Automation and robotics in medical device, pharmaceutical & biotech sectors
19 May 2020
In recent years, there has been an upsurge in the deployment of advanced automation and robotics in medical device manufacturing and, to a lesser extent, in pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturing.
The COVID-19 pandemic has only served to highlight how much more work is still needed to safeguard these critical sectors, both in terms of continuity of product supply and in terms of operational work practices.
As many of these companies are developing and implementing social distancing work practices, they are also engaging with automation suppliers to plan for the future of their manufacturing and assembly lines in this rapidly changing world.
Automation and robotics are set to be key enablers in the post-COVID-19 recovery strategies of forward-thinking companies in the Life Science Sector.
In many respects, Ireland has led the way in building up a network of automation solution providers and machine builders that specifically target these critical sectors, and with the potential that exists in the United Kingdom, particularly post COVID-19, perhaps now is the time for the UK to take these learnings and apply them for the benefit of the UK Life Science manufacturing sector.
Modern manufacturing trends
R&D engineers engage with their manufacturing engineers from the get-go of product development to ensure that, should the product receive regulatory approval and a successful product launch, it can be manufactured and scaled up efficiently and cost-effectively.
New production lines are designed to maximise efficiency while minimising footprint, thus reducing the cost of cleanroom facilities. Workflow optimisation and reduction of material handling are of paramount importance, both to eliminate unnecessary transportation and storage between production stages, but also to reduce the levels of human to product contact.
Even in primary pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturing, there has been an increasing awareness of the need to introduce greater levels of automation and robotics. Many companies have been looking at ways to release highly paid chemists and biotechnologists from mundane non-value-added tasks, to improve the safety for their employees when handling particularly potent, hazardous and toxic chemicals. It is widely accepted that in biotechnology manufacturing, as much as 35-50% of the operating cost is in manual labour.
Additionally, the use of automated robotics laboratories and seed laboratories as well as in warehousing and logistics hold significant potential for improved efficiency and product traceability.
Advances in technology
Once seen as the stalwart partner of the automotive, metal fabrication and consumer goods industries with little change in the technology for many years, robotics has really come of age for a new generation of smart manufacturing in Life Science manufacturing.
Small, fast, cleanroom specification robots, sensitive, dexterous collaborative robots, autonomous guided robots, artificial learning and advanced vision all combine to provide the necessary technologies to facilitate the widespread rollout of automation across both new product introduction and legacy products.
Data management and product traceability become easier to manage with automated and validated manufacturing lines enabling secure audit trails and compliance with the regulatory standards.
Leading adopters
In the Life Sciences sector, several global companies such as Abbott, J&J, Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Hollister and others are seen as the leading adopters of automation and robotics and, by the nature of the global concentrations of these companies, it is natural that robot manufacturers in some countries have a more focused approach to the Life Sciences market.
Ireland is home to 9 out of the world’s top 10 medical device companies and more than 300 companies in the MedTech sector. KUKA recognised the potential in this market very early on and is an established supplier of robots into the sector with a strong and loyal Machine Builder System Partner network throughout the country with knowledge of automation, control, vision, robotics and, critically, the regulatory framework within which the end customer and suppliers must work and conform to.
Similarly, the top 10 biotechnology companies in the world have manufacturing plants here and more than 70 pharmaceutical companies also operate in Ireland, with several ongoing research projects in sector-specific robotic applications in conjunction with Universities, EPC’s and end-users ongoing. Many leading global biotechnology companies had already come together under BPOG (Biophorum Operations Group) to lay out their technology roadmap with a significant focus on automation and robotics for the future of their industry.
Ireland has been particularly progressive in developing its Life Science clusters with a highly educated, English-speaking workforce and excellent University and R&D support system; however, Ireland is not unique in this respect and the learnings from Ireland can well be applied elsewhere.
COVID-19 and the new norm for manufacturing
If ever an unfortunate event proved to remind us that an over-reliance on scarce manual resources and impractical overcrowded working conditions is unsustainable for the security of our supply chain and survival of our manufacturing industries, the COVID-19 pandemic has just surpassed it.
When, eventually, our manufacturing sectors can return to work, the landscape will have completely changed. We must maintain social distancing within the workplace for the foreseeable future or until a vaccine is rolled out across the globe, even then, social distancing within the workplace may become the “new norm”. This will be just as applicable to the Life Science manufacturing sector as to other sectors.
Critical finished good manufacturing and supply chain have come under scrutiny during this pandemic and many of the flaws in low-cost manufacturing in far-flung continents have come to the fore with serious shortages in finished goods and raw materials arising. As a result, reshoring of manufacturing is inevitable, with many countries governments already issuing policy statements encouraging companies to reshore their manufacturing and supply chain with several countries already offering substantial financial enticements for companies to do so. However, while this will undoubtedly be welcome news, cost competitiveness will be even more important, and automation and robotics are fundamental to maintaining cost competitiveness.
Automation and robotics are also set to become the “new norm” with an increased focus on reducing the concentrations of workers in close proximity to one another and providing continuity of production even in the event of another major interruption to manufacturing and supply chain.
Sensitive and dexterous collaborative robots with small footprints will increasingly become our “co-workers”.
Research will be accelerated to develop “new” applications for robotics, faster deployment, flexibility and easy to use.
Autonomous mobile robotics will become commonplace, not only in warehousing and logistics but also in testing, sampling and media preparation.
Cleanliness and hygiene will take on whole new importance in the workplace and while automated robotic sanitising in hospital environments is in early development, it may become necessary to consider similar technologies in manufacturing facilities.
Challenges
There are many challenges to be overcome in this “new norm” which requires collaboration and initiatives across all invested parties including the end-user, Regulatory Authorities (eg ISO/FDA), Government Bodies, Research Institutions, Universities, machine builders and automation/robot suppliers, including but not limited to:
• Funded research, essential to develop new technologies.
• Skills gap, already a critical shortage exists of automation and robotics engineers across a range of skills levels from apprentice to Master’s degree. This needs urgent addressing across our educational facilities, both for skilling and reskilling.
• Workplace culture and operator acceptance of robot technology
• Brownfield Plant Design is not always suited to deployment of automation, for the deployment of mobile robotics
• Government investment support programs, particularly for smaller manufacturing companies and solution providers
• Agile Innovation funding
• Working capital loan schemes
Summary
Manufacturing will have to adapt and change or disappear by failing to do so. It will no longer be acceptable for crowded working conditions with a high risk of disease transmission to continue, automation and robotics are key enablers to minimise overcrowding and establish clearly defined workspace and task separation in compliance with social distancing regulations.
Reshoring will be a welcome boost to many suffering economies, but it should be remembered that offshoring in the first place was a means to reduce costs and manufacture cheaper goods, so cost competitiveness utilising automation and robotics is critical to the success of any reshoring program.
There are many challenges facing manufacturing as economies try to get back to some degree of stability post-COVID-19. Financial constraints, changes to working environments, cultural change and acceptance, skill gaps and market changes, to name a few, apply equally to the Life Science sector and, for many companies, this will require a steep change in how they design and manufacture their goods under the new manufacturing norm and automation and robotics is set to be centre stage of the changes.
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