Falling dollars = rising robotics

A new generation of lightweight robots could help Australian food manufacturers take advantage of the falling dollar.

Local food manufacturers will be looking to take advantage of improved global price competitiveness, after more than five years of dollar-driven gloom, by ramping up production for the export market.

However, many manufacturers will have to meet this new and increased need without the necessary production infrastructure in place.

During the past few years, the high Australian dollar has seen a significant reduction in production capabilities in Australia including factory closures and employee layoffs. At the same time, some markets including Europe and Asia have experienced record levels of investment in production capability and the lowering of operational costs.

With price competitiveness now a reality, local food manufacturers will have to work out how they can ‘ramp up’ in such a competitive marketplace, without the key infrastructure that had supported the industry in years past.

It’s here that the new generation of compact industrial robots could help Australian manufacturers with an eye for the export market.

During the past few years, robotic technology has significantly improved in design and functionality, while at the same time becoming affordable even for smaller manufacturers. Investing in this technology today could help meet increased demand without driving up operational costs.

Introducing the next wave of food manufacturing robots

The modern automated food production line bears little resemblance to that of past generations. The focus of today’s technology is smaller robots that are easily programmable, lightweight and often working safely alongside human employees.

Weighing approximately 20-30 kg, these robots can be moved around a food manufacturing facility with ease. Their multi-axis movement and intuitive programming means they can take on a much wider range of tasks than ever before.

It’s these kinds of attributes, as well as the price tag, that make them very appealing even to smaller food manufacturers. Improved productivity and low overhead means manufacturers are able to get a return on investment in less than 195 days.

The new production line worker

Today’s lightweight robots are able to complete tasks on the production line that would normally be performed by several employees.

Tasks such as processing and packaging or pallet stacking can be performed thousands of times a day. These robots thrive in the repetitive, constant environment of a production line.

For a food manufacturer looking to quickly take advantage of the falling dollar, this productivity hike is quite compelling.

Importantly, they can complete these tasks extremely accurately, an important asset for quality control in food manufacturing. The new lightweight industrial robots can also operate within an error margin of plus/minus 0.1 mm, which significantly reduces the time employees spend on quality checks and prevents the wastage of food or packaging, for example.

Similarly, the consistent precision that robots deliver eradicates lapses in employee concentration, reducing errors, eliminating workplace accidents and increasing consistency of quality.

Safety first

An important factor for every food manufacturer is safety - particularly in environments where a robotic workforce operates in close proximity to its human counterparts.

 

Safety features such as sensors to detect an opposing force or obstruction in the robot’s field of operations ensure that collaborative robots function safely and efficiently without causing harm to humans. By doing the monotonous and, in many cases, the heavy-lifting and potential dangerous tasks, robots can enhance the workforce’s safety level while at the same time increasing productivity. 

An affordable opportunity

The change in the local exchange rate is undoubtedly heartily welcomed by most local food manufacturers. The ability to respond quickly to this windfall, without overburdening operational budgets, will be the industry’s focus during the next few months.

Lightweight robots provide an opportunity for local food manufacturers to increase production capacity, while at the same time maintaining production line flexibility and safety in the workplace. Investing in lightweight robotics today could provide the local food industry with a strong production platform for many years to come.