Abstract: A material processing cell comprises two controlled units (106, 110). The first is a main manipulator having an exchangeable end effector, for carrying out a wide range of operations. The second controlled unit is a power operations manipulator, having an exchangeable end effector for carrying out a range of operations requiring the application of high forces. Each of the controlled units includes a dedicated unit control device including a processor. Each unit control device is in communication with a system controller (122, 123), thus allowing the controlled units to carry out their operations simultaneously.