How can collaborative robots help the Romanian logistics industry?

More than 8 in 10 industrial and logistics companies operating locally want to accelerate investment next year, according to Colliers International. Less affected in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, the Romanian industrial and logistics space market has quickly adapted to the new economic context, being currently in a growth that is expected to be enhanced in the future by the even stronger development of the e-commerce segment and digitization. All this means more production centers relocated or even developed in Romania, among other European countries, so also a need for more warehouses and other such logistics spaces in order to store large stocks of products. Under these conditions, the automation of activities carried out in such spaces can only increase the efficiency of work processes and productivity of businesses in this area.

Also following the e-commerce boom in recent years, even smaller businesses have started to address how to make the process of dispatching goods from the warehouse to customers as efficient as possible. It is a process that is the least popular among employees due to frequent strenuous movements. For this reason, large companies based in distribution centers are leaving this task to industrial robots. But what about smaller companies? They want to keep their warehouses full of goods and products to optimize costs, so there is often no room for large robot cages. That’s exactly why collaborative robots (cobots) are on the market. Their flexibility is increasingly appreciated especially by small and medium-sized companies.

Due to the dynamically changing logistics industry, integrated automation solutions are now available for many companies and businesses. For example, the e-commerce industry, where e-shops send packages directly to customers. This usually means picking many orders from the warehouse one or several at a time. Handling boxes for these types of orders is no problem for a collaborative robot.

Closely related to the growth of the industrial and logistics market is the intention of companies operating in this area in Romania to robotize applications related to these branches to become more efficient and more competitive. A study found that 47.7% of companies that intend to implement robotic automation in the next period plan to robotize the packaging and palletizing applications, and 46.5% loading and unloading applications.

Collaboration with humans

Thanks to its patented design, the cobot can work alongside employees. It has different degrees of autonomy depending on the setup, always after a careful risk assessment in the operation:

• It works like a normal industrial robot and stops when an employee gets within a certain proximity.
• If an employee is near it, it will reduce its speed and power. This allows the robot to continue working while ensuring the safety of the operator.
• The robot can also work directly where the operator is intended to be present, or even where they are working together. The speed, force and power are also adapted for this type of operation.

Cobot is suitable for a wide range of processes on the factory floor. Whether it is the picking of individual products and boxes, product inspection using cameras or laser vision, or machine tending jobs.

Fast set-up and deployment

There is no time for long downtimes in the warehouse. The good news is that most collaborative robots are ready for immediate deployment out of the box. Thanks to their relatively light weight, cobots can be mounted on a table, on the ceiling, or in otherwise confined spaces.

Traditional industrial robots are larger, require central computers (PLCs), safety equipment and fencing, etc. This quite significantly limits the space where these solutions can be integrated. In a large distribution warehouse or a huge production hall, there is room for such a solution, but smaller businesses often do not have such comfort.

Another advantage of cobots is the ability to easily change the end tool, i.e. the part of the robot that is in contact with the product. The robots can be programmed for different tasks in advance, so after the end tool is replaced, the operator can simply select the relevant task from the cobot’s teach pendant.

Flexibility. Helps where it’s needed

A collaborative robot learns new tasks very quickly. It can also be withdrawn and redeployed on the factory floor very quickly to respond to current demand. There is no need to rebuild an entire production line or warehouse for the robot. In fact, it can be picked up and moved wherever it is needed. Customers often choose to mount the cobot on mobile robots (AGVs), which further increases their mobility.