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SUS Company, a Japanese provider of aluminum frames and die-cast aluminum parts for the automotive trade, has deployed a sequence of ABB’s YuMi dual-armed collaborative robots. SUS Company says that ABB’s robots are enabling it to reshore its manufacturing and tackle challenges introduced by workforce shortages.
ABB’s dual-arm YuMi, the IRB 14000, is a part of ABB’s YuMi line of robots that the Zurich-based firm launched in 2015. Every arm has 7 axes, and ABB says it designed the system particularly for manufacturing industries. It has a attain of round 1.8 ft (.56 m), and may carry as much as 83.8 lbs (38 kg).
SUS Company sought out an automation provider to assist it return to home manufacturing in Shizuoka, Japan. The corporate says that reshoring will assist it to raised take care of disruptions to the worldwide provide chain in recent times. The repetitive nature of the manufacturing course of, paired with mounting labor shortages, has made it troublesome for SUS Company to recruit and retain adequate staff.
“Reshoring is more and more considered as a solution to tackle the challenges of disruptive provide chains and uncertainty, however it may possibly introduce complexities of its personal,” Joerg Reger, managing director of ABB Robotics Automotive Enterprise Line, mentioned. “Our vary of versatile automation options will help resolve these, and we’re delighted to see that SUS is benefiting from important time-savings, enhanced manufacturing effectivity, and the power to rapidly adapt to altering provide eventualities. This demonstrates how automation is not the protect of huge OEMs alone.”
The consequences of the YuMi robots
Since implementing the YuMi robots, SUS Company has seen a discount in meeting time and elevated productiveness by 20%. Moreover, the YuMi cobots have elevated flexibility in response to fluctuations in demand. SUS Company expects to attain a payback on its funding inside two years.
“The robots have taken on monotonous, repetitive jobs, enabling staff to be reassigned to extra rewarding duties corresponding to operation administration. The brand new system has additionally made it attainable to function at evening with fewer staff, with the variety of devoted meeting machines in operation lowered from 11 to 5,” Akihiro Taki, crew supervisor of the die-casting crew at SUS Company’s Shizuoka web site, mentioned.
ABB developed the automated system utilizing its RobotStudio simulation software program. The corporate used RobotStudio to design and optimize the operation in a digital area forward of deployment in the actual world.
RobotStudio verified that YuMi’s seven axes of motion per arm had been able to replicating the advanced twisting actions wanted through the meeting course of. Its correct calculations for achievable manufacturing volumes additionally made it straightforward for SUS Company to make knowledgeable choices about its funding.
SUS Company is now investigating including additional cells for different merchandise and automating different processes.
In September, ABB introduced it can make investments $280 million in a brand new robotics campus in Västerås, Sweden that may function the hub for ABB Robotics’ choices in Europe. ABB plans to start out development on the brand new campus within the first quarter of 2024 and be accomplished by the top of 2026. This new facility will enhance ABB’s manufacturing capability for its collaborative and industrial robotic arms by 50% and allow it to raised serve the European market.