UK manufacturing needs to have ‘automation at its heart’

At Smart Factory Expo held last week at the NEC, Birmingham, industrial automation specialist Fanuc UK Ltd hailed the importance of nurturing a robust supply chain to secure the future of UK manufacturing. In a presentation at the event’s Automation and Robotics Theatre, Oliver Selby, Fanuc UK’s head of sales, said that a successful manufacturing sector needs to have ‘automation at its heart’, and that cooperation, joined up thinking and partnerships between all stakeholders is key to achieving this.

He continued: “It is imperative that manufacturers get the right automation solution for their needs, at the right price, and with the right payback. Key to de-risking automation investment is building strong partnerships between everyone in the manufacturing ecosystem. At Fanuc, we work with a variety of both horizontal and vertical partners – from end users, Tier suppliers and automation solution providers in the vertical, to academic institutions, trade organisations and even venture capital firms in the horizontal.

This ultimately enhances the offering we can give to our customers in the form of niche products and systems that exactly meet their needs; favourable pricing and servicing agreements; and wider support such as R&D and training. By developing our resource capacity and capability in this way, the process of investing in automation is considerably de-risked for manufacturers who can leverage the experience of not just Fanuc, but the wider automation community.”

LIVE WorldSkills UK qualifiers
Fanuc’s commitment to nurturing a strong automation pipeline is further evidenced by its partnership with www.worldskillsuk.org WorldSkills UK. The Industrial Robotics live qualifying competition took place across the two days of the show, and saw 12 teams of two young robotics programmers contest for a place in the national final in November.

Following training and support from Fanuc’s technical team, the contestants are tasked with programming a robot to perform a pick and place application, similar to what industry might deploy. The teams are judged not just on their programming skills, accuracy and speed, but also on softer skills such as organisation, teamwork and documentation.

Mr Selby added: “Every year, the talent on display at WorldSkills UK gets stronger and stronger. It is an honour to partner with this initiative and to know we are helping to develop the next generation of robotics engineers.”

The theme of partnerships also extended to Fanuc’s stand, where the company showcased the expertise of five of its key partners — a robot palletising system from Reeco Automation Ltd, ideal for factories where space is limited, using a Fanuc CRX 20ia/L robot; a flexible, modular automation solution from Expert Technologies Group, perfect for taping and glueing applications; the Soldmatic welding training solution from Cyber-Weld Ltd, seen as vital in upskilling the future workforce required to deliver the government’s defence plans; an industrial laser system from Cyan-Tec; and expert guidance on how to safely employ industrial robots for collaborative applications from Cobots and Machinery Safety Ltd.

Mr Selby concluded: “Fanuc was delighted to have so many of our key partners with us at Smart Factory Expo, which once again proved itself to be a real highlight of the manufacturing calendar. By working together, we hope to demonstrate to UK manufacturers the many benefits that automation can bring, including increased efficiency, a solution to the ongoing labour crisis, and reduced energy costs.”