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manUfactUrers Urged to deVelop foUr to fiVe year energy roadmap


not assume that the current energy crisis is a one-off. the warning, from specialist building analytics firm cim, comes as the current spike in energy costs threatens to shut down production across a number of industries and is leading to increasing concerns about UK manufacturing competitiveness. cim managing director, emea, paul walsh, says the crisis is


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making energy a priority in the c-suite. “the crisis is a super pain- point that is forcing energy consumption and efficiency into the boardroom agenda across multiple sectors, not just those who are traditionally regarded as energy intensive.” walsh says that energy reduction measures that, in the past,


have been regarded as a lesser priority, should now become much more prominent on the factory floor. “energy efficiency solutions are available that can deliver on roi while not requiring huge capex investments, and should support manufacturers through this crisis, and into the long term.” walsh advocates a two-stage strategy. “in our view it is


important to prioritise energy conservation measures in the short-term whilst developing a long-term sustainability strategy. the route forward for manufacturers is to optimise the energy intensive equipment they already have onsite by applying intelligence to identify operational inefficiencies. not only will this detail what is being consumed, but also which areas of a site are inefficient and can be identified for improvement.” he continues: “manufacturers need to aggressively target energy


costs, particularly in non-validated areas that are often left undiagnosed, such as hVac equipment that is not operating as it was originally intended or designed to. identifying and resolving multiple small gains can have an enormous impact on energy costs. Ultimately, as sharp as this spike will feel now, an improvement in energy efficiency over the next four to five years is the only sure-fire way manufacturers can futureproof themselves against any further energy crises.” cim.io/the-peak-platform/applications-manufacturing/


mass robot potential for UK logistics smes in next three years


now commercially viable for small and medium sized enterprises (sme’s) in the logistics and warehousing field according to a recent analysis from global robot hub howtorobot.com. the study estimates that robots will


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be a feasible option for more than 50 per cent of smes within the next three years due to a global trend towards “proven robotics” which has reduced both the cost and complexity of implementing robots. the analysis identified the three key factors driving the trend:


a range of robot technologies have reached a mature stage – the global warehouse automation market has increased to $15.59 in 2021 and is expected to surpass $30 billion by 2026.


prices of robot technology are falling – by 2025 prices are expected to have fallen by 76 per cent since 2010.


maKe UK teams Up with flowide on innoVatiVe tracKing system


for the cnc area of its technology hub in aston, birmingham. the system provides a ‘gps-like’ indoor tracking solution


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for the manufacturing shop floor. it is composed of electronic tags and anchors on the hardware, coupled with a highly customisable software interface. tags are fixed on mobile items within the manufacturing shop floor: forklifts, trolleys, boxes or directly on the parts. the anchors are placed in key locations around the shop floor. it means that a digital version of the shopfloor is accessible


online with the real time location of every tracked item. flowide.net


ake UK has collaborated with malvern-based technology start-up flowide, on an innovative new tracking system


global availability of suppliers and solutions has more than doubled in the last twenty years.


commenting on the findings, ceo of


howtorobot.com, søren peters said: “the robot market has reached a pivotal moment for small and medium sized businesses. sme’s have been hesitant to invest in robotics because of the price and complexity of the technology. automation used to be exclusively for custom machine builders, developing a new solution for every project. in the last five years however, many new robot technologies have reached a level of maturity and price point where they can


huge range of robot technologies that were considered experimental a few years ago, are


be standardised, meaning lower cost and quicker implementation. logistics and warehousing smes can now adopt these technologies on a larger scale.” examples of new robotic solutions


entering the commercial stage include autonomous mobile robots (amrs) that can navigate freely in environments with people and handle a range of logistics tasks. also, pick and place robots that used to handle only large volume production, can now handle small batches more commonly needed by sme’s. additionally, the market for collaborative robots is expected to grow by 30 per cent per year (cagr) from 2020-25. other growth areas are packing, palletising, machine tending and others where smes often lack people or need to cut costs. although the density of robots in


factories around the world has increased by 71 per cent in just four years, most manufacturing companies are still not using robots. howtorobot.com’s analysis further revealed that knowledge of these technologies is still very limited and that only one in five smes conduct proper market research prior to investing in robotics. “Very few businesses are fully aware


of what’s available in the market today, hence the same solutions are often reinvented through expensive and time-consuming development projects,” says peters. “in addition, the technology supply


locally is often very limited which has historically held back investments. but we see an increasing trend of companies sourcing robots and related services from the fast-growing global market. the rise of digital marketplaces is opening up the global robot market for smes,” peters adds.


HowToRobot.com factory&handlingsolUtions | october 2021 5


K manufacturers have been urged to develop a long-term energy roadmap and


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