TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION Why robots and automation matter
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Since the First Industrial Revolution, auto mation has boosted output, productivity, employment and national wealth. Robots and advanced automation, including arti ficial intelligence, have never been more accessible than they are now. Arguably, they have never been more vital, either.
It is a message that bears repeating: auto mation boosts productivity. According to a 2015 London School of Eco nomics report1, which studied the impact of robotics
on productivity across 14 indus tries in 17 countries between 1993 and 2007, robots raised those countries’ average GDP growth rates by about 0.37 percentage points and productivity growth by about 0.36 per centage points respectively. Small numbers – but they add up. Over the 14-year period, additional growth amounted to 12% of total GDP growth and 18% of labour productivity growth in the countries studied.
McKinsey is even more positive. It believes that “automation could raise productivity growth globally
by 0.8 to 1.4 percent annu ally”2. If that is the impact across the whole economy, the transformation that could be achieved by individual businesses should be similar, and in many cases greater.
Launch of new Aisle Master Order Picker: Aisle Master-OP
Combilift officially launched the latest addition to its product portfolio in a virtual press conference on February 3rd. The NEW Aisle Master-OP (AME-OP) is a stand-on electric powered model that combines the advantages of a narrow aisle articulated forklift and an order picker for versatile operation in warehousing applications. The development of this model was influenced by customer feedback - as has often been the
case with Combilift’s innovations - as well as the recent soaring growth of e-commerce. “Customers already using the Aisle Master for space saving, storage and efficiency in their warehouse asked if we could redevelop the Aisle Master to meet their ever-growing demand for order picking customised orders”, said Combilift CEO Martin McVicar. Research & Development carried out in 2019 & 2020 has created the Aisle Master-OP, a main
feature of which is the step-through operator compartment which has design copyright protection (European Design Registration No. 002676809-0001), across multiple markets in 4 continents. The low floor height of just 280mm enables convenient, single step access from both sides of the truck which speeds up order picking compared to the operator having to get in and out from a seated position. The AME-OP truck has all the key advantages of the conventional Aisle Master - indoor/outdoor operation for loading/offloading and for stock replenishment at other times during shifts when order picking is not required. The Aisle Master-OP is available in a number of variants, with lift capacities from 1,500kg to
2,500kg, lift heights of up to 12.1m, and can operate in aisles as narrow as 1650mm. It features a patented chain steering system (EU Patent No. 3008008), which allows the truck to articulate more than 205°, and an inline drive motor and front drive axle, all of which enable narrower aisle operation. The multifunctional programmable joy stick control lever in the operator compartment, which includes controls for the hydraulics and traction, is adjustable to enable comfortable and ergonomic working conditions for operators of all sizes. The Operator Presence Detection floor pad engages the parking brake automatically when the operator steps off the truck to carry out order picking. “Before we officially launch any new model, Combilift carry out extensive field testing on
The proof is already here There are ample examples of companies, especially SMEs, transforming their com petitiveness, quality, productivity and prof itability by investing in appropriate auto mation. This publication highlights several businesses for whom automation has been transformational, including cider brewers Thatchers, who cut forklift truck movements by 50% while improving consistency and out put in its palletization-depalletization cell, and Odyssey Studios in Limerick and Dublin, Ireland, which automated the production of scaled and full-size models for film, theatre and TV, enabling it to win bigger contracts across the world.
On a larger scale, UK automotive has invested the most of all industrial sectors in auto mating
production lines but headcount, in most cases, has increased3 – showing that robots do not always mean job losses. ZND in Rotherham, manufacturers of temporary fencing, installed robots, increased capacity and sales and hired more people in sales and engineering (see more on page 36).
Automation: an opportunity for SMEs to grasp In 2018, NatWest-sponsored research by Cebr4 said that SMEs could add up to £57bn a year to the UK’s economy if they were as productive as similar-sized enterprises in Germany. The research shows UK SME employees generate £147k worth of output per year on average – less than half that of their German counterparts’ £335k/worker/year.
KUKA Robotics UK Ltd
www.kuka.com
Combilift
www.combilift.com
customer’s sites, and this was the case with the Aisle Master-OP”, said Martin McVicar. The AME- OP is now a production model within Combilift, with units currently in build for customers in the United States and in New Zealand.
FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS | FEBRUARY 2021 47
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