As reported by SME in their article, “Automating the Customization Process,” advancements in automation and robotics are making customized manufacturing faster, more efficient, and increasingly cost-effective. Robots have become more affordable, with prices dropping from $100,000 in the mid-2000s to around $10,000 today. Alastair Orchard, Vice President of Digital Enterprises at Siemens Digital Industries, highlights that autonomous robots now require less programming, making them an ideal solution for flexible production lines.
The Role of Automation and Additive Manufacturing
Automation is allowing manufacturers to easily substitute product attributes and accommodate last-stage customizations. For instance, switching a color or adding personalized text to a product package are examples of quick, low-cost modifications. Robots, particularly those with nine axes, offer the agility needed for intermediate customizations, such as changing an assembly technique from soldering to gluing.
Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, further enhances customization capabilities, enabling manufacturers to add unique elements to products in the final stages of production. According to Tsz Ho Kwok, Associate Professor at Concordia University, innovations in 4D printing introduce shape-morphing materials that transform over time, making it possible to delay the final product shape until it reaches the customer or is ready for use.
Levels of Customization
Orchard outlines three levels of customization:
- Basic Attribute Changes: This includes substitutions such as color swaps, which don’t impact production processes.
- Operational Adjustments: Robots can adapt operations within production, such as switching assembly methods.
- Complete Production Modification: At Siemens’ Amberg Electronics Plant, for example, entire production workflows are flexible, allowing for rapid adaptation to different products, a step that increases responsiveness to consumer demand and reduces CO₂ emissions in post-production.
With the integration of automation, manufacturers are becoming more environmentally responsive and meeting evolving regulatory standards like the EU’s Industrial Emissions Directive. Flexible factories reduce shipping needs by enabling local production of multiple products, thus decreasing CO₂ emissions.
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Article with all rights reserved, courtesy of SME.
