Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.86
DETROIT—At Automate 2022 here last week, mobile robot providers took center stage alongside industrial robot arm makers and component vendors. Zebra Technologies Corp. demonstrated its systems and discussed the best appoaches to applying automation. While 65% of the robots in the U.S. are used by the automotive industry, collaborative robots are democratizing automation, said Jim Lawton, vice president and general manager for robotics automation at the company. He previously worked at Rethink Robotics, Universal Robots, and Fetch Robotics. Lincolnshire, Ill.-based Zebra acquired Fetch last year. “Lean manufacturing practitioners used to hate automation because it was fixed infrastructure and needed custom…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.86
One recent trend in supply chain automation is toward larger and more capable robots. Mobile Industrial Robots ApS today launched the MiR250 Hook, which can tow loaded carts weighing up to 1,100 lb. (500 kg). The Odense, Denmark-based company said the patented MiR250 Hook builds on its fastest and most compact mobile robot to help further optimize industrial workflows. “At workplaces worldwide, humans move thousands of carts and transport cages manually between departments, a highly repetitive and time-consuming task,” stated Søren E. Nielsen, president of Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR). “With the highly precise and powerful MiR250 Hook, towing carts and…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.85
Robots Adding Another Level of Automation For centuries, hand tools helped humans build dwellings, clothing, food containers and vehicles. The introduction of power tools then made it possible to complete this work much more quickly and with a lot less effort. Not long ago, robots added yet another level of automation by making it possible to get work done even more efficiently and by providing information about their operations. During this time, it often seemed that designers were trying to build automated systems to replace workers completely. But recently, there has been a significant shift toward building robots that can…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.84
ForwardX Robotics, which develops mobile robots for warehousing and manufacturing environments, today announced that it has raised $31 million in its initial Series C1 funding round. The Beijing-based company said it plans to use the new capital to accelerate its research and development timeline, increase its deployment capabilities in key markets such as the U.S., and expand its sales reach into new markets. “Our latest round of funding contributes to the positive momentum we have been building over the past 24 months,” stated Nicolas Chee, founder and CEO of ForwardX. “With a growing market share across our key territories, we…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.83
Cognex Corp. yesterday joined the OSARO Partners Alliance, which is intended to provide optimzed automation to e-commerce customers. The integration of the Cognex DataMan fix-mount, image-based barcode scanners into the OSARO Robotic Bagging System helped Zenni Optical Inc. solve a difficult technical challenge, according to OSARO Inc. “At OSARO, we’re always looking for the best technologies and vendors to incorporate into our strategic partnership ecosystem,” said Gemma Ross, vice president of operations at OSARO, in a release. “Cognex is now part of that partnership strategy to deploy the best possible solutions to our customers,” she stated. “We are excited to…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.83
Keeping consumers supplied with fresh baked goods has been part of convenience store chain Kwik Trip’s recipe for success. At its stores, consumers can buy many types of fresh goods, including bakery items that are labor intensive to produce and distribute without significant automation. With future growth in mind, Kwik Trip took an automated approach, including a new facility with automated order picking and storage and warehouse control system (WCS) software to orchestrate the picking of orders needed by stores. The new facility and automation meet the throughput needs of the growing chain, and they also make for a safer,…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.82
Approximately 2.3 million people in various industries worldwide succumb to work-related accidents or diseases annually, according to the International Labour Organization (ILO). Although safety has improved tremendously throughout the years, particularly through automation, warehouses are one work environment that sees its fair share of common mishaps – everything from slips and falls to injuries from falling objects, overexertion and repetitive stress. That’s why safety is paramount to operational production as issues can result in hurt employees and lost time, product and revenue. Couple safety concerns with the fact we’re in the midst of a global labor shortage – a challenge…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.80
Robots and Humans Working Together In Robots in the Supply Chain: The Perfect Employee? Merril Douglas paints a picture of a time in the near future when robots and humans will work side-by-side to help companies gain speed, increase accuracy, cut costs, and handle the grunt work. “We're sitting in the middle of a perfect storm for robots in the supply chain. E-commerce sales continue to climb, forcing retailers to pick up the pace in their fulfillment and distribution centers,” Douglas writes. “But these days, it's hard to find workers to keep product moving in any kind of warehouse e-commerce…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.76
The 2020s have ushered in a series of headaches for warehousing and supply chain managers. Two of them are supply shortages and a tight labor market with growing wages. Though automation can't solve material shortages, the industry's latest generation of robotic goods-to-person systems and advances in mobile robots can significantly reduce distribution centers' dependency on manual labor. Warehouses are increasingly investing in technologies that can store, retrieve, and increase order-picking speeds to offset labor costs. Not only can this investment reduce costs and increase efficiency, but it can also enable better utilization of facility space. Goods-to-person (G2P) functionality can rapidly…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.76
The company's ResinDek® flooring panels are engineered specifically for mezzanines, industrial work platforms and pick modules. Jim Staszewski, a Ridg-U-Rak Senior Designer: “We've partnered with Cornerstone to use their ResinDek flooring in our designs for more than a decade. They're on the leading edge of developing high-density, elevated flooring products that handle high traffic and highly concentrated dynamic loads, like those on pallet jacks and robotic wheels. When you buy their products you know you're getting high-quality flooring. They are the clear leader with an unparalleled combination of design, engineering, and product testing.” As Staszewski and the engineering team at…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.76
Extraordinary times—and a need for proven measures—may be what propels robotics to the next level in warehouse and distribution center (DC) operations. Not that robotics has been slow to catch on in warehousing. According to analyst firm ABI Research, the global mobile robotics market will reach $23 billion this year. In a 2020 survey by Peerless Research as part of our annual “Industry Outlook” study, 9% surveyed told us they were already using robotics, and 19% were considering them. But can robotics for intralogistics keep growing quickly, given the disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic? Unemployment has skyrocketed. Some manufacturers temporarily…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 2.75
Robotics manufacturers are challenged to keep up with growing demand for autonomous mobile robots, or AMRs. Advantech Co. and MOV.AI this week announced that they are collaborating to streamline robot creation by providing manufacturers and integrators access to their industrial computing technology and AMR software, respectively. The COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing labor shortages have created a surge in demand for mobile robots, which offer operational efficiency and flexibility, noted MOV.AI. AMR shipments increased by 53% in 2022 and could grow at an annual rate of about 50% through 2027, resulting in a total of 4 million installed units, according to…