CONTROL & AUTOMATION
ROBOT WARS
BRILLOPAK
LESSONS LEARNED FROM AUTOMATION
LEADERS AND ROBOT LAGGARDS
Time and again we are reminded that
we are in the age of automation. Annual
statistics prepared by the International
Federation of Robotics paints a positive
picture for 2017, with a 31% increase in
annual global shipments. However, the
UK doesn’t make the top ten countries for
investment. And despite an annual 19%
increase, food and drink companies are
still the smallest sector of all those listed
globally for robotic investmentsi.
David Jahn, director at automation
company Brillopak believes that using
terminology interchangeably, particularly
robotics, AI and automation, is part of the
reason why UK food factories have dodged
making big investments, particularly
at the end of line packaging and case
loading lines. But with the EU labour crisis
continuing to plague UK fresh produce
houses, David emphasises that now is
the time to get back to basics and review
the entire productivity picture and how
automation, not just robots, will align to
and support long-term strategies.
“In the last decade robots, rightly or
wrongly, have been positioned as
a universal panacea to enhancing
productivity,” claims David, believing that
this is the root of the divergence. “While
there are certain tasks, especially highly
repetitive jobs, that robots can and do
perform efficiently and economically,
putting a robot onto a food packing
line isn’t always the best path to higher
productivity.”
Sometimes, automation efforts fail to
improve productivity and performance. Is
that the robot’s fault? No! “The issue rests
with people being misinformed about the
capabilities of robots in handling multiple
variables and also not always appreciating
the complexities of their own processes,”
notes David.
There are so many different factors that
factories and packhouses need to consider
when examining their automation options.
Cost is undoubtedly high on the agenda.
While many OEMs imply that the prices of
robots have fallen, for many food SMEs,
particularly seasonal operations, the initial
outlay can still be hard to justify.
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PECM Issue 35
EVOLUTION NOT
REVOLUTION
Despite perceptions, driven in part by
Internet of Things and Industry 4:0,
tomorrow’s food factories don’t just
need robots, they need better processes.
That’s where lean manufacturing and
cost efficiencies can be realised, claims
David. “It’s not rocket science. Yet it does
require production managers to step back
and consider all the details. Just because
Germany, the US and China consider
robotics to be the universal answer, there
are other automation routes that UK fresh
produce firms can explore that are equally
revolutionary and can be accomplished by
taking evolutionary steps.”
Automating large swaths of functions all at
once under the banner of efficiency seldom
works. “If you go too far too fast, the project
can become a beast that’s impossible to
control,” says David. “It can be especially
challenging to attempt to do too much when
integrating with legacy systems, as there are
so many different factors that can affect line
speed and cause bottlenecks.”
Taking a staggered approach to investment
is how many food factories successfully
automate, with most Brillopak customers
adopting a three to five year plan, highlights
David. Just as importantly, there should
be an element of candidness, trust and
teamwork with OEMs and machine builders
when reviewing options. “It’s very rare for
a food factory to have a blank canvas. The
challenge many face is ensuring all systems
on the line integrate smoothly, factor in the
true production speeds up and down the
line and are ergonomically accessible for
maintenance.”
A common mistake that causes automation
projects to stall or fail is hacking together
ideas from different areas of the business
with no clear framework or understanding of
the different business needs and implications
up and down the line. People from all areas
of the operation need to be collectively
involved in scoping out requirements.
“Because operatives see the day-to-day
production issues they are a great source
when it comes to pre-empting common
issues,” comments David. “Leveraging this
insight, such as all the SKUs, sizes and
layer patterns at the outset is important
as it factors in all of the glitches that may
interrupt production, plus engages with
your frontline teams. Rather than being
automation adversaries, they become your
automation champions.”
Simplicity is a key design principle
Like many things in life, there’s a tendency to
overcomplicate automation. But as Brillopak
can attest to, sometimes the more simple
solutions deliver the most surprising results.