Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs

Transcription

1 Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs

2 Background In July, 2009, RMT Robotics, LTD and Modern Materials Handling magazine conducted a survey among materials handling professionals on the role of automated guided vehicles (AGVs) in manufacturing, warehouse and distribution operations. The survey further looks at the functionality of the next generation of AGVs. The fi ndings conclude that: Today s manufacturing and distribution environments are variably changing and require materials handling solutions to be fl exible and boundless. Businesses investments in supply chain solutions are signifi cant. Management is focused not only on purchase price but also on costs associated with operating and maintaining materials handling equipment. AGV robotic systems are viewed as a solution well-equipped for congested manufacturing and distribution environments where fl exibility in a materials transport system is essential. AGVs possess the capacity to take on tasks that free up manpower and subsequently deliver a measurable return on investment. The Challenges Many manufacturing and warehouse centers are using conventional solutions for their current materials handling tasks, yet they lack the fl exibility required to meet the demands of today s production and warehouse environments. Businesses face numerous and interrelated challenges and constraints in their efforts to move products and materials through their facilities. With a focus on increasing productivity while concurrently driving to reduce costs and overhead, factories, plants, and distribution centers are looking for adaptable solutions to accurately manage inventory and safely move product from one point to another. Users further look for systems that are affordable to purchase and inexpensive to run. Materials handling objectives are further complicated by a plethora of distinct challenges: Space and layout limitations Need to account for human traffi c and congestion Cost justifi cation and ROI on capital investments Transporting of a mix of products - variable sizes and weights Flexibility in warehouse distribution operations Throughput and inventory management Safety Getting work done in a timely manner Accuracy in the distribution and storage of materials and products There is a lack of space on the shop fl oor and ceiling for automated transportation systems installation. Conveyance systems are costly and we need to prevent. stoppages in production due to interrupted material fl ow. We have a high need for support personnel in terms of automation and computer systems management and the complexity of management of such systems requires highly intellectual operators. Plant Management, Appliances Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 2

3 Flexibility! We need to be able to move product from one location to another at variable times, frequency, weights, sizes etc. All things do not fi t into the same method or process so there are system constraints for product movement. We are concerned about damages to material during transport. Plant Engineering, Aerospace Our main challenge continues to be optimizing the storage, queue, timely arrival, and safe delivery of products. Company Management, Food and Beverage We have the need to balance between automation and fl exibility. Areas where process is highly engineered and there s minimal change are places where automation might be applicable but I have concerns with using automation where I need fl exibility to adapt processes and activities. This is tough balancing act. Company Management, Manufacturing Our challenge centers on accurate product tracking through the entire manufacturing process, and education of people that interact with our systems. Distribution Lead, Printing and Paper We are looking to reduce injuries due to of movement of many, many boxes. Plant Management, Manufacturing Being Lean Many businesses are either practicing or examining the benefi ts of lean manufacturing or evaluating other approaches fundamental to improving supply chain processes and tackling inventory management challenges. In taking on these initiatives, businesses are adopting plans to better optimize their resources, eliminate waste and establish more effi cient management over their manufacturing and distribution processes. Practicing or adopting a Lean strategy 70% Not practicing or planning a Lean strategy 30% We are attempting to introduce AGV s and automated bin storage into our facility. The disruption to make changes from our current plant/manufacturing layout is expensive especially relative to the potential for lost production in our lean work force mode which is due to the economic conditions. Company Management, Industrial Machinery Conventional materials handling systems sometimes require greater fl exibility in handling JIT production and work-in-process inventory management. Installing conveyors presents a monument that will be difficult to change when our business model changes. Within our lean environment, change is the only constant. Changing product demands also present issues when inventory levels fluctuate depending on market demand and seasonal changes. Plant Engineering, Fabricated Metals Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 3

4 Usage of Materials Transport Systems To move items throughout their operations, many facilities currently depend on fork lift trucks and conveyor systems, as well as manpower. Additionally, roughly one out of three companies surveyed currently use automated guided AGV impact on productivity 78% 70% 67% 68% 45% 25% Transport raw materials 41% 37% Transport finished goods vehicles to transport materials and product throughout their facility. AGVs play a key role in leveraging company s lean initiatives by managing WIP inventory, lowering overhead, improving accuracies and eliminating unnecessary tasks, and reducing or re-allocating labor. We are using (AGVs) for J.I.T. delivery of raw materials. Equipment Layout/Design, Manufacturing They eliminate the potential of personnel error or failures. Plant Engineering, Wholesale Trade Would sufficiently improve Would greatly improve 40% 38% 27% Transport WIP: storage to production 30% Transport WIP: point-to-point I see AGVs primarily for manufacturing with two main factors: 1) longer travel distances that are repeatable 2) repeatable short runs between functions. Company Management, Trade There are no labor requirements, fl exible paths, devices on an AGV can provide more value than just moving material. Plant Engineering, Communications Products The cost of AGVs, ease of implementation and installation compared to the overhead conveyance systems makes these a viable solution. Plant Engineering, Automotives I could see how robotics might increase effi ciency, reduce employee injuries related to material handling or, if done well, improve the material/product fl ow through a facility. Plant Engineering, Industrial Machinery We are replacing ALL fork trucks with AGVs and are replacing a lot of fi xed pallet conveyors. This is considered an alternative to expansion of our AS/RS warehouse. Plant Engineering, Food and Beverage Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 4

5 Applications and Benefits for Robotic Systems Applications for AGVs Rated extremely/very important 76% 72% 68% Users and future adopters of AGVs recognize the functionality benefi ts delivered by AGVs as they offer the fl exibility and versatility required in many of these materials handling environments. For many (59%), AGV robotic systems are preferred over standard product transport methods for moving items freely, carrying things to multiple locations in their plant or warehouse, or to and from distant or random destinations 63% 60% throughout their facility. These solutions are also seen as an alternative to manpower for delivering goods in a non-sequential order. More specifi cally, AGVs are desired to improve process fl ow when moving sequenced WIP from and through the various stages of production and the supply chain. Companies affi rm that AGVs would effectively upgrade productivity levels and facilitate the transport of raw materials and parts into manufacturing production and through the assembly and fabrication stages, and then to move fi nished products off the production fl oor and into storage, warehouses and off to shipping docks. Move product to multiple locations Have open path navigability Interface with people as well as machinery Deliver items nonsequentially Move from random origin to random destination AGVs are optimally utilized to transport product of all sizes and move materials to remote areas. Users favor a solution that could interface with other materials handling systems. AGVs are further used to free up manpower and for use in extreme weather conditions. Many of our operations are unattended due to their hazardous nature. AGVs provide an added measure of safety to personnel. Company Management, Non manufacturing We use for the movement of materials WIP from machine to machine and machine to inspection and to fi nal shipping. Plant Engineering, Aerospace We use AGVs primarily as a material handling awnd transportation tool. A gopher where you can tell it to go for this or go get that. It should be adaptable to a variety of tasks where you teach it to perform a routine task and let it do that function until you give it another task to perform. Plant Engineering, Glass and Ceramics Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 5

6 Adoption of AGVs Desired Characteristics of an AGV Durability Low maintenance Avoids obstacles Adaptability Easy installation Open path navigation Opportunity charging No external path guides / sensors Compact size Likelihood to consider AGVs Extremely likely 16% Very likely 28% Somewhat likely 32% When evaluating AGV robotic systems for purchase, product durability, maintenance, ease of use and installation, and navigability head up the list of product traits that specifi ers and buyers most strongly consider. 67% 64% 82% 78% 76% 94% 91% 91% 90% While cost is the primary barrier to adoption, current AGV technology is considered to be limited and lacking the agility required in negotiating tight quarters. Load capacity, ease of use, safety maintenance and availability of replacement parts also loom as potential implementation obstacles. If your area for storage changes you would have to constantly reprogram the system to take these changes in effect. Plant Engineering, Electronics They have limited ability to adjust to fault conditions, limited paths or real time adjustments. Pick-up and lay-down locations need to be very well defi ned. Loads need to be consistent Plant Engineering, Food and Beverage AGVs may have diffi culty operating in the same space as fork trucks. Plant Engineering, Food and Beverage Technology is too advanced for most distribution maintenance staffs. You can easily have maintenance technician understand conveyor, and possibly other technologies, but it has been my experience that an AGV tech has to be a higher skilled individual, and specialize in AGV s. Technology Team Leader, Manufacturing Not very likely 18% Not at all likely 6% However, the future presents opportunities for AGV robotics for wide-ranging and meaningful applications. Three-fourths of those surveyed assert that AGVs are a practical option as perceived equipment shortcomings are met. Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 6

7 Automated Guided Vehicles of the Future A wish-list of those features and functions plant and warehouse managers would like incorporated into the next generation of AGVs entails: Greater fl exibility. easy to alter paths/routes Variability in pick up and drop points/random destination delivery Improved mobility. Equipment is agile and has a small turning radius Autonomous operation. No human is required Durability and reliability. Minimal maintenance and easy to repair More affordable Environmentally friendly Quiet, low fuel consumption, self-charging battery, etc. Easier to use, simple to program and modify Intelligent It would have a flexible design with an on-board programmable controller that would allow for broad modifi cation and implementation while meeting safety standards. It would be able to have on board decision making while communicating wirelessly to a monitoring system for traffi c control and fault monitoring. Cost would be reasonable with a package setup for design that allowed items to be added or removed as necessary with a minimum of setup time required. The AGV would be able to receive an order for pickup, go to the pickup point and be loaded, decide on the best path to the delivery point and deliver the materials with no human interaction. Plant Engineering, Automotives One that would deliver an item to any possible destination it may need to go within a facility and with little human intervention. Plant Engineering, Fabricated Metals It would be low cost and safe to work around. It would be able to identify ideal random put-away locations; it would be able to identify the product it is picking up from multiple lines and transport it to the ideal random location. Warehouse, Distribution Management, Food and Beverage Low maintenance would be needed, and would be fl exible to work either automatically or operator driven. It would have low energy consumption, be a reasonable investment, and have a user-friendly interface. Corporate Financial Management, Computers and Electronics Indestructible and extremely reliable, has thorough health checks and suffi cient redundancy to complete its task when a fault occurs. Component layout would allow for maintenance of all components. Plant Engineering, Aerospace Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 7

8 Have the ability to communicate with other AGVs and with a centralized control system to navigate different assemblies to different process cells. Plant Engineering, Automotives They should be low-to-the-ground, with variable table features; have self-learning logic and/or multiple path options; Intelligent routing (in other words, the ability to choose shortest path). Several collision fail-safes should also be built-in. Company Management, Fabricated Metals Intelligent AGVs Familiarity with Intelligent AGVs Extremely familiar 3% Very familiar 12% Somewhat familiar 38% Not very familiar 31% Not at all familiar 16% Use/have evaluated Intelligent AGVs 86% 14% Use/Have evaluated Have not evaluated/ Not in use Intelligent-Automated Guided Vehicles (i-agvs) are a recent advancement in the fi eld of driverless transport devices commonly used for material handling applications in industrial environments. They apply state-of-the-art navigation and guidance technologies that, unlike traditional AGVs, allow true autonomy requiring no external guide-path networks or navigational markers (wires, mirrors or magnets) to assist in their movement around a facility. The approach provides a new level of fl exibility in that an i-agv can plot a path unique to its assigned task (ensuring the shortest possible route is taken), and can freely navigate around fi xed and moving obstructions (typically found in today s highly dynamic manufacturing environments). In addition to being used for simple transport and delivery tasks, i-agvs are being integrated as key elements of fully automated manufacturing work cells, providing autonomous robotic transport of WIP between related pieces of process equipment. So, while many plant and warehouse managers are calling for the development of smart or Intelligent AGV systems, the end-user market is in its early stages of awareness and adoption. Only a small percentage (15%) of these materials handling professionals are familiar with Intelligent AGVs. Similarly, only 14% have evaluated these solutions or actually have them in operation. We re evaluating remote programmable routes capabilities and Intelligent in operation i.e. collision avoidance Plant Engineering, Automotives We are considering a solution that would have a smart control that loadbalances the system automatically. The vehicle would need to be able to learn the path and provide its own local traffi c control and be able to select alternative paths where there is blockage. It needs to be more aware of forklifts as current laser bumpers look under most of our lifts. Plant Engineering, Paper Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 8

9 About AGVS JUST GOT A WHOLE LOT SMARTER The good news for facility managers is that intelligent AGVs are more than just a dream, they are a reality. One of the leading developers of i-agv technology is Canada s RMT Robotics. In 2004 RMT introduced ADAM, a category-defi ning Intelligent AGV (i-agv). Robotic in it s nature, the ADAM vehicle is so much more than an AGV, autonomously navigating throughout a facility without the use of guide wires, refl ectors, transponders or GPS. Using onboard open path navigation technology, ADAM has the unique ability to independently path plan, allowing it to dynamically optimize routing from origin to destination as well as automatically steer clear of obstacles (expected and unexpected) along the way. THE LEAN MACHINE Like a fl eet of fully autonomous, interconnected and automatically dispatched robotic taxis, ADAM provides nimble delivery on demand. Responding JIT to the demands of the production environment, ADAM routes smaller material quantities more frequently from any random origin to any random destination, perpetuating the very essence of lean philosophy. Utilizing wireless dispatch, revolutionary inprocess opportunity charging and seamless integration with production management systems, ADAM is poised to become the new hallmark for industrial AGV technology but may, for some, present the fi rst viable mechanized alternative to manual labor in their operations. Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 9

10 Methodology This research was conducted on behalf of Modern Materials Handling magazine for RMT Robotics Ltd. by RBInteractive Research Group. This study was executed in July, 2009, and was administered over the Internet among subscribers to MMH. Respondents were pre-qualifi ed for being involved in purchase decisions for solutions that transport equipment throughout their company s warehouse and distribution centers. In total, 287 professionals were interviewed. About the Respondents and Their Facilities Respondents to the study were Size of facility largely plant, materials handling, 250,00 sq. ft. + 32% industrial and manufacturing managers and engineers, warehouse and distribution manag- 100, ,00 sq. ft. 22% ers, and corporate management. Facilities of all sizes are 50, ,000 sq.ft. 22% well-represented in this study as < 50,000 sq. ft. 24% one-third work at locations with less than 100 employees, onethird employing between 100- and include food and beverage, automotive and 500 workers and roughly one-third with 500+ transportation equipment, industrial machinery, employees; on average, 420 individuals are electronics, plastics and rubber, wholesale and employed at respondent sites. Survey participants retail trade, etc. All size facilities in terms of square are employed across a range of industry sectors footage are also well-represented. About RMT Robotics Ltd. Solutions Leadership Through Focused Innovation is not just another marketing slogan but is a core value of RMT Robotics. Since 1981, RMT has been revolutionizing the materials handling industry by developing unique integrated robotic solutions for specifi c applications in the warehousing and manufacturing industry. As a pioneer in the use of large scale gantry robotics as highly fl exible and adaptable WIP storage and retrieval systems (SRS), RMT saw a need to extend the effi ciency and fl exibility of the SRS robots beyond the confi nes of their work envelopes to the remainder of the production environment. This need was fulfi lled with the introduction of ADAM, RMT s intelligent AGV. Forged out of the principles of lean manufacturing, RMT developed a highly dynamic and adaptable robotic transport vehicle that connects SRS buffers with the production machinery in a fully automated, JIT method. Plagued by the 60 year reputation of conventional AGV vehicles as being simplistic, infl exible and diffi cult to maintain, RMT recognized the need for a new breed of AGV; an economical, reliable vehicle capable of effortlessly adapting to a variety of complicated and dynamically changing production environments. RMT Robotics introduced ADAM to the marketplace in With an ability to adapt to its environment and complete its mission independently, ADAM demonstrates its edge even in the most exacting environments. With its compact size, speed and dynamic navigation ADAM is ideal in any application that requires product to be transported. Which begs the question: What can ADAM move for you? CONTACT INFORMATION: For more information on ADAM please visit our website at or contact Bill Torrens, VP Sales and Marketing, RMT Robotics, billtorrens@rmtrobotics.com, Flexible Factories Need Flexible AGVs 10