Calls for automation get louder

The digitization of manufacturing continues to roll on and it’s time that machine shops of all sizes stop “thinking” about automating their repeatable processes and begin investigating real solutions.

Everywhere today people in industrial circles are talking about the Internet of Things (IoT), machines talking to machines and in turn communicating to people—if necessary. This isn’t the future; it’s happening today. For machine shops, it’s in the ability to track machine tool activity in real time, analyze the results and optimize processes.

Ultimately, improved productivity on shop floors will arrive in the form of robotics. It wasn’t long ago that seeing robotic arms on an automotive assembly line became matter of fact, but automation on the floor of a small machining shop seemed far into the future, but the future is here.

Chatting last fall at our Metalworking Manufacturing and Production Expo in Windsor with automation experts, I came to realize that factory automation systems aren’t only for the large plants. Robotic cells can improve machine tool utilization and productivity for shops of all sizes.

I’ve been surprised when owners of shops with fewer than 20 employees tell me about their plans on installing robotic loading and unloading on their machine tools.

But apparently I shouldn’t be surprised. A recent report from the Boston Consulting Group predicts that investment in industrial robots is set to grow 10 per cent per year in all major export nations through 2025.

One reason for the growth, robotics are becoming less expensive. According to the report, the cost of robotic spot welding dropped 27 per cent between 2005 and 2014, and it’s forecasted to drop by another 22 per cent by 2025.

Robotics are also a logical solution to overcome the challenge of finding new workers. The report suggests automation is a labour-saving necessity.

“It is becoming increasingly critical that manufacturers rapidly take steps to improve their output per worker to stay competitive,” says Harold Sirkin, co-author of the report.

It’s suggested that these improvements could lure manufacturing back from lower-wage countries.

Of course robotics will not lead to a zero workforce economy, but it will lead to smarter manufacturing. The question owners need to be asking themselves now is not if, but how, to get on the automation train.

DOUG PICKLYK, EDITOR

dpicklyk@canadianmetalworking.com