Support your employees and business with collaborative robots

Automation isn't an option for business. It’s a necessity. Especially when you consider there will be more than "1.7 million new industrial robots installed in factories worldwide" by 2020, according to reports by the International Federation of Robotics.

Today, collaborative robots are increasingly having positive impact on employees and businesses. 

Making collaborative robots a priority

It’s understandable many employees and businesses feel resistance to robot automation. Some fear job losses. Others worry about health and safety risks. Or the time it takes to deploy a robot and not to mention the staff training that's required to operate the robots. In business, every dollar and every minute counts and integrating a robot into a production may sound like a lot of work and added expense. Yet this couldn't be further from the truth.

Robot automation is now more accessible than ever before. What was once out of reach for many businesses is now achievable and affordable with collaborative robots.

The small footprint, easy programming, safety features and the flexible nature of collaborative robots mean they can be integrated into many different types of manufacturing, logistics and service environments.

Manufacturers with high-mix/low-volume productions are reaping the benefits because collaborative robots are fast to program and reprogram and they don't need safety fencing (subject to risk assessment). This means they can be easily moved around a factory floor with minimal disruption to employees and with little to no production downtime. The robots save time and allow businesses to produce highly customised products for customers with ease.

Businesses that choose to automate experience faster growth, increased productivity and a happier workplace. OTV Plast in Denmark produces plastic parts for various industries. After integrating a collaborative robot they reported a productivity increase at their milling machine by approximately 35 percent. As a result of this growth, the company can now bid for orders that weren't possible before. How would a productivity increase like this impact your business? Click HERE to see how collaborative robots have improved productivity and safety at OTV Plast.

Virtually any business can benefit from robot automation.

Keeping workers safe

Keeping workers safe must be a priority. According to the International Labour Organization, there are 374 million non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses each year and many result in extended time off work.

Universal Robots technology has a patented safety system which features seven fixed safety functions: emergency and safeguard stopping mechanisms to protect workers from being exposed to a hazard in the workspace as well as digital output safety signals that can be sent to other safety equipment within the installation to report the status of the robot system in a safe and reliable manner.

Eight adjustable safety limits are also present: joint positions and speeds, TCP positions, orientation, speed, and force, as well as the momentum and power of the robot. Each of these can be set according to requirements deemed necessary in risk assessments based on the guidelines in ISO/TS 15066.

Your team can work alongside these robots safely without the need for safety fencing or cages (subject to a risk assessment).

Supporting your team

Collaborative robots are work tools. They provide support to employees so they can do their job safely, and productively. They also give employees the opportunity to upskill and undertake more meaningful work, which in turn boosts job satisfaction, retention, happiness and wellbeing.

ASSA ABLOY New Zealand is a global leader in door and window opening solutions. In 2016, the company deployed a UR5 because they wanted to increase their output, ensure delivery on their promise of a two-day lead-time and solve employee health and safety challenges.

Employees welcomed the UR5 and now see it as a team member. In fact, they embraced the collaborative robot and named it Victoria.

“We’re so pleased to see the team’s sense of pride in the new skills they’ve developed as a result of operating Victoria. Permanent staff have taken on the responsibility of mentoring temporary staff on how to work with Victoria,” said Mataio Goding, Production Manager at ASSA ABLOY New Zealand.

Upskilling is inevitable when businesses choose to automate. Learning new skills not only benefits a person’s current job it also sets them up for future career opportunities.

Victoria (UR5) is being used to automate key manufacturing processes, like the picking and placing of screws, relieving employees of repetitive tasks and ensuring a smooth production flow. As a result, ASSA ABLOY New Zealand has experienced improvements in productivity, quality and most importantly, employee health and safety.

Creating opportunities

It's reported by the International Federation of Robotics that between 2010 and 2015 the automotive industry in the US installed more than 60,000 industrial robots and during this time the number of people employed in the sector increased by 230,000.

Robot automation improves competitiveness and creates jobs. Through increases in productivity businesses can take on more work, deliver products to market much faster and as a result employ more staff to keep up with the growth and meet customer demands. Innovative companies at the forefront of technology attract top talent and customers that were previously out of reach.

ASSA ABLOY New Zealand has experienced improvements in the quality of their products and since introducing the UR5. The company has experienced significant benefits and they are now developing another process that involves two UR5s producing door hinges, with 22 different variants of the product.

“Our traditional approach to automation wasn’t cost effective for our manufacturing environment and it was hard to justify. New cobot technology like Universal Robots has opened the door for us to apply this technology in areas we previously thought impossible,” said Marc Simkin, Manufacturing Engineer Manager, of ASSA ABLOY New Zealand.

Robot automation gives you access to technology; data and insights that will help you create efficiencies and make more informed decisions about the day-to-day running of your production. It can also help you identify other areas of your business that may benefit from automation.

Click HERE to watch the case story about ASSA ABLOY New Zealand.

The next wave of automation

Technology is advancing quickly and it’s not going to slow down. It will continue with or without you on board and what we’re seeing today is only the beginning.

This is exciting news because the opportunities for your team and your business are infinite.

Augmented Reality (AR) technology and collaborative robots are driving the next wave of automation and this could have a very big impact on manufacturing and logistics automation and in the future home and service robots.

With AR, people can get inside the head of a collaborative robot and control it using natural, smooth movements, giving the robot precise instructions by doing the tasks he or she wants the robot to emulate. This new approach is ideal for collaborative robots because people can work alongside the robots safely without the need for safety fencing (subject to risk assessment).

A collaborative work environment where humans and robots work together is essential. Think about the opportunities that are available to your business.

CLICK HERE to learn more about how augmented reality and collaborative robots are driving the next wave of automation. 

Start small

If you are considering collaborative robot automation in 2018, start small. You don’t need to automate a full process to begin. In fact, it’s best to start by automating a small, simple task first and then to build from there. The future is collaborative.

About the author:

Shermine Gotfredsen is the General Manager Universal Robots Pte Ltd (Southeast Asia and Oceania). Shermine is committed to working in partnership with companies across the SEAO region to help them make the right decisions on how to improve productivity through automation.