What is Factory Automation, and How Does it Help Businesses?

Blogs

15 Jul 2024

Have you ever wondered how your business would look if everything were automated and more technologically advanced? You need not wonder, as factory automation can help your business digitalise your workflow and eliminate repetitive tasks.

Factory automation is a technological revolution allowing manufacturing processes to run with little to no human intervention. It increases productivity and reduces costs, making it an appealing investment for businesses.

Initially, it only aimed to improve essential mechanisation so that workers wouldn’t spend much time doing repetitive tasks. However, as it progressed, it started enabling components like robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT) to work together to streamline production and enhance precision.

Computers and robots are standard tools used in this system, but full automation can consist of other devices like sensors, controllers, and a designated computer that oversees the overall process. These devices ensure that the system functions appropriately to optimise its maximum potential.

In this article, you will discover more about factory automation, its types, and how it can benefit your business.

Benefits of Factory Automation for Businesses

Factory automation has a lot of advantages, especially if you have a business and want to improve your machine or workflow environment. Let’s break down some of its benefits.

Increased Efficiency and Productivity

The most evident benefit of factory automation is enhanced efficiency and productivity, as these automated machines can operate 24/7, unattended and without breaks. Faster production cycles also mean increased output, which will surely help you meet tight deadlines or large orders.

As your business produces larger outputs quickly, you can scale up your operations to effectively meet growing demand.

You can also achieve better precision by automating even a tiny portion of the production process, like installing built-in sensors. Sometimes, human errors can be costly, leading to wasted materials, rework, or delays. Thus, it’s essential to have consistent accuracy.

Cost Reduction

Automating processes in your workflows can significantly reduce your need for manual labour, lowering the cost of producing a product. However, automation doesn’t mean you’ll replace the human workforce. Instead, it can help your employees focus on higher-level, creative tasks to elevate your business.

As previously mentioned, automation systems are designed to perform tasks with high accuracy, which means that you can minimise waste as it ensures a low margin of errors. Lastly, when you digitalise your work processes, you can optimise your energy usage by automating, adjusting, and monitoring your energy consumption.

Improved Quality and Consistency

Another way automation can assist you is by ensuring that every item rolling off the production line meets the highest standard. Due to its precision or accuracy benefit, automation can eliminate the discrepancies that might occur with manual labour.

Sensors and other devices can also monitor the quality of the output; they check errors in real time, and if any issues arise, they can be detected and corrected. This additional assurance in quality will solidify your business’s good reputation, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Enhanced Safety and Working Conditions

All good employers always want to prioritise their employees’ safety, and by automating hazardous tasks and making them machine-focused, you can reduce–or even eliminate–accidents that may occur in the workplace.

Machines built into factory automation systems can sense potential danger and automatically shut down when there is a threat or harm to human operators.

Lastly, factory automation providers help businesses comply with safety regulations and standards by integrating advanced safety protocols into the machines. This protects employees and minimises the risk of costly fines and legal issues.

Types of Factory Automation Systems

Like any other system, factory automation comes in different types, each tailored to meet specific production needs. As a business owner looking to automate processes, you must understand these types to help you choose the right solution.

Here are the three most common types that businesses use:

Fixed Automation

From the term itself, fixed automation refers to specific processes that mass-produce a fixed or single, unaltered product. It is highly customised to meet your business’s specialised needs, including equipment and other custom-engineered solutions.

Due to its customised nature, fixed automation has high initial investment costs. But the price will be worth it as it offers long-term benefits, including consistent, high-quality products and reasonable production rates.

If you’re in automotive manufacturing or any industry where you need to produce high-volume standardised products, then fixed automation is for you.

Programmable Automation

If you’re in an industry where product lifecycles are shorter and ever-changing, like consumer electronics, programmable automation might be the best type for your business. It allows easy reprogramming that can quickly adapt to product design or requirements changes.

Programmable automation offers the flexibility to manufacture different products or variations within the same product line. This type of automation uses devices like Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) to control equipment and processes.

Flexible Automation

This automation is also customisable depending on the product type. However, unlike programmable automation, flexible automation can be executed faster.

As the industry describes, flexible automation takes adaptability to the next level, allowing quick changes between products without significant downtime. This automation system is designed for low to medium-production volumes and is perfect for pharmaceuticals and consumer goods industries.

So, if your business needs to respond to market changes quickly, flexible automation is what you’ll need.

Challenges and Considerations in Implementing Factory Automation

Though a factory automation system has many benefits, there are still some challenges or considerations you must reflect on before integrating one.

The first is budget. You must know that automating your business will have a high upfront cost. Advanced technology, such as robotics, machines, and other equipment, is expensive, so you must consider it a long-term investment.

Over time, automation can lead to significant returns through increased efficiency, reduced labour costs, and minimised errors.

Another consideration is how long you can capacitate your workers to manage and maintain the potential integration of an automated system. Needless to say, automation does not eliminate your human workforce; instead, it shifts the focus to more technical and supervisory roles.

This is why, alongside factory automation, you must also invest in continuous training programs for your employees so that they can keep pace with your business’s technological advancements. Having knowledgeable personnel is vital to the systems’ success and smooth operation and maintenance.

The Future of Factory Automation

As industries lean toward modernisation, factory automation is crucial in keeping up with this advancement. It can drive your business’s efficiency, precision, and competitiveness. With its steady growth and demand, factory automation systems promise even more significant innovations and improvements in the coming years.

This is why you should start investing now.

Partnering with experts like AECSS can help you seamlessly navigate this evolving landscape. We specialise in providing state-of-the-art end-to-end automation systems to help businesses boost productivity and optimise operations by incorporating Lean methodology into our designs.

AECSS

What is Factory Automation, and How Does it Help Businesses?