SEPARATING FICTION FROM FACT

When it comes to the future of British manufacturing, FANUC UK’s sales and marketing manager Andy Armstrong can’t help but feel a little frustrated.

“We were once the world-leader in manufacturing – the birthplace of the first Industrial Revolution,” he says. “Now Industrial Revolution number four is knocking on the door, but we don’t seem to be answering.”

The UK remains woefully behind some countries in Europe and Asia in implementing automation, with less than 71 robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees. For Andy, this is largely down to a few lingering myths surrounding automation, and what it means for both businesses and their employees.

“When a lot of people think of automation and robotics, they tend to think of job losses, high initial costs and reams of impenetrable programming code, instead of uninterrupted, unmanned production, predictive maintenance and reduced downtime.

“At FANUC, we’re working hard to demonstrate that automation is not just great for the UK economy, but great for our workforce too.”

Historically, the automotive industry has been leading the charge in automating its production. Andy says: “The automotive industry is usually the first to adopt any new product or service released by the automated solutions market. In many cases, the needs of this highly specialised and innovative industry can dictate the developments within automation.

“This isn’t to say, however, that the automotive industry holds a monopoly on the market. In fact, not even Tier One manufacturers or OEMs can claim to be the sole beneficiaries of automation. Whether you’re a multinational manufacturing business or a subcontractor operating out of one office with high volume, low cycle time production, automation is for you.”

And if you have the same high volume, low cycle times of large companies, but without the budget, what then? For Andy, worrying about initial costs is preventing manufacturers from seeing the bigger picture.

“It’s imperative that manufacturers start to see an investment in robotics and automation as one they need to make very soon,” he says. “Robots in particular are a good place to start. They can replace workers in the manual repetitive tasks, which then frees up those workers for more complex, value-added work.

“What’s more, through automation it’s possible to achieve lights-out, unmanned manufacturing, which means production keeps going even after the last employee has left the building. As a result, a return on investment is not only possible, it’s virtually guaranteed.”

Another worry frequently voiced within industry is the lack of in-house skills to cope with the implementation and operation of new, automated systems.

Andy says: “The skills gap is a problem across manufacturing and engineering. The good news is that FANUC robots, robo-machines and the controls that accompany them are manufactured to be as accessible and intuitive as possible, with very little training required.

“Some businesses may argue they do not have the capacity for in-house training, which is why we have a brand-new, purpose-built training academy that can help. Investing in the technology is only half the battle. Investing in people will help you to make the most of automation for the long term.”

Andy does, to some extent, understand industry’s reluctance to adopt automation. Nevertheless, he does have a few final words of warning to impart:

“Whatever your reasons for ignoring automation, the unavoidable fact is that automated manufacturing is here, whether you like it or not. Meet the challenge head-on, and who knows where your business will be in ten years’ time. Bury your head in the sand, and you’re bound to get left behind.”