New developments in production automation are making it easier, faster and cheaper to set up new production lines. The question is to what extent these developments will change the way we think about supply chain management and perhaps the design of supply chains. We are waiting for the first pop-up factory.
'Factory in a Day' is the name of a European research project in which Delft University of Technology is playing a pioneering role. The aim: to set up a complete production line using robots within one day. Currently, it still takes at least three months for a robot to be operational, leading to long lead times and high costs. After all, half of the implementation costs of a classic robot are spent on system integration, a cost that virtually disappears if the time required for this is reduced to one day.
project is mainly aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises, which currently use few robots. The reason is that these companies often produce only small series, making a classic robot simply too expensive. With a robot that can learn a new task within a day, it suddenly does become attractive to invest in this technology. Especially since these short learning times make it interesting to hire robots for short periods of time. The Eindhoven start-up Smart Robotics, with funding from the Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij (BOM) and others, is pitching itself as a robot employment agency.
Along with other developments such as 3D printing and the Internet of Things, the new generation of robots is making it faster and easier than ever to set up production lines. While it will take some time before 3D printing is suitable to replace current mass production techniques such as injection moulding - if it ever happens - it at least makes it possible to make new moulds for injection moulding machines faster and cheaper. 3D printing also has an important role to play in the 'Factory in a Day' project, such as the manufacture of new parts for the production line like new grippers for the robot. The Internet of Things then makes it possible to copy a newly learned 'trick' from one robot to another, even if it is on the other side of the world.
These developments in production techniques will change the way we think about the design of supply chains. First of all, the costs and lead times for putting new products into production are falling. Companies are more likely to decide to test a new product design in practice and produce small batches. If the product does not score, we will stop production and use the robots for another product.
In addition, flexibility in the supply chain is increasing. If a new product suddenly becomes a craze in southern Europe and demand increases, an additional, perhaps temporary production line can be started up locally quickly and cheaply. Think of a pop-up factory temporarily serving a number of pop-up stores.
Flexibility also means that large companies can shift production capacity more easily. If one factory fills up, some production can be moved to another factory with excess capacity within days. Now, many companies with multiple factories in Europe choose to produce part of the range for the whole of Europe at each factory. This allows them to reduce set-up times and produce larger batches. Soon it may become more attractive again to produce the complete range for the local market in each factory.
Of course, it is not yet that far. Many production tools are specifically designed for certain product groups and not so easily interchangeable. However, the question is whether this will continue to be the case in the future. More and more companies will look not only at production costs when setting up production lines, but also at flexibility. This may lead to better returns in the long run.
Marcel te Lindert - journalist logistics and supply chain
