Automation Canada - Robotic Integration Issue - 14

tackle large, complex robotic engineering, programming, and installation functions. Unfortunately, large scale also meant large overhead from
management, personnel, floor space, and processes. Due to the overhead of such projects, the typical contract from a traditional integrator was
rarely less than $250,000; often the cutoff was much higher.
This business model made these integrators ill-equipped to adapt to the needs and means of SMEs. As a consequence, these smaller
manufacturers have benefited far less from the operational advantages that robotic technology has offered. The impact of this is evident in the 300%
productivity growth that large enterprises gained during the first decade of this century alone, versus the 200% productivity gains achieved by firms
numbering fewer than 500 employees.1

Coty Cosmetics in Maryland used the integration services of Sydorko Automation to develop mobile carts with
UR cobots mounted on them. The carts are moved between powder presses where the cobots pick up
" godets, " metal pans with pressed powder, place them on trays and pack the trays in boxes. After the initial
application development, the Coty team is now able to manage the cobot-system internally. " If there's ever
any troubleshooting that's needed, the integrator is always a phone call away, " says Paul Baublitz, project
manager at Coty Cosmetics. " But at this point, we've been running with the carts for months and we're
comfortable enough that we can troubleshoot 99 percent of the issues in-house. "

LASER-FOCUSED ON LEAN SOLUTIONS
In contrast, the lean integrator evolved precisely to address the SME market's growing demand for robot installations that yield higher
productivity at a lower price point and that can be installed in a fraction of the time of a traditional robot work cell. Like the SMEs they serve, lean
integrators are small enterprises themselves. The two features that distinguish lean integrators from their traditional counterparts are size and
speed.
1MEP,

" Delivering Measurable Results to Manufacturing Clients, " 2009, page 3; data from U.S. Census Bureau, 2007 Economic Census: Manufacturing (November 2010);
calculations by MEP.

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VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1

Automation Canada - Robotic Integration Issue

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