Top 7 reasons for switching to robotics
Many industries have yet to take advantage of robotics. Yet there is so much that’s ripe for automation, particularly when it comes to automating processing tasks. This activity offers significant value, not just in terms of cost savings but also to achieve a step change in quality and traceability. Here we outline the top 7 reasons for switching to robots in your processing.
1) 24/7 reliability
Productivity is a challenge all over the world, and one that has been further impacted by COVID-19. For example, the UK has seen reduced productivity growth over the last ten years, as output per hour and real wages remained no higher in 2020 than they were pre-2008. It’s clear that we all must do something different to produce a step change.
While labour has traditionally been the answer to reduced productivity in many industries due to its flexibility and cost-effectiveness, robots are inherently more reliable than humans. With a mean downtime of 30 minutes per year, they also don’t need to stop to maintain their effectiveness, helping to boost your productivity. This means that they can operate 24/7 with increased levels of accuracy when compared to humans and with zero risk of cross-contamination
Using robots allows manufacturers to do the same tasks as humans currently carry out but much more accurately, without error or waste, and at much faster rates. This can transform productivity levels, allowing manufacturers to become much more competitive, as well as reducing the costs incurred as only one operator is needed to manage the system.
2) Affordable automation
The cost of robotics is coming down, just at the point when the cost of labour is increasing across the globe. The processing stages in many industries can be particularly affected by these rises due to the number of operators usually involved.
The living wage in the UK is currently at £8.91 (as of April 2021), and is set to rise further so it’s easy to see how these labour-intensive tasks add up and can start to chip away at your bottom line. In addition, rising production costs and cut-throat competition across the board require manufacturers to do something differently, which typically means a high degree of automation to increase efficiency. The manpower required to meet your productivity levels can (almost) never be justified, however, if you can find the areas where you have many people doing manual tasks and automate this, the labour cost reduction alone will soon justify the capital investment upfront.
By implementing robotic ingredient handling or batch processing, it’s possible to remove human intervention from traditionally labour-intensive activities, therefore allowing manufacturers to reduce associated labour costs and boost margins.
3) Accuracy and reduced waste
Unfortunately humans are, well… only human! When people are involved in processing, they make mistakes; that’s par for the course when performing repetitive tasks during an eight-hour shift. Unmanned facilities remove this risk as once programmed, robots can’t make mistakes.
Human intervention has been found to be the second largest cause of waste in food production. A major study by Brunel University, London, and Ghent University reviewed the production processes at 47 food manufacturers in Belgium and found that human error is a major cause of food waste, accounting for 10.9%*. In addition, human interaction can also be a source of cross-contamination, which can jeopardise consumer health and should be avoided at all costs.
As we’ve seen in the automotive industry, the benefits of robotics in terms of accuracy, quality and productivity cannot be ignored - it’s time to bring these advantages to more industries.
4) Overcome labour shortages
Whether it’s Brexit or COVID-19 reducing the available pool, we’ve seen that labour shortages are a recurrent problem for many industries and it’s becoming harder to recruit the labour force upon which we have traditionally relied. Many manufacturers have had to meet increased demand with fewer people while also implementing social distancing measures to protect staff, particularly challenging in labour-intensive areas of a facility.
Automation can vastly reduce the number of operators needed, whether it’s upstream in materials handling or downstream on the packaging line, increasing efficiency and accuracy, saving money but also reducing the number of people on what can sometimes be a crowded factory floor. Automation allows manufacturers to deliver their volumes and keep their people safe.
By investing in fully automated manufacturing systems, companies can mitigate the impact of labour shortages and improve profitability at the same time. To do this, the traditionally complex, labour-intensive manufacturing processes must be converted fully to automated operations and critically this means matching the full flexibility of manual operations. Furthermore, automation can simplify the tasks completed by operators, reducing reliance on highly skilled individuals.
5) Operator health & safety
Working with many raw materials, from powders to harmful chemicals, every day in manufacturing facilities can pose a significant risk to operator health as exposure to dust can cause occupational asthma and rhinitis. What’s more, lifting and tipping sacks of ingredients all day, every day can cause musculo-skeletal disorders.
Manufacturers must mitigate this risk and the best way to achieve this is to remove the operator from the activity by automating the tasks, protecting operator health and allowing them to move into more value-added roles.
6) Batch of 1
Production lines that can adapt to rapid product changes, customisations and small batch sizes are vital in today’s manufacturing environment. From changing consumer preferences to fluctuating raw material prices it pays to have the ultimate flexibility in your production. Consumers have begun to expect personalisation and customisation in their purchases - fulfilling these by hand would be too expensive, but robotic systems that can adapt and cater to consumer trends will keep themselves ahead of the competition.
To take advantage of this trend for personalisation, smaller batches are required so manufacturers can easily switch to meet customer requirements rather than the bulk processing approach that has been standard. This is where robotic solutions, such as the APRIL Robotics Robot Chef is ideal as you can produce 600L batches and operate much more flexibly to adapt to these growing trends. There are different programmes depending on what is needed for a given run, allowing manufacturers to adapt for a wide range of variables. An operator merely needs to select the correct programme and the robot takes care of the rest. Very little expertise is needed to operate these systems, and no extra time is required to make the change, bringing all of the benefits of robotic automation.
7) Traceability
With total traceability for your product and a full audit trail, robotic systems can help to prevent product recalls. By linking your system to your ERP, you’re able to track all of your ingredients throughout the entire process to give you a real-time view of your operations.
Working with a dedicated partner like OAL can help manufacturers to realise all these benefits whether it’s starting small or a more radical transformation. From system studies to 3D factory scans, we can ensure you achieve the right results with a clear financial justification for the investment to deliver ROI in under 24 months.
