, talking to not just the supervisor, but the maintenance tech who’d had to retrain 10 team members, the night shift lead who’d seen a 30% drop in overtime costs, and even the quality control inspector who’d noticed a 12% reduction in part damage because the robots were consistent. The interview pulled all those perspectives together—here’s what it’s like on the floor, not just in the boardroom.
I’ve seen this approach first-hand, because as a supplier, I’m often the one connecting the magazine team to the people they interview. Last year, they reached out to me to put them in touch with a robotics engineer at a medical device company that used our custom end-of-arm tooling (EOAT) for a sterile parts tending line. They didn’t just want quotes about how great our tooling was. They wanted to know about the problems the engineer had run into. The engineer told them about a month of downtime when the original gripper design couldn’t handle the friction of the sterile packaging, how they’d worked with our team to adjust the grip pressure, and how that small tweak ended up cutting their changeover time by 40%. That interview ran in the “Practical Solutions” section, and within a week, three different integrators reached out to us asking about the same EOAT model. That’s the power of these interviews—they’re not promotional, they’re problem-solving.
What’s also different about Robotic Tending Magazine’s interviews is who they talk to. It’s not just C-suite executives. Yes, they interview the heads of major robotics companies like ABB or Fanuc, but they also prioritize the people who actually use the technology every single day. That’s why you’ll find interviews with maintenance managers at metal stamping plants, small business owners who invested in their first robotic tending cell to keep up with holiday demand, and even high school robotics teachers who are prepping the next generation of robotic operators. Last spring, they ran a 3-part interview series with a group of women working in automation—one a systems integrator, one a robot programmer, one a plant engineer—talking about the gaps in training and how they’re pushing for more accessible pathways into the field. That series got shared on LinkedIn thousands of times, and I had three clients reach out to ask if we were offering any training programs to support those new hires.
Another thing I love about the interviews is that they’re not afraid to ask hard questions. A lot of trade publications let companies frame their own narrative, but Robotic Tending Magazine’s team doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges. In the summer 2023 issue, they interviewed a plant manager who had to pause a robotic tending launch because of supply chain delays for a custom sensor. They didn’t make the manager sound like a failure—they talked about how they adjusted their workflow to use manual tending as a stopgap, how they communicated with their team to avoid burnout, and what they learned about vetting backup suppliers. That interview was more helpful to my clients than a dozen whitepapers about perfect robotic cell launches. When you’re the one stuck waiting for a part, you don’t need to hear that everything works on paper. You need to hear how someone else got through it when it didn’t.
As a supplier, I’ll admit I’ve pitched a few of my own clients for interviews over the years, and I’ve turned down more. The magazine’s team is selective, and rightfully so. They only want interviews that deliver real value to their readers—people who are actually making decisions about buying, installing, or maintaining robotic tending systems. They don’t feature interviews just because a company paid for a spot. I’ve seen them pass on interviews with large vendors who wanted only to talk about their new product launch, because they knew it wouldn’t resonate with their audience. That’s why when an interview does run, their readers pay attention.
I’ve also noticed that the interviews extend beyond the print issues. The team hosts a monthly “Robotic Tending Insights” webinar series where they do extended, live interviews with the people featured in the magazine. Last month, they interviewed the integrator from a job shop in Texas that uses a mixed fleet of collaborative robots for small-batch part tending. During the webinar, the integrator walked viewers through a live demo of their cell, answered questions in real time about how they handle part variation, and talked about the mistakes they made in their first setup. I registered three of my own clients for that webinar, because we’ve been talking about expanding our collaborative robot offerings and wanted to see real-world use cases.
Now, let’s talk about why this matters for you, whether you’re a plant manager looking to upgrade your tending process, a systems integrator trying to solve a client’s bottleneck, or a supplier like me who’s trying to stay ahead of the curve. The interviews in Robotic Tending Magazine aren’t just filler content. They’re a window into what’s working, what’s not, and what’s coming next. When you’re trying to decide if a robotic tending system is worth the investment, or if a new EOAT design will solve your part damage issue, these interviews give you context that spec sheets can’t. They help you avoid the mistakes others have made, adapt successful strategies to your own operation, and connect with the community that’s actually building the future of this field.
If you’ve never picked up a copy of Robotic Tending Magazine specifically for their interviews, I’d encourage you to give them a look next time. Skip the product roundup pages for a minute, flip to the “Field Stories” section, and start reading. You’ll hear from people who get it—people who deal with 2 a.m. breakdowns, tight production deadlines, and teams that are used to doing things a certain way. That’s the kind of insight you can’t get from a press release.
For anyone looking to tap into that knowledge, or to share your own experience in an upcoming interview, the team at Robotic Tending Magazine is always looking for new voices. Whether you’re a plant operator, an engineer, or a supplier who’s worked on successful (or not-so-successful) robotic tending projects, they want to hear from you. If you’re interested in connecting to explore opportunities to contribute to their content, including upcoming interviews, I’d be happy to put you in touch with their editorial team. As someone who’s supported the magazine’s production workflows and client connections for years, I can vouch that the team values authenticity, practical insight, and conversations that help the broader automation community succeed.
At the end of the day, trade publications only work if they serve their readers. For Robotic Tending Magazine, that means more than just printing product updates. It means bringing the people who work with robotic tending technology every day to the forefront, letting their stories and challenges and solutions guide the conversation. And when it comes to interviews? They’re not just a feature—they’re the heart of what makes the magazine useful for everyone in this space. If you’ve been sleeping on those interviews, now’s the time to dive in.
Gantry Tending Magazine References
- Robotic Tending Magazine, 2024, Print Issue 12: Practical Solutions for Robotic Machine Tending
- Automation World, 2023, Survey of Industrial Automation Publications: Audience Insights and Content Impact
- The Manufacturing Outlook, 2023, Community-Led Content in Industrial Trade Media: A Case Study of Robotic Tending Magazine
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