At minimum the servo drive, mounted in or directly onto the motor housing along with the feedback device. Many units also include the motion controller, so the axis executes its own moves and only needs commands and coordination over a network. The result is a self-contained axis requiring a power connection and a network connection rather than a cabinet drive and two dedicated cables.

Removing the motor cable and the cabinet space it feeds. Shielded servo motor cables are costly, they are the principal source of electrical noise in a machine because of the switching waveform they carry, and correct routing, screening and termination is skilled work. Eliminating them removes cost, cabinet volume and a recurring source of commissioning problems all at once.

On machines with many modest axes distributed over a large frame, where cabling dominates: packaging and converting machinery, conveyor systems with adjustment axes, automatic format-change mechanisms and modular machines that are configured differently for each customer. It is least suited to a small number of large, high-power axes concentrated in one place, where a cabinet drive is more capable and easier to cool.

Many integrated units accept power and network in and pass both out to the next unit, so a row of axes is served by a single supply drop and a single network run rather than by individual cables back to a cabinet. On a machine with a dozen axes that is a substantial reduction in installation labour and in the volume of cable carried in trunking, and it simplifies adding an axis later.

The drive electronics sit on the motor, in the machine's ambient conditions, rather than in a ventilated enclosure. That means published ratings are given against ambient temperature and must be derated as it rises, and a unit installed in a hot area or enclosed guard will deliver less than its headline figure. Check the derating curve against the actual worst-case ambient rather than the nominal room temperature.

A fault usually means replacing the complete unit rather than swapping a drive module while the motor stays in place, so the spare held is more expensive and mechanical realignment is involved. Against that, there are fewer parts and connections to fail. Where downtime is critical, holding a complete spare unit is the normal approach, and its cost should be part of the comparison.

Yes. Integrated units occupy the lower and middle power range, because there is a limit to the electronics that can be cooled on a motor body. Large, high-dynamic axes remain the domain of cabinet drives, which can be cooled properly and share a common DC bus for regeneration between axes. Integrated motors are chosen for distribution and cabling economy rather than for maximum performance.