The Role of Collaborative Robots in the Future of Manufacturing

Advancement in technology has positively changed the world from the primitive ways of doing things to a more sophisticated method. This change cut across every sector including manufacturing. Unlike in the past, paradigms have shifted in the manufacturing sector to a more advanced manufacturing technique known as robotic.

Robotics involves the use of robots in the manufacturing process.  It is the conception, design, and operation of robots in the manufacturing process. Furthermore, most companies adopt robots in their manufacturing process because they are highly adaptable, affordable and more importantly they can increase output exponentially.

The technology is relatively new in the manufacturing sector, and companies in the automobile and other industry are fast adopting robots in their operation.

According to an actual prediction by the Boston Consulting group, investment in industrial robots will grow at arithmetic progression with an annual difference of 10% in the next ten years. However, the growth in this first ten years will be in the top 25 biggest exporting nations in the world and robots will replace over 23% of manufacturing jobs. While robots have only replaced 10% of manufacturing job, collaborative robots are still the future of manufacturing.

Generally, collaborative robots help to put the manufacturing industry in a fast lane by adding flexibility and safety to the production line. Interestingly, collaborative robots can add values to various stages of production within the manufacturing sector including automobile and aerospace.

The robotics market currently worth $25bn and the prediction is that it will grow to $123bn by 2026.  According to 2018 report of the International Federation of Robotics, the sales value of robotics increased by 21% to a new peak of $16.2 billion in 2017 compared to 2016. By this report, the annual sales volume of industrial robots increased by 114 percents in the past five years.

Robotics manufacturing technology has increased over time, and it has evolved to enable robots and workers integration. This will naturally increase productivity and efficiency in the production line.  This system is known as a collaborative technology, and it will play a significant role in the future of manufacturing.

Since the emergence of collaborative robots, different tech companies have been playing crucial roles in the manufacturing and advancement of this technology. Universal robots are one of such company. The robotics technology giant (Universal Robots) is at the vanguard of putting collaborative robots at the heart of the manufacturing industry especially in the area of automotive and aerospace.

In fact, Universal Robots have been coming up with different innovations that will make the future of collaborative robots interesting in the manufacturing sector. With these innovations, collaborative robots can easily be integrated into the existing production environment with an emphasis on the automotive industry.

Furthermore, cobots from Universal robots can perfectly fit in the robotic car manufacturing industry just like any other automobile robot. Interestingly, these cobots from universal robots can be used in dangerous areas within the production line, thus reducing workplace accident.

Universal robots have positioned their robotic technology in the manufacturing industry excellently. They can now be applied in the area of screw driving, assembling, handling, and more importantly quality control application. So, when it comes to the adoption of collaborative robots in your production line, Universal Robots is your partner of choice.

The Role of Collaborative Robots in the Future of Manufacturing

Reduction in Production Cost

Adoption of collaborative robots will reduce production cost in the long run. This is because the number of manpower needed in the production line will reduce, thus bringing about cost savings.

Increased Efficiency

Collaborative robots help to reduce the production line, this concept is called lean manufacturing. This system can bring about a constant working speed in a production line with little or no time for vacation, sleep or breaks. With this, more outputs can be produced within a short period compared to when human workers handle the process alone.

More Reliable

Reliability is one of the roles of collaborative robots in the future of manufacturing. This integration between human and robots (cobots) will help to main consistency in the output quality while ensuring the reliability of the final products since the same specification is maintained all through the production process.

Reduced Waste

Even though human will be working with the robots in the production line, the amount of waste will relatively reduce as robots are very accurate even when being controlled by human workers.

Attract more customers

In the future, collaborative robots help to attract more customers to brands that have this system in place, especially, when the quality is improved. Also, when production cost is reduced, it will translate to the reduction in the price of the final product, it is a multiplier effect.

Increased Safety

Workplace safety is something most organizations take seriously. Many workers in the production line have lost their lives due to human error. However, collaborative robotics will help to reduce the level of hazard workers are exposed to.

So, the future of manufacturing is bright with cobot as they are relatively safe while working with co-workers.

Future Trend in Collaborative Robots

There are several emerging trends for Cobots in the world of robotics. Some of these trends are;

Robot Learning

Social networks

Flexibility and adaptability

Advanced Sensing

However, the adoption of robots in the manufacturing process may affect professionals in the long run.

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