![]() “A robot can take a molding machine and itself out of automatic mode and shut everything down,” he said. Chris Parrillo, national sales manager with Yushin, said that its robots can email or text message error alerts. The right arm discards the runners, and the left arm holds the molded parts in a queue until a six-axis Fanuc robot takes them for final inspection. The two-shot medical microvalve comprises a PP body from the first shot and a soft, TPE overmolded tip produced in the second shot.Īccording to Makuta, when the mold opens, one arm of a Star Automation robot removes four overmolded parts - the robot’s other arm removes the runners. The cells employ Sumitomo all-electric molding machines, designed with dual injection units and a high-speed, very accurate rotating plate. Two of the factory’s newest cells were built for two-shot medical micromolding. Precision and shot-to-shot accuracy are paramount. These components have various medical, pharmaceutical, microfluidics, electronics/office automation and automotive uses. The parts are tiny - up to six fit on the face of a penny. This foundation is buttressed by technology, notably the advances in Industry 4.0, remote monitoring and predictive maintenance.Īt Makuta Technics in Shelbyville, Ind., which has operated lights-out for 22 years, 22 injection molding cells operate 24/7, making millions of parts every month. It just so happens that the journey to lights-out production requires these same building blocks. More-labor-intensive processes, such as thermoforming or rotomolding, would encounter bigger challenges in going lights-out.Īt the injection molding factories that I have visited, two key themes emerge in the push for productivity: Companies are working on building fully automated cells and standardizing primary machinery and peripheral equipment. ![]() Robots are creating their own at Fanuc, but in the world of plastics processing, the process that is best suited for lights-out manufacturing is injection molding, because of its high volumes, repeatability and suitability for automation. Amid a shortage of skilled labor, robots provide a reliable alternative, and they don’t need formal training. The robots don’t get injured or call off sick. Because the operation is functioning untended 24/7, the number of robots being produced now far outpaces what could be made by fallible humans. One well-known example is Fanuc’s factory in Japan where robots make robots. Innovative manufacturers are forging a path into the future, with efforts to allow their factories to run lights-out.
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