Checklist for robotic transformation
While robots are well-established in a number of industries, from automotive to electronic, it’s only more recently that the potential for robotics in the food industry has begun to be realised. And while robots in the packaging line have become more commonplace, it’s still rare to see them in the processing stages. Yet the challenges of recent years, from labour and skills shortages to COVID and productivity slumps, have encouraged forward-thinking food and beverage manufacturers to consider the benefits of robotics. But where do you start?
As with any digital transformation project, the key is preparation. Ensuring you’re clear on your objectives before beginning the project will ensure results and ROI can be achieved from day one, and working with a trusted and experienced partner will help to guide you on the journey. Below we’ve put together a brief checklist outlining some of the main steps you’ll encounter on your transformation journey, explaining how you can plan your way to a successful robotic processing project.
1) Instigating the project
High level scoping of project
Identify the broad areas that can drive the biggest improvements to the business. Where are there opportunities to make significant cost savings or generate competitive advantages? Could changing the way you make your products dramatically improve your flexibility or efficiency? Is this important to your customer? This is where automating your manual handling and batch processing systems through robotic transformation comes into the mix. Location, timescales, budgets and critical results will be key at this stage.
Appoint the owner and project team
Like all projects, having a project owner is vital to champion the robotic transformation, push activities forward and get them over the line. We find that these projects tend to have a Group lead and as well as one at a site level – usually these people are in the Operations team. It’s important to assign these roles as early as possible to give the project momentum and instil clear lines of communication. Consider any other stakeholders that might need to be involved in the project and assemble your project team.
Engage the IT team and technical specialists within the organisation
These key stakeholders will be critical to any transformational project so it’s best to get their buy-in early and bring them on the journey with regular updates and check-ins.
Establish your objectives & KPIs
Are you clear on the drivers of the project? What problem will a robotic system solve? Are you trying to reduce costs while boosting productivity? Is it more about health and safety? Or are you looking to cut waste? Understanding the answers to these questions will determine the success of the project.
2) Defining the project
Understand your current manual processes and workflows
To achieve this stage, the APRIL Robotics team undertakes a system study. Typically, we request up to a year’s data to fully understand your processes and products, allowing us to define your system requirements. We also conduct a site visit to get to grips with your existing operations. You’ll need a process flow diagram to help us understand how the tasks are currently undertaken and where any value-added tasks might be hidden to ensure no operations will be missed in the switch from manual to robotic processing.
Set your benchmarks
Once you’ve understood your current operations, it’s really important to define what you’re benchmarking against so that you can measure the success of the project and understand the ROI. What does good look like now and how much does the new process need to improve on this to justify the investment? This information will help in the decision-making process as well as playing an important role in judging the success of the project to determine future roll-out plans.
Determine integration requirements
It’s important to plan how the robotic system will integrate with your existing manufacturing systems, for example, do you use SAP? Do you have an MES that the robot will need to connect to? Establishing this information at the start can prevent delays down the road.
Conduct trials to validate concept
The APRIL Robotics team conducts trials before taking on any project to ensure that the specific ingredients involved can be weighed accurately or that the batch production achieves the desired results, giving you the confidence to push ahead.
Create your project plan and timeline
Once you’re happy with the first five points, the APRIL Robotics team will help to define your project plan and timeline to meet any critical dates and ensure you’re operational and meeting your objectives within the defined time frame.
3) Completing the project
Now it’s just the small matter of carrying out the project! Having regular reviews between the project team members from the outset ensures you remain focused on the defined objectives, facilitates the transfer of information, keeps the project on schedule and fosters good working relationships internally and with your partners. The APRIL Robotics team also arranges regular check-ins to make the process as smooth as possible and work round any unforeseen hurdles that are sure to crop up!
