Automated Welding an Imperative for Competitive Advantage
The shortage of skilled workers is no surprise to anyone in the manufacturing sector. You may be just reading about in the headlines or see discussions about it on the nightly news, but we live it. Statistics from the Manufacturing Institute state that thousands of manufacturing jobs are going unfilled in India and the rest of the world simply because employers are unable to find candidates with the right skill sets for the open positions. The association also reveals that 75% of manufacturers attribute this skills gap as hampering business expansion efforts. Two of the biggest areas with jobs going unfilled are machining and welding.
At ADOR Welding Limited, there is a fully equipped Welding Demonstration Centre at the Equipment Plant in Pune, where there are frequent visits from manufacturers. They come to our facility to see what automated welding is all about. They visited to assess whether or not automation could solve not only their production and throughput issues but also their hiring challenges. In many cases, these individuals walk away with a game plan to improve their productivity and quality, and fill empty positions. And, automated welding is at the heart of that plan. In fact, to achieve the perfect qualities and higher levels of productivities, most manufacturing processes involving metal joining and cutting are moving towards Automation, partial or complete process lines.
Complete Robotic Work cells (unmanned) with intelligent handling, vision control and anti-collision systems have been developed both for automobile as well as other heavier fabrication industries like shipbuilding, heavy structural fabrication etc.
Narrow Gap MIG, TIG and SAW systems are invariably fully automated with multi-axis motion controls, seam tracking, intelligent arc control, and capable of rolling out a variety of parts with the touch of a fingertip to change the job program number. Wind Tower fabrication, ship building, pressure vessel fabrication, pipe lines – all are industries moving heavily towards these processes.
Fully automated laser stitch and spot welders will come largely in application in the thin sheet fabrication in automobiles and aircrafts.
Friction Stir Welding Automation is another exciting automated process which can weld a wide variety of thicknesses using the same outfit – 1.2 to 25 mm in one-sided welding and up to 50 mm in two- sided welding. This process does not require any filler material, as most environment friendly as it does not give out any welding fumes or toxic chemicals to the air.
Hot Wire TIG Processes is now replacing MIG in many automated applications for vertical cladding (internal and external) anti-corrosion weld overlay cladding of manifolds for petrochemical and gas industries
ADOR Welding Limited offers standard and customized Automation solutions for different types of Industries:
Standard welding automation products:
- Column & boom
- Welding positioners
- Welding rotator
- Trolley for linear GMAW welding (MIG AUTOMATION)
- Trolley for circular shell welding (MIG)
- Fume extractor
Application wise customised products
- Square axle welding SPM
- Robotic welding
- H beam welding SPM
- Idler roller welding
- Cylinder welding SPM
- Weld Seamer
MULTI-LEVEL AUTOMATED WELDING LINES
H BEAM FABRICATION SYSTEM
Comprising :
| ITEM | APPLICATION |
|---|---|
| CNC CUTTING MACHINE FOR 3.5 – 15 MTR | PROFILE CUTTING (1+8 OXY FUEL) |
| H BEAM ASSEMBLY MACHINE | FLANGE & WEB ASSLY & TACK WELDING WITH MIG |
| H BEAM FULL WELDING | FULL JOINTS WELDING WITH SAW |
| BEAM CONVEYING, TURNING & TILTING ARRANGEMENT | BEAM ROTATION & TRANSFER |
| BEAM STRIGHTENING MACHINE | STRAIGHTENING OF FLANGE WRT WEB |
TWIN HEAD WELDING GANTRY
Comprising :
| ITEM | <APPLICATION |
|---|---|
| WELDING GANTRY | IDLER ROLLER WELDING |
| VISION SYSTEM | TO OBSERVE THE PROCESS AND PROVIDE CORRECTION FEEDBACK |
| ROTATOR: 5 TON | JOB ROTATION |
Improving quality through automation – Robotic Cells
Quality also is a determining factor in the decision to automate the welding process. An example is a manufacturer who has welded the same part for 20 years. The company has been spending close to large sums per month as people’s salaries, just to grind spatter off the part and change out filters in a paint system.
A customized robotic welding system incorporated in the same factory was able to provide stable, reduced-heat, short-arc pulse. Within hours of getting the parts into the robotic cell, the company was welding parts with zero spatter. Companies don’t usually talk about scrap and quality issues freely, but they are real.
In manual welding, if you run into an issue and can’t solve it, you have to shut down the entire process and do touch-up. And for the manufacturers who don’t accept touch-up on parts, if a problem is detected halfway through production, those parts will become costly scrap.
With robotic welding, there is a much simpler solution in a program known as production monitoring. There are systems that deliver real-time welding system monitoring.
Beyond production monitoring capabilities and crucial alerts, robotic welders also have another benefit when it comes to quality– easy access to all angles of a semi-complex or complex part. Because the part can be rotated, the operator can program the robot to access sections of it that can’t be reached manually without stopping to reposition it. This 360-degree view and access facilitates quality welds and increased production.
Automation helps fill the skills gap
As the economy changes and the workforce changes, the primary reason why people automate also changes. In today’s environment, manufacturers are turning to automation on the production floor to fill jobs and provide the productivity and quality required to keep North America competitive. Last year, when manufacturers were enjoying increased sales, they turned to automation to get more product made. Today, they are doing it because they are having trouble manufacturing parts, period. Why? Because they just can’t find trained welders. When you can’t find qualified welders, robots make sense. You can make different parts without needing to find people simply by changing out cell components. Additionally, when you automate, the person who oversaw the welding in that cell remains there and works closely with the technologist or engineer who oversees the programming and work environment of that robot. You do bring in people, but you train them to a higher skill level. Many traditional welders are more than capable to be trained as technologists or even as engineers. In some ways, automation gives manufacturers a new way to invest in people. In a typical five-year cycle, you incrementally boost production and move people up in the organization, while improving sales.
Not “if,” but “when”
For manufacturers who have not yet incorporated robotic welding cells into their production line, the question truly isn’t if they should pursue automation, but when. Automation of any sort provides the competitive advantage North America needs to remain relevant in the manufacturing segment. Manufacturing is the engine that will spur economic growth, automation is a key cog in manufacturing, and welding remains a critical cost driver to support manufacturing.
Robotic welding is a critical component to improving productivity, efficiency, cost, and quality. Investing in our workforce through education, training, and automation will help maintain the dominant position the United States has held for the last century.
[Courtesy: Ador Welding Ltd.]
