Embrace automation to grow and prosper
Author : Matthew Aldridge, Managing Director, igus UK
14 January 2020
A growing number of industrial organisations within the UK are embracing automation as a means of improving efficiencies and lowering costs. For igus, the adoption of automated technology has become a key trend in the manufacturing sector, with digitalisation acting as a primary means of boosting productivity.
“As a country, we need to invest more in automation to enable us to compete more effectively on a world stage,” says Matthew Aldridge, Managing Director, igus UK. “The journey to a more automated future is enabling igus to streamline production processes, such as the readycable assembly line.”
Historically, the company has assembled its readycable range of harnessed cables manually by cutting back the outer jacket, teasing out the shielding, then stripping the jackets off each of the inner cores and adding crimps. This is an intricate, time consuming and laborious process. More recently, the company has installed an automated assembly line at its Northampton plant, allowing it to ship harnessed cables within 24 hours of order placement.
“This type of work had always been done by hand,” says Aldridge, “but lead times for harnessed cables had been creeping up across the industry. We spotted a gap in the market for faster delivery and have spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on a bank of machines to automate this process, cutting lead times from six or even ten weeks down to just 24 hours. The chainflex cable is cut to length from our extensive stock, and all common connector components are available ex stock. This total package means that customers will usually receive their readycable the next working day.”
The fully automated procedure is not only quicker but can also deliver higher levels of predictability and reliability, resulting in 100% quality of assembly. With manual assembly, there was always the slim chance of a quality issue, which used to get picked up at the testing stage. But, says igus, with the new automated operations, the quality is perfect every time, and each cable comes with guaranteed service life.
The investment in the new equipment represents igus’ commitment to the power of automation. Yet that belief does not come at the cost of people within its plant. Quite the opposite, in fact. Several employees have been freed up from repetitive tasks and deployed in other areas where they can bring new value to the business.
“It is a misconception that automation always leads to the shedding of jobs as robots inevitably replace people,” adds Aldridge. “The introduction of the new automated assembly line has, in fact, allowed us to grow our business in other areas, creating new jobs on the production line. Robots and people are complementary, bringing very different types of skills to an organisation.
That’s one of the positive messages around igus’ journey to automation, adds Aldridge. “This whole process has helped us to re-shape the business, embracing the advantages of new technology to become fit for the future. Ultimately, automation is a force for good and will help us to build a more sustainable future.”
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