Robotic dispensing offers many advantages over a manual process. Beyond the apparent precision delivery and fluid savings, the control that it provides impacts the company in multiple other areas as well.
Let’s look at six reasons why robotic material dispensing is better than manual methods.
Products That Use a High Risk Dispensing Process Are More Cost Effective with Robotic Delivery
A sporting goods manufacturer used a manual process to apply quick setting epoxy to their product during assembly. But a small volume difference of the epoxy would sometimes affect part hold strength.
Since the process required the applied part to be set before the rest of the manufacturing could take place, it required a person to inspect the parts and be sure that they were properly bonded before continuing down the line.
Eventually, the manufacturer went to robotic dispensing for the epoxy. Since the robot could deliver a precise amount of epoxy on a consistent basis, the hold strength remained a constant.
The company soon discovered that it did not need to have the secondary inspector on the line to check for a proper bond. The cost of moving to a robotic dispensing system was offset by the removal of both operator positions.
Not only did it solve production delay issues, but an exact amount of epoxy distribution ensured that the optimal product hold strength was achieved. This created a better end product for consumers and eliminated many returns and reworks.
Precise robotic dispensing of bonding material is a common application for many manufacturers.
Robotic Dispensing Offers Benefits Beyond Just Fluid Savings
An orthopedic equipment manufacturer was using a manually operated spray bottle to flush contamination from parts in their final production stage. The person working the spray would use a varying amount of fluid as they cleaned the part.
The spray operator would also require a varying amount of time in order to complete their operation, and some pieces would receive more cleaning fluid than others as part of the manual cleaning process. This meant that the period between spray bottle refills remained an unknown variable.
Since this was the final stage of assembly, the unknown finishing time impacted the entire assembly process when it came to getting products through the system. Having a variable time for the final portion of the operation made it difficult to have a precise measurement of overall manufacturing.
When the company switched to robotic dispensing in the form of controlled spraying for this part of the process, they found that it was now possible to provide precise tracking for the entire manufacturing process.
The end result was that they now had a more controlled process and could provide exact data for regulatory and safety compliance. The impact to the company was far more significant than just the fluid savings realized by robotic dispensing.
Many companies use robotic fluid dispensing to add that finishing touch to their products.
Robotic Dispensing Provides Long-Term Profit by Eliminating Costly Labor-Intensive Processes
A diagnostics company was using a manual valve process to fill vials. The method was used to distribute three different agents, and the operator would have to clean the valve assembly between agent changes. The cleaning process was slow and labor-intensive.
When the company switched to robotic dispensing of the agents into the vials, it was decided to have a different dispensing mechanism for each of the three agents. The initial cost for the change was high for the triple robotic system.
But when the analysis was done for the cost of the labor involved in cleaning the valve each time, it was shown that the new system would be in a break-even position after the first two years. Long term, the changeover would lead to higher profits over the manual process.
Not only was greater profits realized, but the company was also able to meet more stringent regulatory requirements concerning the handling of the different agents.
Robotic Dispensing can speed up the reassembly of parts during diagnostics and rework applications.
Robotic Dispensing Unmasks the Hidden Costs of Poor Fluid Delivery
A clinical consumables company would apply silicone oil to the inside of a vial through the manual use of a cotton swab. Since the process was mechanically involved, several operators were required to keep up with production demands.
During the manual process, the amount of fluid distributed to the vial would vary greatly depending on the operator. The process would also create spills on the product and the surrounding work service. The end result was that the company was experiencing an exorbitantly high number of rejects and reworks.
The cause of the rejects was not always clear since the silicone oil was an internal part of the consumable. Not being able to sustain the reject rate, the company installed robotic dispensing as part of an updating process. The robotic process was able to deliver a precise amount of silicone to every vial without the accompanying spills.
The company saw an immediate drop in the reject and rework rate, saving the company a significant amount of money. The need for the multiple silicone oil operators went away, providing for an additional realized savings.
The conformed coating possible with robotic dispensing allows many applications to have a precise distribution where it counts.
Robotic Dispensing Allows Better Use of Valuable Human Resources
A clinical consumables company was using multiple operators for the manual distribution of silicon oil in their product. When they switched to a robotic dispensing system, the need for the manual operators went away.
The company was able to use the operators in other parts of their operation. The new positions allowed the operators to work without the intensity that dispensing on the production line created. As a result, the overall employee satisfaction increased.
The employee onboarding process was able to remove human dispenser training and instead focused on jobs that impacted the overall efficiency of the company. As a result, the company became more profitable with a better-trained staff.
Process Control Achieves Higher Degree of Accuracy Under Robotic Dispensing
Life Sciences applications typically require a high degree of precision of both the amount of fluid dispensed as well as the placement. A distributor that was using a manual filling process was experiencing a high level of spillage and inconsistent volumes.
When they switched to robotic dispensing, the problem went away. The robot can dispense the same precise amount, in the exact same location, time after time without error. This leads to a stable process control unachievable in a manual application.
Even the most difficult material to handle can be precisely and repeatedly dispensed through a robotic fluid dispensing process.
Aim Robotics is an industry leader in fluid dispensing for collaborative robots. Our fluid dispensers are designed and manufactured to provide precision control and accuracy for a variety of dispensing system applications. Contact us to see how we can improve your manufacturing process through a robotic fluid dispensing solution.
