PECM Issue 40 2019 | Page 64

AIR, GAS & ODOUR CONTROL MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY ATLAS COPCO IMPROVING QUALITY AND EFFICIENCY WHILST CUTTING COSTS WITH SMART CONNECTED ASSEMBLY In the fast-paced world of manufacturing, ensuring maximum efficiency and profitability by striking the right balance between quality and costs is certainly one of the biggest challenges facing producers, even more so with Brexit looming. For Atlas Copco Tools & Industrial Assembly Solutions, supporting manufacturers through collaborative partnership is the bedrock of its business, which saw its centenary in the UK in 2019. A leader in assembly tools and data driven services designed to add value to any production environment, from batch of one to high volume manufacturing, Atlas Copco continually takes the pulse of its core markets, through ongoing customer engagement. The company has recently published a whitepaper, which identified that error- proofing in the production process remains a key issue for manufacturers. Based on field research from across Atlas Copco’s diverse and global customer base, it was found that manufacturers employing the company’s Smart Connected Assembly technology and process were tackling their challenges successfully. One customer reported a reduction in rework of 15% by utilising Atlas Copco’s ‘Pick-to-Light’ system, which ensures operators pick the right parts at the right time in the assembly process, in order to mitigate production errors and costly line shutdowns. Titled ‘Error-Proofing the Production Process’, Atlas Copco’s whitepaper introduces a range of measures to improve quality, efficiency and profitability, based around current and future production needs. The publication provides insights on how organisations can implement strategies to boost performance in relation to different levels of complexity in the assembly process. These are based around the principle of ‘Basic Needs’, ‘Complex Needs’ and ‘Very Complex Needs.’ Detailing Atlas Copco’s Seven Steps to Securing Product Quality as part of its Smart Connected Assembly philosophy, its report also illustrates a scalable and flexible 64 PECM Issue 40 roadmap to delivering the best achievable product quality. The sequential process integrates tooling and systems, which deliver both full traceability, as well as error- proofing protection, so that manufacturers have a complete understanding of the effectiveness of every stage of production. Atlas Copco’s Seven Steps to Securing Product Quality: Step 1: Classify Joints Step 2: Introduce Torque Control Step 3: Introduce Joint Control and Angle Monitoring Step 4: Introduce Process Error-Proofing Step 5: Introduce Reject Management and Part Control Step 6: Secure Process Reliability Step 7: Use of data for continuous improvement