DS-APR23-PG24_Layout 1 11/04/2023 12:55 Page 1


FEATURE


SUSTAINABILITY IN MANUFACTURING


EFFICIENCY FOR SUSTAINABILITY According to Turck Banner, higher levels


of production efficiency can help manufacturers eliminate waste and errors, and produce higher yields, helping them become more sustainable. Rachael Morling finds out how...


S


ustainability. It is a topic that has rapidly grown in importance throughout industry across recent years. For many


production facilities, the need to attain sustainable production is becoming ever more important, with both consumers and industry buyers often requesting sustainable production methods when considering purchasing a product or solution. Today, however, many companies are discovering an added benefit to their sustainability initiatives – they are actually saving them money. At a recent press conference in London,


Turck Banner, the specialist in industrial automation, highlighted a number of examples where it can help companies save costs and become more sustainable in the process.


ELIMINATING WASTE Lets look, for example, at a simple solution where eliminating product waste is resulting in higher levels of production efficiency. In dye sublimation printing, the delicate film


has to be handled very carefully otherwise blemishes in the film will be transferred to the printed images. Here, the film has to be guided very precisely to avoid wrinkles or tears – but if the detection method is too close there is a risk that the film may be damaged by touch. Installing a low contrast light curtain, placed


up to 375mm away from either side of the film, can precisely detect the clear edge and issue instructions to gently guide the material through the machine. This is also beneficial in carpet manufacturing


In meat processing, higher yields can be attained


where the light curtain can be used to detect the two edge transition on the carpet web. The first transition is air to selvage (the substrate material of the carpet), the second transition is selvage to tufting. Automatically measuring and adjusting these transitions as close to the tufting process as possible greatly reduces any waste that previously occurred.


HIGHER YIELDS Another example would be in meat processing. Let’s take a large company which supplies meat products to over 50 countries. Here, a team of highly skilled butchers will process over 4,000,000 sheep and cows each year. However, each animal is unique, and achieving the highest meat yield from each animal takes skill. To identify which butchers achieve the


highest yields, every animal is tracked throughout the whole butchery process using RFID tags embedded in the containers which carry the parts. At every stage the bone and fat removed are put into separate containers which are tracked and weighed and, at the end of the process, the exact amounts of the retail meat, fat, bone, and any other waste, is known for every animal. Through the information attained, the butchers can be placed where they are most productive and can pass on their skills to other butchers. The result of higher yields means less waste,


less animals required, and less time and energy spent producing the retail product.


ELIMINATING ERRORS The use of pick to light is another solution that can eliminate errors and reduce product returns. Let’s take, for instance, correctly supplying a modular product that needs a specific attachment – from hundreds of nearly identical attachments – that needs to fit something already owned by the customer. This, for example, could be supplying roof bars with the correct fitting for one of thousands of different car models and makes. The chance of picking wrong parts in a continuous stream of orders, each requiring different combinations of parts, is extremely high. This is an issue that is faced by a wide range of industries. Pick to light overcomes the


errors faced when using paper lists. One such system involved installing


24 DESIGN SOLUTIONS APRIL 2023 Precisely detecting an


edge can reduce waste in dye sublimation printing and carpet manufacture


devices with both a bright indicator and a numeric display on over 400 part locations, explains the company. When each operator was assigned their own colour all they had to do was see which location was illuminated in their colour, and pick the quantity displayed on the device. After touching the illuminated button to acknowledge that the part(s) had been picked, the system would then illuminate the next location in the order sequence. The system also chooses a pick sequence to minimise the distance that the operator has to move, and sequences the heavy or bulky items last. The result? Orders are picked more quickly, with no errors, resulting in far fewer returns. The same can be said for assembly stations,


where the workers need a constant supply of parts and somewhere to put the completed product. Both are equally important for maximum efficiency. Empowering operators to call for parts and


collection when they feel it necessary is the first step in maintaining optimal production speeds. But, by utilising wireless illuminated touch buttons which change colour to indicate progress, the operator receives direct feedback regarding all stages of the assembly. Illumination is off at the beginning and end of the process and changes colour with each step, firstly indicating that the button has been pressed, then that the AGV is in transit. Finally, the operator touches the button to acknowledge the AGVs arrival with parts, or its departure with a pallet of completed products. Wireless communication and position tracking between the AGV and workstation enables the system to direct the AGV in the most efficient pattern. This not only results in increased productivity


but reduces AGV and forklift mileage, saving energy and maintenance costs.


SUSTAINABLE RESULTS These are just a few examples where investing in the right solution can have a significant impact on both short and long term savings, while at the same time making the product or process more sustainable. Please contact Turck Banner to find out how they can help you step towards sustainability.


Turck Banner www.turckbanner.co.uk/en/


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56