Thank you to the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Network for inviting me to talk about the Guide to Implementing industrial robotics. The guide was developed in collaboration with the Manufacturing technology Centre, Irish Manufacturing research and Automate-UK.
We leafed through the pages of the guide talking through the different types of industrial robots and their potential applications & some obvious benefits.
We discussed the barriers to implementing an industrial robotics system, which can be considered when developing the costs & schedule, resources or risks for a business case. Some of the other factors to consider in the business case can be what is the cost of current processes, their inefficiencies and cost of quality. This can be used to describe the problem to be solved. It is best when describing what you want to invest in by focusing on how it solves the identified problem. Gains can be tallied against total operational costs of the robotic system, including ongoing maintenance, spares, and training. These factors can be used to calculate return on investment;
ROI = [ (gain – costs)/ costs]
We explored the Manufacturing Technology Center roadmap for the process of implementation. It is important to undertake a structured approach to the implementation of automation solutions. Comprehensive steps were discussed such as; line walk, safety review, business needs assessment, lean process efficiency assessment, robotic application identification, robotic concept generation, user requirements specification, business case, feasibility assessment, simulation, implementation plan, quote pack preparation, supplier shortlist, supplier selection, implementation, testing & operation.
We explored different tools for process improvement. Often organizations have their own internal Operational excellence (OpEx), six sigma, green, or, black belt experts who can help with these process improvement evaluations. We discussed some of the simulation tools that can be used to help forecast before and after efficiencies which may assist with the business case & model the robotic concept visually. That said it is always reassuring to see how often a tool as simple as excel can be used for many of these exercises, particularly to give an overview of throughput improvements.
The minimum steps needed for a robotics implementation are the line walk, application identification, user requirement specification, business case and request for quotation (RFQ) pack.
In Summary: don’t automate a process that does not already work well. Automate the simple steps first, not the most complex. Automate processes which are working efficiently. Talk to a specialist consultant to get agnostic advice .....and always be safe.
Finally, thanks to the Automate-UK , Irish Manufacturing Research , the Manufacturing Technology Center & The IET for collaborating on the guide. The webinar recording is on youtube below;
A link to the full guide is below
https://www.automate-uk.com/resource-hub/guide-to-implementing-industrial-robots/
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