FANUC COBOT EASES PAIN FOR TAKEDA PHARMACEUTICAL CO
A cobot solution from FANUC and system integrator SKDK is alleviating health and safety issues at a German pharmaceutical manufacturing facility by working collaboratively with human employees to pack and stack packets of tablets onto pallets .
Prior to the cobot ’ s installation , workers at the Takeda Pharmaceutical Company in Oranienburg , Germany were physically moving loads totalling 5.8 tonnes per shift , resulting in numerous days lost to sickness .
Since the introduction of the FANUC CR-15iA , productivity has improved considerably , with the cobot working 24 / 7 while meeting all health and safety requirements .
Japanese bio-pharmaceutical pioneer Takeda Pharmaceutical Company has a presence in over 80 regions . As a key part of its global production network , its drug manufacturing facility in Oranienburg produces more than six billion tablets and capsules each year . This significant number of drugs is required to be order picked at the end of each production line and placed onto pallets ready for shipment – backbreaking work averaging a weight of 5.8 tonnes per shift , from which the company was keen to relieve its workers .
Promoting collaboration
But while Takeda sought to delegate the heavy lifting to a robot counterpart , it also wanted to ensure its human workforce did not feel that their roles would be threatened by an automated alternative . “ We involved the workers as early and intensively as possible ,” explains Takeda Project Manager Robert Gundlach , who knew from experience in other projects that success depends on acceptance by staff . For the people based on the assembly line , this meant more informational events across shifts , in which the technology and planned implementation were explained in detail . “ It was made clear to people that a robot is nothing more than a stepping stone to make work easier . We sold the robots as new colleagues , not as new technology .”
A big plus for the CR-15iA in this regard , is the fact that it does not need to be ‘ hidden ’ behind a fence . Without the need for a cage , workers ’ reservations were reduced . “ Staff can go within touching distance of our collaborative robots ,” adds Sebastian Steinbach , who supported the project on site for FANUC . “ This made the introduction of new technology more readily acceptable .”
30 AUTOMATION , CONTROL & ENGINEERING