Omron: On tour with the factory of the future

A shortage of skilled labour, climate change and price increases pose huge challenges for industry and society. The automation experts from Omron want to provide answers: At the Coreum in Stockstadt near Darmstadt, interested parties were able to experience the „Flexible Manufacturing Roadshow“, which is currently stops off in various European cities and informed about innovations in production.

The focus was on technologies that enable companies to, operate and produce more flexibly, efficiently and sustainably. These include collaborative solutions that facilitate and improve cooperation between man and machine in order to counter the increasing shortage of skilled labour.

Collaborative robots, also known as cobots, are very popular because they make it possible, Automate time-consuming and resource-intensive tasks and thus relieve employees. Cobots and automated mobile robots (AMR) are suitable for both SMEs and large-scale industry.

„Medium-sized companies are increasingly interested in our automated solutions, as the labour shortage means they also need to find alternatives. We initially provide them with intensive advice: if a company works in three shifts, for example, a robotic solution usually pays for itself quickly.“

Dr Klaus Kluger, General Manager Central East Europe at Omron Electronics GmbH

Cobots take on tasks such as transport, palletising, loading and unloading machines or assembly, can be retooled quickly and flexibly and can even be programmed by non-experts. Material replenishment can be rationalise through AMR and machine and process feeding through cobot-based production. However, in order to successfully implement such projects and accelerate robot integration, you need expertise and partners who know their way around.

Omron partner companies were therefore also present at the roadshow, including Synaos, provider of innovative software for intralogistics, EngRoTec, specialist for digitalisation and automation and OnRobot, a leading manufacturer of collaborative robotic gripping systems.

Visitors to the roadshow were able to new production technologies such as robotics, sensor technology, control and more under the magnifying glass. At the Flexible Manufacturing Roadshow, Omron showcased numerous solutions for the „production of the future“, which is characterised by flexible, integrated and intelligent processes, on over 1500 square metres.

Fields of application include palletising, transport and traceability. The heavyweight from Omron was also on show, the HD-1500 for heavy loads of up to 1,500 kilograms. „We are expanding our range more and more. The first robotic solutions were designed for loads of up to 60 kilograms, then for 250 kilograms and the HD can handle one and a half tonnes. This year, we will be launching a new model for loads of up to 650 kilograms,“ says Klaus Kluger. „In future there will be There will be even more variety in collaborative robots, because customers want solutions that are customised to their production. The future also belongs to solutions such as those from our partner EngRoTec, who place their robotic arms on our autonomously navigating robots.“ They already transport boxes from A to B in pharmaceutical production, but could also restock the shelves in the supermarket at night.

Source: Omron