May 2025 Volume 7

AUTOMATION

manufacturing line anymore. From part geometries to press cycles to floor space constraints, every facility has its own challenges and opportunities. A real automation partner – the kind that knows what they’re doing, anyways – doesn’t just toss in a robot or conveyor beside your forging press and call it a day. They engineer the whole system to work. They look at the whole picture: press configuration, material flow, operator safety, automation integration, and future scalability. “It’s vitally important that the automation design considers the press needs, such as maintenance and die changes, and also that the press design considers automation needs, such as daylight clearance for loading and access ports for other activities like lubrication,” says Paul St-Jean, automation engineer manager with Macrodyne Technologies. Now, let’s be clear on something. This level of customization isn’t just a luxury. It’s what separates automation that just works from automation that transforms your production. It's the difference between plugging in isolated machines versus engineering a smart, fully integrated production cell built around your actual needs. And it’s not just about the robots or the conveyors. It’s about making sure every component, from the press to the robot to the sensors, speaks the same language, works on the same timeline, and reports to the same dashboard. Why? It’s important to keep in mind that automation doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It needs to work hand-in-hand with the press itself. And while building a great press is one thing (and yes, plenty of companies can do that), it’s what happens when you separate the press from the automation that causes problems. When different vendors are responsible for different pieces of the puzzle, you get more complexity, more finger-pointing, and less accountability when something breaks down. When a single provider designs both the press and the automation system, the result is a fully synchronized operation. “Manufacturers are no longer looking for ‘just a press’ or ‘just a robot,’” says Jeffrey Walsh, Director of Business Development with Macrodyne Technologies. “They’re looking for turnkey systems that work together seamlessly, from the push of the start button to the final part rolling off the line. No silos. No compatibility issues. No guessing who to call when something goes wrong. Just one solution, built right, running right, day in, day out. And one team that owns the results.” You don’t get that kind of performance from pieced-together parts and bargain-bin vendors. And no, doing it right isn’t cheap, but doing it wrong could be devastating or cost significantly more in the long run. The Cost of Automation and Why It Pays Off So, let’s say you’ve done your homework. You’ve started exploring automation, found the right company, and booked the call. The demo blows you away. It’s everything you hoped for: streamlined production and smarter systems. You’re excited. You can see the future: robotic arms loading parts with precision, transfer systems

that move dies seamlessly between stations, smart sensors flagging issues before they become problems, and safety systems built right into the workflow. And then you get the quote. Suddenly, that excitement? Not so exciting anymore. Sticker shock is real. But so is the ROI. Yes, automation requires a serious upfront investment that can sting a little. You could say it’s a little like ripping off Band-Aids made of hundred-dollar bills. But companies that bite the bullet often find themselves asking the same question a year later: why didn’t we do this sooner? Every company is different, of course, with unique production needs and setups, but one thing is certain: adopting automation can cut manufacturing costs in a big way. In fact, companies that invest in automation end up cutting their costs by more than twice as much as those that are slow to get on board, according to a survey by Bain & Company.2 Every Hour Counts…and Some Cost Millions For starters, we all know the pain of downtime: it costs. Big time. In fact, according to one Deloitte study, unplanned downtime costs industrial manufacturers an estimated $50 billion each year.3 Another report, this one by Siemens, says that unplanned downtime costs are generally much higher today than five years ago. It states, “In Automotive, every hour of downtime costs twice what it did in 2019. In Heavy Industry, it costs four times as much.” To take the most extreme example, the report continues, automotive manufacturers now lose $2.3 million for each unproductive hour. By integrating automation into your press systems, you allow for predictive maintenance, system alerts, and data-driven diagnostics that prevent breakdowns before they happen. “Predictive Maintenance (PdM) has allowed them to avoid machine failures on the one hand and the costs of over maintenance on the other. Frequent scheduled maintenance keeps machines healthy, but it also has considerable costs in unnecessarily closed lines and the need to keep up stocks of expensive spares,” outlines the report. Humans Make Mistakes. Automation Doesn’t Then there’s the cost of human error to factor in. And it’s no pocket change. A report by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) states that human errors can lead to manufacturing scrap and rework, costing between 5% to 30% of the total manufacturing expenses.5 That’s not just wasted material. It’s wasted time, lost productivity, delayed shipments, frustrated teams and rather unhappy customers. The real kicker? Most of it is preventable. Automation doesn’t get distracted. It doesn’t misread a gauge or forget a step in the process.

FIA MAGAZINE | MAY 2025 39