assembly plant, launched the world's first moving assembly line. It eventually went ahead and simplified the assembly of
the Ford Model T’s 3000 parts by breaking it into a total of 84 different steps performed by various groups of workers
while a rope pulled the vehicle chassis down the line. The all new process of car manufacturing revolutionized production
and the car assembly time dropped from massive 12 hours to mere 90 minutes.
After reducing the time, money, and the needed manpower to build a car, Ford was quite successful to reduce the price of
Model T from $850 to less than $300, which brought the Model T within reach of common Americans. Eventually, Ford
went further ahead and built a Model T every 24 seconds, and by 1927, it had sold more than 15 million Model Ts
worldwide, accounting to half of the automobile sold.
Robotics Improve Quality of the Product and of the Plant
Coming to the present scenario, most of the automobile companies are heavily investing in robotic innovations to improve
its vehicle quality and production efficiencies. Organizations now use various new systems, which include robotic vision
in order to create a digital model of each car in the final assembly line to analyze the paint quality and imperfections in the
surface by comparing with a perfect model.
The automated robotic systems can perform most of the automated tasks on vehicle frames, chassis, underbodies, fenders,
as well as interior parts during the production of the vehicle. Previously, changing a line to work on the different model
was quite tedious and lengthy process; however, nowadays one can easily reset a robot and reprogram it according to the
preferences, thereby increasing the versatility of the production line without hampering the production. Back in the late
1990s, another American manufacturer started robotic automation process in their factories, and eventually produced a
completely unprecedented number of different models. Producing different models from a single assembly line is by no
means a small feat; the manufacturer was able to do that due to the versatility of the robots used. Different model comes
with different materials, shapes, sizes, and obviously, different design, and the American Manufacturer was able to do all
this thanks to the material handling automated robots.
While US based companies are investing heavily in robotics and on automating the production line, how can the Japanese
manufactures be left behind? One of the stalwarts of the Japanese industry has improved their productivity by using
robotics. They have robots that can perform various tasks including spot welding and painting on different vehicles, which
not only increases production quality but also speeds up the production. The automated robots can do risky jobs including
welding and painting, which often produces toxic gases and fumes, keeping human workforce out of the harm's way.
According to several studies, various Japanese car makers have achieved the highest level of automation and
manufacturing efficiency. However, according to a few observers, the Japanese firms took inspiration from various
production techniques from U.S and eventually helped workers with better education. Still, this was not the case with
Japanese companies based in U.S, as they had demonstrated same or higher levels of productivity, equivalent flexibility,
and quality compared to its U.S counterparts. On the other hand, not all the firms from Japan took the inspiration from
west; those who were interested in experimenting and creating new opportunities, started to build their production line and
technology. Some went against the tide and avoided copying foreign models, designs, and technology and eventually
focused on developing better and more efficient production line specifically for the Japanese market.
Humans are needed to handle the complexity of customizations
However, robots can't match a human’s intelligence, and when it comes to intricate designs and customizations, robots
often cannot match up. So, a Bavarian giant has been forced to trade in some of the assembly line robots for its more
capable human counterpart. As per the century old company, robots cannot handle the complexity of the key customization
option available for their flagship saloon model. The company is saving money and safeguarding its future by investing
and employing heavily on the human workforce. Now, the company is moving away from trying to maximize automation,
with people taking much bigger part of the industrial processes. This is mainly because robots cannot work with all the
different options, and they often fail to keep pace with the changes. Now, the company is slowly moving towards robot
farming where it will equip workers with small and more flexible tools to work alongside robots. The main key is to
maintain the qualities of robotics, consistency, and obviously, reliability while gaining an edge to be quicker to change as
the industry adapts to new technology. Nowadays traditional car manufacturers are coming under constant pressure from
the likes of Tesla. Speed is the key to survive, but still, a traditional car takes around seven years to hit full-fledged
production. At the same time, models have boomed, and customization has become the key ingredient, so mass production
is not at all a good idea. However, when it comes to models that are being built for masses with much lesser customization
options, robotics can be a great option for them, mostly due to a less complicated assembly process.
22
July 2017