At Ceramic Industrial Coatings we have always strived to increase efficiency in our production lines. This week we took an important step in the direction of automation with the implementation of a collaborative robot used for material handling. This robot is just one example of our commitment to improving our facilities.
Our newest addition is a system made up of a Joulin material gripper, a Universal Robots collaborative robot arm, and a Robotiq material handling system. This unit sits at the end of one of our tube filling lines and palletizes cases to our specification. Due to the Universal Robot arm being collaborative, the robot operates in conjunction with our employees without any inconvenient guarding. A collaborative robot has torque sensors in every joint so if the robot hits anything unexpected it will immediately stop all movement, substantially decreasing risk of injury. The unit is also helpful when labor is at a shortage. With a user-friendly interface and low amounts of maintenance the machine, virtually the only regular human support needed is pulling out fully built pallets from the machine and replacing them with empty ones.
We are excited to use our new robot to improve our Osseo facility and expand operations. Check it out in action: