the cost of the automation required.
“Our experience shows that direct
labour costs can be only a small
factor in a complete ROI calculation
and consideration of all the benefits
can yield surprising results.
“For example, our calculations
– using customers’ figures –
have shown that where manual
processes are a controlling factor
on throughput, efficiency of the
production system can be as low
as 50% due to the bottlenecks and
irregular pace of manual processes.
This means that for an 8-hour period
only four hours of actual production
are completed,” says Mike.
Automation may remove some of the
labour cost but far more importantly
can regularise production pace and
bring efficiency into the 90+% range.
An increase in efficiency at this
scale could remove a second shift,
increase the ROI on the entire plant,
and allow a producer to reliably meet
its supply demands – all far more
significant economically than labour
savings.
Turnkey systems or robots and
training
Design Energy has worked with
a range of manufacturers and
producers to custom design
industrial automation systems.
Attaining an in-depth understanding
of your process and products
enables the company to deliver the
most effective automation solution.
“We aren't shy about asking
questions, and will probably require
a visit to your production site to gain
a full overview of your operation.
This discovery phase looks at
feasibility and potential paybacks as
well as the concept for the system
we will offer.
“We can then offer a fixed price,
time and materials, or a stage-bystage
estimation. This depends
on the complexity of the machine,
the likelihood we can reproduce the
machine for another customer (some
of our clients wish to retain individual
design rights) and a number of other
factors.”
Where Design Energy’s clients already
have sufficient in-house capability, it
can supply stand-alone robots and
provide robotics training, process
engineering and servicing as required.
Offering support well beyond the
delivery stage
After Design Energy has designed
and built your customised robotics
solution, it conducts testing of the
automation system before delivery.
This results in being able to identify
any potential issues in the machine
and minimise any disruption to an
operation.
“Once we've delivered your robotics
solution and commissioned it, we
want you to be able to use it straight
away – and see the difference that a
Design Energy system can make.
“In addition to putting your system
through vigorous in-house testing at
Design Energy, we'll spend the first
few months closely monitoring the
performance of your new automation
system. We want to ensure that the
machine we've worked on is delivering
both the levels of reliability we pride
ourselves on, and the production
improvements that our clients expect.
"Our extensive experience allows us to
train both operators and programmers
within your production line, offering
you the highest level of efficiency in
your processes.
“Our factory-trained engineers are
available all year round to provide
maintenance when needed. With the
inclusion of an annual maintenance
service, you'll be enjoying the benefits
offered by our world-class robotics
automation service for well over a
decade,” says Mike.
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