In the modern manufacturing industry, automation and robotics seem to be the way of the future. Many may feel that it’s not a matter of if, but when they will need to add more automation to their processes. While automation and robotics are more and more commonplace, there are still so many people who don’t know as much as they would like to about these types of systems. That’s why we sat with Bill Chesterson of Advent Design Corp. to discuss the types of questions countless people in manufacturing are asking. Advent Design Corp. designs and builds custom robotics systems as well as provides consulting services for companies that are looking to either get into or expand their use of automation. Here is what an engineer with years of experience in the field had to say about the questions he’s heard throughout his career*:
My company has been discussing introducing automation to our processes, but we’re worried that the changes will upset our employees.
The people in a company who benefit the most from introducing automation are the employees who are involved in the manufacturing processes. When companies reduce their costs, they’re helping to keep their company within the US rather than being forced to outsource. That means automation helps their employees keep their jobs. These employees also get an opportunity to become trained in and learn more about new systems, and potentially earn more money as well. Employees who are eager to learn stand to gain the most.
What are the other benefits of automation and robotics?
Automation can help your company improve your operating systems and minimize the amount of manual labor required. If you find that introducing automation will bring a strong economic value to your business, it’s going to be very easy to get your team on board. A new system should be cost-effective and when done correctly will leave your employees with extra money in their pockets.
It seems like our team might be a good fit, then! Could we get a new process turned around in a couple weeks?
The most important thing to understand is that automation and robotics doesn’t solely require a capital investment, but time as well. You need to make sure you’re dedicating the proper amount of time that it will take to get a new, custom system to work properly.
So when we start finding ways to introduce automation, should our engineering team be the ones working on developing the new system?
Your engineering team will have valuable insight and knowledge, but when operators are included in developing new processes, you’re going to have much more success. There will always be something you learn from operators that no one else in the company knows. When an issue occurs, an engineer might say nothing can be done about it while the operator knows the ins and outs necessary to find solutions.
And how can we be sure that the new system is safe and being used safely?
One of the best things people can do is get a professional involved for a proper survey. This is because safety is much more complicated than it used to be. Relying on your vendors alone is not enough. When a professional safety survey is conducted, issues will be found and you will be provided with recommendations to best solve them. This can then be used as a roadmap for your path forward. Interacting with the right professionals can show you just how much you don’t know, and the issues within your company that are going unnoticed
So when adding automation to our manufacturing processes, there’s no such thing as too many safety measures, right?
Safety is of the utmost importance. However, one of the biggest challenges in executing safe practices to ensure a safe work environment is expecting the operator to conform to the safety system within a given machine. Oftentimes in the name of safety, too many safeguards are added to the point that it hinders the ease of machine use. This can cause operators to try to find a way to work around the safety systems that are there for their protection. The objective is to make the machine operable, but still safe.
We spent a lot of time getting this new system in place. To save time can we just have the employees learn the new system on the job?
Many companies don’t realize that there will be a learning curve for employees when they first begin to introduce automation to their processes. Employees will need to acquire more understanding and knowledge of the equipment in order to properly operate it, because it can be quite sophisticated. Your first line of defense for maintaining a productive system is always your internal team. You can’t run a large manufacturing system, have it go down, and need to pause all production because a third party needs to come to make repairs. The internal team needs to have a lot more skills than they used to in order to deal with the complexities of modern manufacturing systems.
So what should we be doing to prepare our employees for our new system?
Using external training sources is really helpful and it helps to get you over the hump of the initial learning curve. Yes, it costs money and yes, it takes time, but it gets your team where they need to be much quicker. The money you invest on trainings now is much less than what you will lose when your systems go down because of improper use and no one knows how to fix them. Once your team is at a good baseline, that’s when you can start to introduce things like shadowing and mentorship.
MTEC has worked with small to mid-sized manufacturers in the Hudson Valley for decades. We know the types of issues they face and have the experience necessary to help guide them to their solutions. If you need help assessing your operations and improving your manufacturing processes, reach out to us today! In addition, if you are interested in the services discussed in this blog and would like to set up a complimentary visit to discuss in further detail, please call Phyllis Levine, Director of Administration, at (845)391-8214 Ext. 3001 or via email to phyllis.levine@hvtdc.org.
*This article and its responses are based on an interview conducted with Bill Chesterson and are not his words directly.