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Beyond the standard: Why custom control panels are sometimes the simplest solution
Author : Mark Richards, Beckhoff Automation
19 August 2025
Modern control panels and industrial PCs offer a vast array of configurations, designed to support everything from pick-and-place robots to pharmaceutical filling lines. But what happens when a project pushes beyond even the most adaptable catalogue?
Here, Mark Richards, UK Sales Manager for Beckhoff Automation, explains why custom control panels are becoming increasingly popular.
Off-the-shelf automation hardware has never been more powerful or flexible. At Beckhoff, our standard product portfolio is vast. However, for some machine builders and systems integrators, the standard portfolio may not be sufficient for their unique needs, at which point bespoke may be the best option. There can be a variety of reasons for this step, like needing their own branding or requiring an unusual shape to accommodate additional buttons and switches.
Contrary to what some might think, custom control panels are not a specialist option; we’ve been manufacturing them at Beckhoff for over two decades now. The process is more straightforward than you might expect, and without a need for minimum volume orders, you can go down the custom route even for a one-off machine.
When the box won’t fit the brief
Not every machine is built for a generic environment. In many applications, the layout and appearance of the control panel are as important as the electronics inside. For example, a control panel in a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility or a public-facing location may be required to match the branding and visual identity of the wider system to which it belongs. In other cases, a panel may need to be an unconventional size or shape to make space for extra switches or a portrait screen orientation, or housed in a way that protects against dust or temperature extremes.
Then there’s usability. Machines that demand specialist inputs, such as selector RFID modules or emergency stops, often benefit from a panel tailor-made to application-specific requirements. Rather than retrofitting workarounds onto a standard design, going custom allows engineers to define the physical and functional layout from the start. This is especially useful when the machine is part of a wider product line or production system, where factors like branding and system integration matter.
Today’s custom control panels can include reconfigured wiring, modified enclosures, unusual connectors and fully bespoke housings. Some manufacturers now offer a “pick and mix” approach, where engineers can choose from a library of proven modules, such as buttons, ports, touchscreens and housings – and arrange them into something unique without starting from scratch.
That flexibility extends into production. At Beckhoff, we offer single-unit builds and no minimum order quantities, making the barrier to entry for custom panels much lower than you might expect. This opens the door to engineers working on low-volume, high-specification machines to design panels that truly meet the application, without compromising on aesthetics or integration.
Designing for the real world
In practice, developing a custom control panel is usually a collaborative process. The customer outlines the requirements, and the supplier works through how best to realise them using their existing hardware platform.
As many of these systems are based on tried-and-tested core hardware, they retain the reliability, performance and compatibility of the underlying platform. For example, the standard 3.5-inch motherboard that Beckhoff supplies will not need to be customised, but the peripheral board and other elements like housing concept or interfaces can be.
Ultimately, a custom control panel isn’t about luxury. Although the custom option necessarily involves a cost increase, it is worth considering whether the benefits in flexibility and functionality make it the right solution for your application. At Beckhoff, we are well known for having an extensive standard product portfolio, which gives customers a huge amount of flexibility. However, we also know that sometimes the standard option only takes you 95 percent of the way there, and that the last five percent really matters for usability, safety and long-term performance. In a landscape where machines are expected to do more in less space, with greater reliability and clarity of control, that extra effort can be well worth it.
Beckhoff Automation specialises in PC-based control systems, including custom control panels. To learn more about how bespoke hardware can support your application, visit www.beckhoff.co.uk.
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