Collaborative Robots Deliver 40% Growth and 24x7 Manufacturing at New Engineering Works
Case in point: New Engineering Works
At a glance
Focus: Collaborative Robots Deliver 40% Growth and 24x7 Manufacturing at New Engineering Works.
Challenge: New Engineering Works experienced a continuous increase in demand for hydraulic, pneumatic and engine components for commercial vehicles and realized the need to automate repetitive production tasks.
Approach: The basic approach was to make sure that each of the cobots fit perfectly between 2 CNC machines, occupying limited space on the shop floor while facilitating the tending of 12 CNC machines at a time.
Impact: New Engineering Works has seen a 40% growth in production since deployment of cobots in their manufacturing.
Universal Robots
Universal Robots has reinvented industrial robotics with lightweight and flexible robot arms, dubbed "cobots" (collaborative robots), which are built on the concept of Human Robot Collaboration, or HRC. These Danish-designed cobots automate production across businesses of all sizes and industries – even in SMEs that regard automation as prohibitively expensive, cumbersome, and difficult to integrate. With over 44,000 cobots installed around the globe as of today, Universal Robots makes robot technology accessible to all levels of industry in a multitude of applications, and optimizes production in ever-expanding markets. By offering a user-friendly, flexible, and affordable cobot, Universal Robots lowers the automation barrier, enabling automation in areas previously considered too complex or costly to automate.
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New Engineering Works
New Engineering Works is an SME that was started in 1996. It has been in the manufacturing of hydraulic, pneumatic, engine and brake components for commercial vehicles. Aside from numerous medium-scale companies, New Engineering Works also manufactures components for some of India’s largest automotive giants, including Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, and Brakes India.
Business challenge
New Engineering Works experienced a continuous increase in demand for hydraulic, pneumatic and engine components for commercial vehicles and realized the need to automate repetitive production tasks.
New Engineering Works experienced a continuous increase in demand for hydraulic, pneumatic and engine components for commercial vehicles and realized the need to automate repetitive production tasks. The company, however, had limited space and did not want large machines with limited output occupying their shop floor.
The company was looking for an agile, automation solution that would facilitate the addition of a third 8-hour shift, thereby enabling them to manufacture round the clock.
While standardization of models was a key tenet of Bajaj’s success in the market, it was rapidly expanding its production capabilities due to the growing scale of multiple models and the wide-ranging number of vehicles supplied in the market. The key then was to find a standardized automation solution that could be horizontally deployed and that could provide the productivity, flexibility and reliability that Bajaj’s workers could capitalize upon.
Industry 4.0 solution
The basic approach was to make sure that each of the cobots fit perfectly between 2 CNC machines, occupying limited space on the shop floor while facilitating the tending of 12 CNC machines at a time. They are as easy as using a smartphone – hassle-free, and easy to program and set up. The workers have learnt to operate UR cobots with no prior training.
New Engineering Works installed their first cobot in 2016 and has purchased 6 cobots within a span of 18 months. The company has a small and large components division, with collaborative robots being perfect for the small components division.
The cobots were installed to handle monotonous tasks so humans can now handle more meaningful work like handling quality checks, Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMMs), and inspection. This has opened new opportunities for the company to explore more business opportunities
The cobots were affordable for the small-scale industry and deliver a great ROI along with safety.
Key benefits
| Area | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Productivity & Throughput | New Engineering Works has seen a 40% growth in production since deployment of cobots in their manufacturing plant. The manufacturer is now able to run 24x7, thanks to cobots enabling a third 8-hour shift, thereby skyrocketing their productivity. |
| Cost Savings | The cobots work side-by-side with humans on the shop floor, enabling safe and efficient production. The installation of cobots has led to automation of processes and reduced the cost per component. |
| Safety & Workforce | Cobots now handle more repetitive tasks while employees are now free to handle tasks that require human ingenuity and have been upskilled |
| Energy & Sustainability | Other benefits such as zero annual maintenance costs, reduced power consumption and retention of IP within the company are also organically driving forward the growth of the organization. |
Technologies used
What they said
"Being an SME, land is a valuable asset for us. Traditional industrial robots with their required fencing take up a lot of space on the shop floor. UR cobots fit between 2 machines in the factory and we can just plug-and-play as required. We have used the cobots for a year and a half now and it has been a great experience. There is no better robot in the country than UR cobots for our small components division."