Robotic Implementation
By: Scott Bahr
Part manufacturing requires the help of many talented operators at our Esterhazy location. Earlier this year, we added one extraordinary team member to our team—Reggie the Robot—a Motoman by Yaskawa. In manufacturing, automation has gained substantial popularity, especially during repetitive processes that can get tedious to human workers. Though it is still quite a new addition and our team is working through training and updating our processes to their fullest potential, bringing a Motoman into our facilities has improved our productivity without needing to cut back on our human workers.
Our operators in Esterhazy have had thorough training with the robot. When it first arrived in our facility, our staff underwent training about the robot's programming and main functions. This hands-on training allowed those who will be near the robotics to get a firm grasp on the complexities of the Motoman. Operators also learned how to maneuver the robot manually—essential when working near the manufacturing robot, so adjustments can be made when maintenance or work within the robot cell is required.
Training by taking a close look at the robot's components gave operators a chance to gain a thorough understanding of the latest addition to their workplace. We have made sure to cross-train all of our staff so that everyone can care for and service the robot as needed. This way, if one of our core team members is unable to be at work for any reason, there are fewer obstacles in the way of our production process. Now, an increased number of folks can jump in to correct any potential issues they notice as they arise.
Our bit production operates out of our Esterhazy location. Bits are an essential part of the mining, tunneling, drilling, and quarrying process, as they can penetrate through soft and hard rock materials. The bit production process requires a step to grind bits before sending them out to the mines. The robot’s end-of-arm-tooling can be customized to fit several applications, and many robots in this line have minimal footprints and versatile mounting possibilities. Before the integration of a Motoman to our manufacturing process, this particular process was done by hand by employees. With the automation of this step of the process, the product's consistency was improved while utilizing fewer workers. This allows us to reallocate work to those who would previously be stationed to grind bits to other tasks, providing diversity in their work and their jobs safer.
It is important to note that grinding bits by hand is not easy work. It is extremely repetitive and can be hard on workers' bodies through repetitive strain on their wrists, elbows, or backs. The Esterhazy workers are excited about the robot because the more bits the robot processes, the less they have to do, which frees up time for varied work around the site.
Repetitive work can mean focus sometimes drifts—especially after doing the same work day after day for years. While we have encouraged staff to be focused and diligent, this work's repetitive nature runs the risk for accidents to happen. Eliminating some of this risk is a huge win for us.
This implementation of automation is half of the production cycle for this product. While we have only been able to automate this step so far, the entire manufacturing process for bits would ideally be automated in the future.