How Bit Service Implemented a Robotic Manufacturing Cell
By: Scott Bahr
Recently, we at Bit Service installed a new robotic manufacturing cell and implemented a vision inspection system to provide a closed-loop process for quality control. From start to finish, we managed to keep on all of our staff while automating a semi-dangerous process and keep our staff safe. We’re incredibly excited about these innovations that will help produce amazing end products for our clients.
Bit Service has two facilities here at home in Saskatchewan. One is in Saskatoon, and our secondary facility is in Esterhazy, based on the proximity to underground mines in the province. We manufacture all the bits for mining here, and typically, this process is done manually. Our employees did hard surfacing, welding, and shaping on a grinder to fit the exact profile for the mining process. This facility is very high-volume—we make about 250,000 of these parts every year.
This process was the perfect fit for automation, but it also still needs the touch of a craftsperson in the process. We didn’t want to have to replace anybody when thinking about implementing a robotic manufacturing cell. So instead, we had all of our employees retrained in the maintenance and servicing of the robot, so their roles only shifted and didn’t become obsolete.
How does the process work? There is an existing robotic arm that can be found in manufacturing facilities all over the world. The arm essentially replaces the mechanical, tedious motions of a human who would have previously performed this role. But instead of just replacing one person, it does the work of up to three people who would have done this job, which means it’s much more efficient than a human worker.
The result is more productive in assembly as well as safer for the employees working in the facility who no longer have to come face to face with a dangerous job. It creates a more consistent and repeatable product quality, as the machine is programmed to make the same thing at the same consistency. Unlike humans, it doesn’t need to stop the task for lunch or to receive a delivery.
The workers are completely out of harm’s way. Because they no longer have to interact directly with the manual equipment, there is an eliminated risk of injury. The job of the employees has shifted to monitoring the output of the system to ensure quality control. However, where an employee used to have to inspect each piece for quality, we’ve now implemented a quality check by the robot itself.
The vision system the machine is programmed to do can check if each part is ready to go, or if it has to continue being processed. Now, employees only need to check around every 100th part and adjust the machine accordingly if needed.
One of the most critical parts of implementing this system was to ensure that our employees still had jobs. We wanted to keep these skilled workers. They’ve been retrained and upscaled to maintain and service the robot and keep it operating. We’re thrilled with the outcome, which means new skills for existing employees and a consistently high-quality product for our customers.