Page 6 - Industrial Technology EXTRA 25th January 2021

ROBOTICS...

Advanced robotics for

industrial manufacturing

Rahav Madvil and Noam Ribon on Siemens Digital Industries Software look at

the role of robotics in automating processes to optimise manufacturing productivity
ustomisation and flexibility are two of the
hottest words in industrial manufacturing
right now. Customers want something
Cmade just for them, whether it is a
personalized aftershave with their name on the
bottle, a vehicle with all the features they need and
none they don’t, or a new phone with the latest
radio antenna for 5G connectivity. All this
customization leads to one conclusion –
manufacturing is moving towards high-mix
production and making millions of different
products in very small lots.
At the same time, many products made today Small lot sizes are not inherently a problem, but
are far too complicated for established automation current production processes cannot easily
technologies alone, forcing manufacturers to accommodate this without large investments in an
augment traditional robotics with manual assembly increasingly complex infrastructure. To avoid this
by human laborers. People are valued for their problem of exponential investments, which may or
ability to understand and account for changes in a may not solve the problem, many businesses are
process very quickly. But what if this flexibility were looking for a more flexible approach to production.
included in automated processes? How can manufacturers make multiple products
A flexible and automated (even autonomous) efficiently with minimal changes to the production
production system is the Holy Grail for many floor between products?
manufacturers wishing to overcome the challenge of Advanced robotics is the answer, and many
growing product complexity and simultaneously companies are already on the path to adoption.
meet demands for greater customization. The ability
to rapidly switch production from one product to The advanced robotics journey
another will be a defining feature of businesses on Many factory floors rely on conveyor belt networks
the path to lot sizes of one and the highly to transport everything from raw material to final
customizable products of tomorrow. products. But these networks were not designed to

January 2021 • INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY EXTRA • p6