The development of China's robotics industry has exceeded many people's expectations. Especially in 2015, when the overall economy was sluggish, the robotics industry grew against the trend. Many companies began to invest money in this market and started to build robotics industrial parks in various places. When it comes to robots, everyone thinks that this is a very promising industry.
In my more than 10 years in the robotics industry, one major finding has been the strong interest from traditional clients. Over the past 30 years, industrial robots have proven their immense power in improving production efficiency, product quality, and factory profitability. Apple has demonstrated to the world that using industrial robots, even products manufactured in the US, can be highly competitive globally. Apple moved the entire Mac Pro production line to the US, a feat largely attributed to automation and information technology. However, no matter how advanced the technology, the most crucial factor remains the mindset of the decision-makers.
The development of automated manufacturing is rapid, and the integration of manufacturing and information technology has become an important tool for advanced manufacturing countries to relocate manufacturing back home. In the Yangtze River Delta region, where there are many small and medium-sized enterprises, various companies have also seen this trend and are making every effort to promote machine replacement, hoping to transform private enterprises in the Wu and Yue regions from traditional workshop-style processing into Industry 4.0 companies.
Some relatively strong companies have decided to use industrial robots to revolutionize their existing production models as a change to the current situation, viewing robots as a component to improve their overall competitiveness.
Of course, if decision-makers lack proper foresight, have limited understanding of industrial automation , especially automated manufacturing involving industrial robots, and lack a detailed plan for their use, rashly employing industrial robots can also lead to losses for the company. Improper use of industrial robot systems not only fails to complete the project effectively, resulting in significant losses or even bankruptcy, but also inevitably harms the robot supplier who undertook the project.
I have a vivid example from my early days in the industry. A US-based mobile phone accessory supplier needed robots to apply high-gloss paint to phone casings. Their engineering department decided to build their own painting line, choosing a peripheral supplier for the painting equipment and a robot supplier for the robots and integration with the peripheral equipment. This robot supplier had a proven track record of successful painting applications and had products already on the market. However, the robot supplier, lacking experience in painting applications, was not the one integrating the robots and peripheral equipment. The result was that the equipment was installed, but the painting process was difficult to implement, and when the project deadline arrived, production was impossible.
The decision-makers at this robotics company and its client company made a mistake that plagued the robotics industry during its heyday in the 1960s and early 1970s: underestimating the importance of process control. In the 1980s, many robotics companies closed down, entering a period of decline. By the 1990s, those that survived were more rational and cautious than they had been a decade earlier. They wouldn't force a potential client to agree to a project, telling them "no problem" or "we can do that project." If they agreed but failed to deliver, these dissatisfied clients would curse the entire industrial robotics industry. However, these clients who failed in this application didn't realize that only they truly understood the characteristics of their production processes. Placing the entire burden of process adjustments on a single robot supplier was a fundamental error on the part of the decision-makers.
Of course, both robotics companies and their clients will gain valuable experience from these failures, ensuring that these mistakes are not repeated, whether today or tomorrow. Robotics integrators should understand their clients before choosing them, and more importantly, let their clients understand them. Howard is the owner of a small-to-medium-sized manufacturing company in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang region, producing home appliances. Due to rising labor costs and unsatisfactory product quality control, they wanted to use automated systems to upgrade their existing manufacturing processes. He began researching this area and discovered that the necessary upgrades would require the integration of industrial robots, industrial cameras, and various sensors—a complex engineering task. He contacted several automation system integrators, but how to determine which one was suitable? Or rather, which automation system integrator was most qualified to do this? Howard found me, a senior expert with ten years of experience in industrial robot automation integration. We carefully examined the backgrounds of these integrators, considering their capabilities, the dynamism of their technology, and their position within the industry.
For me, if a company needs to use an industrial robot system, the first thing to do is to analyze its own production process and understand its own needs.
Analyze and understand your own needs
A. Listen carefully and understand your own needs.
The purpose of using automated systems in assembly lines and manufacturing processes is to maximize the efficiency of product production and quality control. We need to go to the production department to familiarize ourselves with the production process. We need to study which processes are the weak points in production and which processes can be automated to replace manual labor.
It's essential to understand your company's short-term and long-term goals. Combine your short-term needs with your long-term objectives to analyze your return on investment. Don't just look at today or a few years from now and decide which equipment to purchase based on that. A good integrator, especially one with cutting-edge technology, will help you see things more clearly and understand how automation systems can deliver greater returns over a long period.
B. Develop and recruit talent
If technological innovation is required, corresponding technical personnel are essential. Therefore, companies need qualified personnel to accomplish this task. If existing personnel are unavailable, decision-makers should seek to recruit them with high salaries. The learning ability of personnel is also crucial. Automated assembly workshops inevitably involve numerous pieces of equipment, and company personnel need to possess the ability to learn quickly and become familiar with the integrator's system as soon as possible. Besides sending personnel to the relevant equipment manufacturers for training, a corporate account is also a good option. For companies, purchasing a corporate account provides all employees with a learning opportunity, or engineers can purchase engineer accounts at a cost of 499.99 yuan – a very worthwhile investment. Excellent integrators have a mature training program after completing equipment installation and commissioning. After installation and commissioning, the company's engineers should learn how to use the system and how to debug the process. They should also receive more in-depth courses to better understand the equipment and avoid human error affecting its normal operation.
C. Clearly define the responsible party
Both integrators and end-users share responsibility for ensuring a smooth and error-free production process. Integrators need to provide equipment that meets customer requirements and offer expert guidance. Customers are responsible for providing the necessary information for the production equipment. Integrators and customers should collaborate closely throughout the production, installation, and commissioning process. Typically, the biggest problem in a project failure stems either from the integrator's engineers not performing their duties well, or from the customer's project manager failing to provide the integrator with the necessary resources for success. Seamless communication is the most crucial element in successfully completing a project.
Choose a reliable system integrator
The industrial robot automation integration industry is relatively new in China, and currently there are no reliable integrator certifications in the country. Therefore, we cannot rely on association or official certifications to protect our choices. So, what kind of integrator is relatively reliable?
A. Appropriate scale
When evaluating a robot system supplier, scale is crucial. Is it a large, comprehensive robot supplier, like Siasun in China or ABB internationally, handling both system integration and robot bodies? Or is it a small, specialized robot supplier with only a few employees, like UR or KMT? These system integrators have their own unique customer bases. Some are based in Wuhan, serving the central China market; some are in East China, primarily serving East China customers; and some large suppliers target Asia or even globally. Large doesn't necessarily mean better, and small doesn't necessarily indicate insufficient strength.
B. Professional Field
A qualified system integrator focuses on industry-specific integration. They need more than just familiarity with industrial robots; they need to understand the industry's production standards, requirements, and processes. A good robot company doesn't necessarily make a good robot system. What an integrator sells to customers is a robot capable of producing the customer's product, not just the robot itself.
If you need a spray coating solution, then don't contact an integrator specializing in laser applications. A professional integrator, skilled in one area, can easily understand your needs and help you reduce unnecessary screening.
Regardless of their industry, a professional integrator will be happy to listen to your needs. They will thoroughly understand your objectives, conduct a feasibility analysis, and provide you with a budget range. Accurate communication and accurate understanding are two of the most crucial factors for a project. You can judge an integrator's quality by the feasibility analysis they provide. PS: Excellent integrators typically charge an upfront fee for the feasibility analysis.
Integrators must have a clear understanding of what the end customer is looking for, and what level of solution and cost they are willing to accept.
C. Professional engineering and project management teams
When contacting a professional robot system integrator, their technical or sales staff will typically provide detailed engineering management and implementation details, listen to your needs, and suggest a feasibility analysis or preliminary trial production. During the trial production phase, you can assess the composition of the integrator's technical team to see if they have experienced expert engineers or a large group of young recent graduates.
Ask them about training. Find out if they only provide training for their products or for your specific system; find out the training location—whether all training takes place at their factory or also at your factory. Remember, if your factory is located far from the supplier, travel and accommodation costs will far exceed the training fees.
The most important question to ask them is whether they provide a series of processes for developing their system applications, based on the current system application engineering. If they just give you a blank sheet of paper, book a return ticket and find another vendor. Cognitive training and rote memorization methods are only suitable for art and music; people trained in this way cannot do many things. If your company has a training department or a training expert, ask them to evaluate the vendor's training manuals and courses to ensure that the training is based on the current application. Otherwise, your money will be wasted. Investing in unrealistic training will never yield any return; your company's relevant technical support personnel must be able to understand and operate the system.
D. Professional documents
Professional robot system integrators typically have their own standard products and corresponding technical documentation. They usually create separate technical documents for different clients. For international integrators, they may also provide translated documents, although this may incur a fee.
E. Promised spare parts
Although the stability of industrial robots has improved significantly in recent years, they are still machines. No one has ever invented a perpetual motion machine or a machine that never wears out; therefore, your robot will still experience malfunctions.
A crucial question is whether your supplier can provide the necessary spare parts. Before you decide to pay, several questions must be addressed: Do they have all the spare parts needed to repair the equipment? Can they provide spare parts on the same day a problem occurs? Do they have spare parts distributors in your area? Are they willing to ship these spare parts to you? Can their spare parts be sourced? Do they provide repair or replacement of spare parts, or can you only purchase new spare parts? If this supplier cannot provide a satisfactory answer, look at other suppliers.
F. Professional service
If your company is a small or medium-sized enterprise, training a technical service provider for this system would be a huge expense, meaning you may still have to rely on your supplier for most of the problems.
A professional system integrator will have a dedicated service department to handle equipment support issues. They typically provide telephone support, email support, or their equipment is equipped with remote support capabilities.
G. Clear warranty
Finally, there are some issues regarding warranties. This is probably the most contentious issue when discussing it with suppliers. First and foremost, you must clarify the duration of their warranty. Is it a 90-day warranty, a one-year warranty, or longer? Then you need to ask if the warranty is based on a three-shift system, such as five, six, or seven days a week. Next, you must understand the limited duration of the warranty.
There's more to say.
There are many suppliers in the market offering so-called full-service solutions, but they are essentially just general distributors. This sounds great, but it doesn't guarantee you a complete system solution. With proper training and relevant materials, many such distributors can provide a robot and its associated tools (a robot work cell). However, when your application includes other components such as conveyors, customized software, spray booths, ovens, and a central control system, choosing such a supplier becomes problematic. These agents of robot manufacturers cannot provide specialized robotics technology, let alone dedicated robotics personnel. Even if they could provide such personnel, they wouldn't have enough robotics experts to handle everything. Experts who have worked in the industrial robotics industry from the beginning are either consultants employed by manufacturers specializing in robot-related equipment or recruited by large companies applying robotics technology to enhance their robotics application skills.
Remember, the basic principle behind many vendors' operations is to find buyers. If they find you and you pay for the robot, they will profit, regardless of whether your application works well.
in conclusion
Industrial robots may not be suitable for all companies. Robots cannot solve production process problems; only skilled engineers can. The best approach is to first address the production process issues and then reassess the current process application. Industrial robots are an important tool for improving productivity, but using them without a proper understanding can also cause problems for businesses. I hope you can utilize robots, that robot system integrators can revolutionize China's manufacturing industry, and that Chinese engineers can be as respected as their foreign counterparts, receiving the same dignified compensation.
