F12: Finding Your “Why” & Your First In-House Robotic Project

Finding Your "Why" for Robotics
There are lots of reasons for robotic automation, like cost savings, reshoring supply chain, improving quality, safety, and more. What most companies who are new to automation don't realize is that it is important to prioritize those "why's" in your unique manufacturing organization to be successful. We'll look at about a dozen common reasons "why" to automate and dissect what they really mean and the effect they can have (good and bad) on an organization. We'll also look at what that journey looks like, prioritizing one "why" over another.
Josh Leath – Yaskawa Motoman

Your First In-house Robotic Project: Benefits and Drawbacks of Starting with a “Robot-in-a-Box” Versus a Partially Complete Pre-engineered Cell
With the continued challenges facing manufacturing, many companies are automating for the first time. The first step is to identify the right application. Once that is done and the approval to move forward is given, the question that often arises is: Now what? There are 3 common paths forward: use a systems integrator, purchase a “robot in a box” and purchasing a pre-engineered building block to start from. While the Systems Integrator approach is a very viable one and is frequently a great choice for the first application, this session will describe the benefits and drawbacks of the latter 2 approaches: starting from scratch versus purchasing a pre-engineered but unfinished solution. Attendees will come away with a better understanding of the benefits, costs and risks associated with these approaches and will be better able to judge which path forward is the correct one for them.
Patrick J. Varley – Mitsubishi Factory Automation