The criteria of choice between the two technologies shall be found in the benefits and limits that each specific technology offers to your industrial lifting application.

Because traditional electro-magnets take their energy from the mains, energy can be sized in abundance so that electro-magnets can overcome important air gaps and dynamics in the load rendering traditional electro-magnets the universal magnet for a wide range of applications.

Because traditional electro-magnets take their energy from the mains, their holding force is subject to possible incidents that may arise to the mains (voltage interruption, fluctuation, ...) and to the current feed cable connecting the magnet to the mains.

Suitable battery devices are available to back-up traditional electro-magnets in case of main voltage failure.

Because electro-permanent magnets do not take their lifting energy from the mains but from the intrinsic energy of the permanent magnet blocks they are made of, their holding force does not depend on any electrical continuous feeding rendering them intrinsically safer.

Because the energy generated by the permanent magnet blocks results in the electro-permanent magnet presenting a shallower magnetic flow than the one which can be achieved with traditional electro-magnets, the use of electro-permanent magnets is limited to compact load applications. High load temperatures constitute another limit for electro-permanent magnets.