FACE TO FACE future and contributing to social development in preparing the industry for robotisation ,” explained AWL .
Specialists work continuously on the further optimisation of machinery . These innovations include improving productivity , such as the latest developments in robotic laser welding – laser welding with a scanner head on a moving robot – or improving quality ( e . g . in laser welding that is optimised with CFD Computational Fluid Dynamics technologies ). Innovation and strong partnerships have been pillars of growth for the company .
“ We use system integrators and aim to add value to processes where we can . If you develop a new process i . e . welding in a different way , you might want to check different robot brands and various sheetpicking options available in the market as well as how these might suit customers . So we investigate these options , test them ourselves and only then advise our customers on them . Suppliers like this way of working because they get feedback from us on what works . It is all part of the collaborative process with our customers ,” added Niels van ’ t Hul .
Market trends and directions
Spotting important trends and reacting flexibly to changes in the market are in AWL ’ s DNA , as Niels van ’ t Hul , Business Unit Manager General Industry , AWL , told ISMR .
“ There are three trends that I would like to highlight . Firstly , we see that the market ( particularly the European market ) is shifting again . Where previously we were delivering solutions ( i . e . welding cells with small logistics units ), we now see that customers are looking for steps beyond this . They are not just automating the welding process , but also the logistics around the welding process . That means the handling of the product before it
Laser-welding application . gets to the joining cell . We sometimes run projects that are focused just on the handling of the product ( with no welding at all ) as a complete end-to-end process ,” he outlined .
“ Secondly , customers are continuously developing new products . They ask for our help with automation to build the product . For example , one of our customers wanted to build an electrical cabinet and wanted a weld on the edge , so they asked us how to fold the material in such a way that a strong and good-looking weld could be made . This is a more intelligent way of making the product . We worked together with them on this , up to delivering the machine . We have a large engineering team that loves to create new products , come up with new ideas and respond to new challenges . If the market shifts , we can shift with it . We build strong partnerships this way ,” he added .
He also underlined the importance of the U . S . market as a huge growth market for AWL , particularly for welding automation , in view of welder shortages .
An example of successful collaboration and customer innovation was during the pandemic , when companies who were about to invest in new factories or new products suddenly had to change their plans . They used lockdown periods to re-think or refine their plans / products . Niels van ’ t Hul highlighted one particular customer during this period .
“ One European customer wanted to change its entire product make-up ( from three parts to two parts ) and the fabrication process ( from MAG welding to laser welding ). It was a challenge for us , but we worked with them on this project and it was successful , leading to massive cost savings and a better-looking product . We are building the machine to manufacture this product now and it should be ready in the first half of next year ,” he explained .
Gerard Ramaker also sees a trend towards the use of more lightweight material in automotive markets e . g . aluminium etc . This means a need for more complex machines that can connect ( by welding , bonding , riveting , Flowdrill etc .) different materials such as steel and aluminium in one machine .
“ We also see the development of more aluminium mouldings , rather than part welding , in the automotive sector . That means fewer connections and welds . We see a shift to more lightweight compounds like plastics for structural parts in cars . However , for huge batch sizes ( like 300,000 parts plus ), compound materials are still too expensive ,” clarified Ramaker .
The pursuit of higher outputs and the use of lightweight materials , such as aluminium and high-grade steel , requires alternative joining methods . Aluminium is much lighter than steel and more affordable than fibrereinforced plastic or magnesium . The rise in popularity of electric cars boosts demand for lightweight solutions , increasing the range of the vehicle and compensating for the weight of the batteries . Laser welding has favourable properties for the joining of aluminium and high-grade steel , such as low heat input , high welding speed and short intervals between the welding .
Wielding new technologies
Niels van ’ t Hul also highlighted another key trend ; vision technologies for robot systems . This was showcased on AWL ’ s booth at EuroBLECH 2022 in Hanover , Germany .
“ In the logistics industry now , almost every project includes a vision for robots ,” he told ISMR . “ We see vision systems as the next step i . e . cameras , sensors etc .” Gerard Ramaker agreed . “ The robot is becoming more and more multi-faceted i . e . picking , feeling , speaking , smelling , seeing etc . That is a key trend that we note internally because of the multitude of projects that we run in different industry sectors . This is shared knowledge that gives new input for new automation processes , which makes it very interesting . It also feeds into Big Data for customers on their machine usage etc ,” he added .
Although the technology has existed for some time , the market is now ready for flexible machine concepts and vision technology is an enabler . This means that for a wider range of products , the same machine solution can