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ROBOTICS
market for new products by 20 to 50%. The cost savings extend to quality control and inventory holding, with reductions of 10-20%
and 20-50%, respectively. Furthermore, the automation of knowledge work can lead to a productivity increase of 45% to 55% for technical professionals.
Automating the most time-consuming areas of production to reduce costs and improve quality is the goal many companies initially pursue when they adopt robotics. Define a strategy for implementing robotics across the shop floor that will deliver measurable results at scale. Knowing that the
BUILDING A BUSINESS CASE FOR ROBOTICS
mall manufacturers are gaining the scale, speed, and quality advantages they need to compete and win against larger competitors through automation and robotics. They’re doing this by using robotics to automate time-consuming tasks across shop floors. This frees manufacturing teams to work on projects that deliver higher margins. The bottom line is that automation and robotics allow small manufacturers to compete, win more deals, and solidify customer relationships as effectively as their larger competitors.
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Seeing an opportunity to expand their systems and solutions markets, robotics providers are fast-tracking intro-level robotics machinery, programming, and robotics-as-a- service offerings. The average price of an industrial robot has halved over the past decade. It was around $23,000 in 2022 from $47,000 in 2011, according to ARK Invest. They predict that costs will fall a further 50% to 60% by 2025.
Smaller manufacturers are the fastest- growing area of industrial robotics today, driven by the need for new collaborative robotics systems. The global market for industrial robots is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.39%. It is estimated to reach a total market value of $30.5 billion by 2030. The collaborative robot segment, core to small manufacturers due to flexibility and adaptability, is growing with a CAGR of 14.7%. In 2022, this segment generated $715 million in revenue, projected to
20 JUNE 2024 | PROCESS & CONTROL
Smaller manufacturers are the fastest- growing area of industrial robotics today, driven by the need for new collaborative robotics systems, says Louis Columbus, Senior Industry Marketing Manager at DELMIA surpass $2.1 billion by 2030.
To address challenges and improve optimisation in robotics, a small manufacturing company can consider the following reasons for choosing robotics: • Labour shortages, fluctuating material availability and costs, and progressively tighter customer quality standards drive small manufacturers to automate more of their shop floor operations.
Labour shortages in remote regions of North America where production workers are scarce for example, are where robotics is flourishing in small manufacturing companies. The Harvard Business Review’s recent article A New Generation of Robots Can Help Small Manufacturers observes that “More than 2 million manufacturing jobs will sit unfilled across the United States by the end of this decade, and three-quarters of European companies already have difficulty recruiting suitable workers...”
• A plastics manufacturer, who couldn’t recruit enough production workers, invested in two robotics stackers, sorters, and end-of-arm extensions on their robots to fulfil diabetic test kit orders for a European biomedical manufacturer. Running three shifts a week, they delivered their largest order of 150,000 kits a week.
• The following are a few of the many measurable benefits that robotics is delivering for small manufacturers today. Reducing maintenance costs by 10-40%, increasing productivity by 3 to 5%, and reducing time-to-
investment in a robotics system is paying off and tracking how much helps strengthens the business case for future automation projects. Here are the steps small manufacturers take in building a business case for robotics: Identify Pain Points. The first step is to identify the most time-consuming and labour- intensive tasks in the manufacturing process. These are the areas where automation can provide the most significant benefits. Evaluate Potential Solutions. Once the pain points are identified, evaluate the different robotic solutions available. Manufacturers often create comparison tables in Google Sheets or Excel to compare cost, ease of implementation, and potential return on investment (ROI). Calculate ROI. Calculating the ROI involves determining the initial cost of the robot, ongoing costs, labour cost savings, increased productivity, and potential tax incentives. The ROI is typically calculated over 5 to 10 years, considering an industrial robot can work for an average of 15 years.
Complete initial pilot testing. Implement a small-scale pilot project to test the effectiveness of the chosen robotic solution. Measure and share results with production
teams. Track the performance of the pilot project, focusing on key metrics such as productivity, quality, and cost savings. This data will be crucial in building a compelling business case.
Scale up across the shop floor. If the pilot project is successful, plan for a larger-scale implementation. Consider the necessary resources, timeline, and potential impact on the overall operations. Review and adjust. Continually review the performance of the robotic systems and make necessary adjustments. This ensures that the automation strategy remains effective and continues to deliver value.
DELMIA
www.3ds.com/products/delmia
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