In a merger of two prominent names in automation, Motoman Inc. is combining with Yaskawa Electric America Inc. Motoman, the second-largest robotics company in America, will form the Motoman Robotics Division of the new company, to be called Yaskawa America. Yaskawa Electric America will be rechristened the new company’s Drives & Motion Division, and will continue to market drives, servomotors, motion controllers and other automation-related equipment. The merger should be transparent to customers, as both divisions will continue to operate independently, retaining the same management structures, and operating in the same geographical regions that are currently in place. “Using the name Yaskawa on a global basis will strengthen our corporate identity and emphasize the strong global connection between drives, motion control products and robotics,” says Gen Kudo, chairman/CEO of Yaskawa America.