FEATURE AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRONICS
Automotive manufacturing is changing rapidly, can your assembly lines keep up?
With electronics life cycles becoming shorter, it is important that automotive manufacturers plan for component obsolescence to future-proof their assembly lines. Here Neil Ballinger, head of EMEA at automation parts supplier EU Automation, explains how an effective obsolescence management strategy can tackle the challenges of component obsolescence
T
he incredible pace of technological progress, coupled with an increasing
trend towards customisation, is forcing manufacturers to make their assembly lines as agile and adaptable as possible. However, in such a complex and demanding industry, adaptability can quickly turn into a logistical nightmare. The constant introduction of innovative design elements means that often, the production of popular and relatively recent components will be discontinued to make space for newer versions. The shorter lifecycle of electronic
components is problematic in all industries, but is especially challenging in automotive. Not only are newer vehicles increasingly reliant on electronic components, the highly specialised nature of automotive supply chains is also exasperating the issue. To keep up with the competition,
component manufacturers for the automotive sector have started to narrow their offerings, investing in niche components rather than highly commoditised ones. This means that when highly specialised components inevitably become obsolete, automotive manufacturers have few options for how to source them. While we typically worry about this in
relation to the components being used in vehicles, it is also relevant to critical machines on assembly lines. PLCs, motors and robotic solutions are being upgraded at unprecedented speed, meaning that manufacturers might soon have difficulties finding like-for-like replacements of the models they currently use, even if fairly recent. To keep up with the times and bypass
the issue of sourcing legacy parts, manufacturers can commission an entirely new system, the so-called rip- and-replace approach. This has obvious benefits in terms of interoperability, efficiency and synchronisation with emerging technologies. However, the disadvantages are just as
evident. Not only is the initial investment often cost-prohibitive, but
10 MARCH 2021 | ELECTRONICS
good start to minimise the risk of obsolescence. But what about systems that are
already in place? Obsolescence is the natural consequence of technological progress and as such, it can’t be avoided completely. However, there are steps to be taken to minimise its negative consequences and keep assembly lines up and running. The first is to assess the present state
the lack of profits caused by the necessary downtime to replace equipment and retrain employees can be enough to put smaller plants out of business. Moreover, at a time when manufacturers worldwide are struggling to reduce the amount of waste that fills up our landfills, the rip- and-replace approach is certainly not the best option for the environment. In light of this, manufacturers are doing
their best to cope with obsolescence by stocking large inventories of key parts and taking advantage of last time buy options. However, both strategies have shortcomings. Last time buys require large upfront
investments to purchase a sufficient number of components that may or may not be used in the future. Manufacturers also need to estimate the total usage of these components, and this is not always easy, especially when the quantity and quality of available data for predictive maintenance are inadequate. Ideally, engineers should plan for
obsolescence during the design phase. Analysing procurement data and avoiding the selection of parts that have already been on the market for several years is a
of a production line by performing a comprehensive system audit. Manufacturers can start by assessing how old their machines are and how long their components have been on the market. The answer should then be compared
with the life expectancy data provided by the original equipment manufacturers (OEM). This will help the maintenance team determine the life stage of core machines and their components, to have a better idea of how long they will serve the plant. Manufacturers can therefore come up with a list of components that are already obsolete or near their end- of-life. The second stage involves risk analysis.
In this phase, manufacturers can assess which applications they want to prioritise in their obsolescence management plan and establish a dedicated budget for their upkeep. Lastly, based on the analysis of how
critical a part is to core processes, the speed at which it will wear and its risk of becoming obsolete, manufacturers can draw up a plan of where these parts can be sourced and how quickly. In this phase, it is essential to liaise with a reliable parts supplier. Since failure of any key component could impact the functionality of the whole assembly line, timely replacement is essential to avoid unplanned downtime. As a result, when an obsolete component breaks, knowing who to call can make the difference between a couple of hours or several days of downtime.
www.euautomation.com/uk / ELECTRONICS
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