The A to Z guide of robot technology for beginners: Q to T
26 September 2019
In this blog, ABB will explore why Quantitative Objectives are central to installing a successful robotic automation system, how Reshoring production using robots can boost business growth and why Simplification and Training are the answers to the theory that robots are just too complex to implement.
We were naturally excited to see the wide range of activities and topics covered by the National Robotics Week held by the UK-RAS Network in June – if you were one of the many people who journeyed to the Great Exhibition Road Festival, you may even have had a selfie taken by our YuMi robot at our E-Mobility exhibit!
Now in its fourth year, the National Robotics Week has done much to showcase the capabilities of robotic technology and its potential for augmenting human performance and productivity. Importantly, it is also helping to emphasise the challenges that the UK needs to overcome in order to become a leading manufacturing nation. A 2020 whitepaper on the need for education and skills presented by Tony Prescott, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Sheffield, revealed how 65% of today’s primary school children will work in jobs that haven’t even been invented yet. As many of these will undoubtedly utilise robotic automation, there is a pressing need for greater education and training to help equip them with the skills they will need in the workplaces of the future.
While events such as the National Robotics Week, and our own regular Switch to Robots seminars are doing much to raise awareness of the benefits of robotic automation, there is still a lot that needs to be done to get the UK manufacturing sector on an equal footing with our international competitors.
When we began this blog series in March 2018, the IFR’s World Robotics Report revealed an encouraging 3% increase in the number of industrial robots sold in the UK. Fast forward one year, and the recent set of statistics paint a very different picture, with a 3% reduction in sales to UK businesses.
It’s worth noting that while the 1% rise in global sales of robots is lower than in previous years, sales in the US and Europe have continued to rise, increasing by 15% and 7% respectively, highlighting the real need for UK companies to step up if they want to remain internationally competitive.
As always, we are keen to explain how switching to robotic automation can help UK manufacturers to transform their performance. In this blog we’ll explore why Quantitative Objectives are central to installing a successful robotic automation system, how Reshoring production using robots can boost business growth and why Simplification and Training are the answers to the theory that robots are just too complex to implement.
Q is for Quantitative objectives
By setting a goal in specific numerical terms, it becomes that much easier to justify robot automation to C-level executives and financial directors. For example, setting a business objective to improve productivity by 25% or reduce waste by 50% and then having the calculations to support that outcome shows that a project is both worthwhile for the business and will achieve a return on the investment.
An example of this can be found at Castings PLC where the tier 1 supplier to the heavy truck sector wanted to increase the output of the grinding machines to the tune of 2,500 components. To help assess whether robots could achieve this, Castings PLC first installed a pilot cell. Using an ABB robot, imaging system and conveyor belt, the robot cell proved it could deliver the flexibility required. There was also a labour equivalent case based on one person operating four machines instead of two which showed the potential cycle time improvements that could result from automating the loading and unloading of the machines.
Due to the success of the trial cell, 12 machine tending cells were installed to handle a range of components, with each currently programmed to handle 90 different part types. Castings PLC are working towards the target of producing 2,500 different components having achieved 300 of these by the end of the first year.
R is for reshoring
The idea of reshoring production to the UK is not a new one, with shorter supply chains reducing cost and making delivery turnarounds quicker. As consumers become increasingly demanding with the online shopping boom soaring to unprecedented levels – there are currently 47.7 million online shoppers in the UK – automated logistics solutions are also going to be necessary to manage the large inventories, sorting and delivering of goods.
One UK manufacturer that knows all about the benefits of keeping production on our home turf is plastics promotions manufacturer CHX. Struggling to match overseas competitor prices which were cheaper largely due to lower labour costs in those regions, the business owner Andy Knight attended a plastics injection moulding show looking for a solution. He was inspired by an exhibition stand hosted by Geku Automation which showed automation solutions and enquired as to a robot system for picking, placing, printing and cutting CHX products.
Geku proposed installing a Geku SR250 beam robot to demould the parts and an ABB IRB140 to print and remove the moulds from the runner into a container – Andy went ahead with the project and the end result was faster production and reduced costs. UK companies can now order plastic promotional products cheaply without having to get them shipped in from abroad.
For more information: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/18-month-return-investment-chx-products-abb-robot-abb-robotics-uk/
Keeping production in the UK with the help of robot automation also led to lights out production and a super quick return on investment of only eighteen months.
If more UK manufacturers installed robot automation as part of a longer-term commitment to reshoring, the shorter turnaround times and competitive prices of these businesses could far outweigh the perceived advantages of having goods produced and shipped in from abroad.
S is for simplification
A common hurdle for UK manufacturers considering robot automation is the daunting prospect of installing the new technology onto the shop floor. With so many areas of a process to consider, choosing the right place to integrate robots can be difficult. Equally there is a typical misconception that robot technology is too complex for manufacturers to manage and is only suitable for automotive plants.
Luckily installing, programming and operating robots has become less complex in recent years, with developments in programming and operator interfaces enabling even the least experienced to quickly get to up to speed.
Other ways in which programming has been simplified include offline programming software such as RobotStudio which enables companies to plan and test an automated system before committing it to the shop floor. Any snags or issues can be identified and resolved before the physical system is introduced and once the program is set, it can be easily uploaded into the robot which can be reprogrammed remotely thereafter.
The possibilities for deploying robots alongside manual workers have also been transformed by the growth in collaborative robots. Defined by the International Federation of Robotics as “robots that perform tasks in collaboration with workers in industrial settings’, collaborative robots range from ABB’s inherently safe YuMi portable dual-arm robot, which requires no fencing, barriers or zones, through to larger scale robots utilising safety technologies such as ABB’s SafeMove2 safety solution, which allows industrial robots to work alongside their human co-workers without safety fencing. The SafeMove2 software enables the robot to be aware of its surroundings through safety sensors attached to the robot cell, and the robot can then adjust its movement and speed accordingly – ensuring the safety of its co-workers.
Last year, this software enabled a renowned choreographer, Fredrick Rydman, to dance with a 2m (6.5ft) tall IRB 6620 industrial robot at Stockholm’s House of Culture & City Theatre. Through his performance, he showcased the human and robot collaboration that is becoming a reality in factories across the world.
Watch a video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=m9oPe9CsUpI
T is for Training
If robots are the answer to the UK’s low productivity, then training is the answer to the UK’s skill shortage. As David Willett, Corporate Director at the Open University puts it in his Open University Apprenticeships blog, “it is crucial that organisations take a more sustainable approach, using training to address skills gaps from within and reducing spend in the long term.”
Where robotic automation is concerned, training up staff to program, operate and maintain robots can make a vital contribution to boosting both productivity and motivation, encouraging workers to feel enthusiastic about their own roles and the company’s direction going forward.
“In today’s competitive marketplace automating production using robots is becoming the route of choice to improve productivity and flexibility the world over,” explains Nigel Platt, LBL Manager, UK and Ireland – ABB Robotics. “UK manufacturers who are considering implementation should ensure that the whole company is on board with the journey from the board level execs through to production staff on the shop floor. Training staff to use robot technology improves workplace safety and can help foster longer term job satisfaction, leading to greater loyalty and reduced turnover of staff.”
ABB offers a wide range of training courses for all levels, from beginner courses in RobotStudio offline programming through to advanced programming and electrical maintenance.
For the full list of training courses click here: http://search.abb.com/library/Download.aspx?DocumentID=9AKK105713A6288&LanguageCode=en&DocumentPartId=&Action=Launch
We’re living through an industrial revolution which includes robots at the heart of it. It’s our choice whether we choose to adopt more robots and push our businesses forward but if we do want to raise productivity as a nation, remaining open-minded about new production technologies and training up staff to use it is a key requirement.
By way of reinforcing this message, the last word goes to David Willet, who recently told City AM, “our skills need to change and evolve so that we are not left behind. We need to move to a model of lifelong learning where employees are constantly upskilling and retraining and becoming more agile as a result.”
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