Technology Forum Showcases Robotic Automation for Small Shops

Ellison Technologies Automation (ETA, Council Bluffs, IA) recently hosted ?Celebrate Manufacturing,? a two-day technology forum featuring robotic demonstrations and technical seminars focused on productivity-enhancing solutions for metal manufacturers.

?This event helped a wide range of companies learn about the latest robotic technologies and how they can be applied to achieve higher levels of quality, efficiency and cost-savings,? said John Burg, president of ETA. ?Attendees had the opportunity to hear how other manufacturers have remained competitive in the toughest recession in recent history by implementing automation solutions in their production facilities. We addressed the unique issues facing metals, machine tools, and other industries.?

The event combined robot system demonstrations, informative seminars and operating systems for machine load/unload, arc welding, picking, packing and palletizing applications. Other sessions covered 2D and 3D robotic vision, force sensing, offline programming, simulation, customer support services, and robot programs for education. Two of the most attended seminars involved morning sessions on robotic machine tool tending and material handling.

In the first one, Dick Johnson, the senior district account manager for national distribution sales at FANUC Robotics America, Inc. (Rochester Hills, MI), compared incorrect or false notions about the decline of American industrial strength by examining the ?real? picture of our $1.6 trillion U.S. manufacturing GDP vs. the $600 million Chinese manufacturing GDP. He followed up with a discussion on why U.S. companies should automate their machine tool operations and how robots can increase productivity up to 20 percent.

Johnson shared insights into how workman?s comp should be captured in the ROI on robot payback, then explored the overall benefits of using robots for machine tending. He examined the technical facets of automated error-proofing with robots and how all robots have it, but only 25 percent of users apply it. Then he listed the reasons why this potential is not being used more.

In the other session, Ken Miller, a regional sales manager for ETA, approached robotic press brake tending as one way for small shops to bring parts back in-house. He opened with the economic advantages of using automation to compete in the global economy and pointed out how skilled labor remains a big issue in the U.S. He listed ?10 Reasons To Automate Your Press Brake,? and shared insights into how to expand press brake operations off shift, through breaks and lunch, etc.

Miller introduced a new Lean Mobile Solution as an opportunity for small shops to get a competitive edge in their press brake operations and explored the technical functions of the technology behind the RIBS hardware and LM Robowave supporting system components that operate the system. He presented the pros and cons a user must consider when evaluating robot technology for a press brake, when is it ideal and when does it not fit, and explained why the gripper is the most important component in robotic bending.

Live demonstrations on the shop floor at ETA included a Lincoln Electric arc welding cell with a FANUC ARCMate robot and other FANUC 4-axis and 6-axis pick and sort robots. Founded in 1983, ETA was formerly Automated Concepts, Inc. and is a recognized leader in robotic system integration, having developed over 2,000 flexible robotic cells for companies of all sizes in many manufacturing industries.

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Mike Riley is the editor of Fabricating & Metalworking magazine and the author of Backfield In Motion (Derek Press, 2007). Share your views with him on how you are preparing for the recovery at 205-681-3393 or mike.riley@cygnusb2b.com .