How much investment is needed to set up a flexible production line and achieve automation upgrades?

In the new era of intelligent manufacturing, where customer demands are increasingly diverse and personalized, more and more companies are urgently seeking automation transformation and upgrades. At the same time, there is significant interest in flexible production lines. However, concerns over “high investment costs” and “long payback periods” have consistently been obstacles for many businesses.

So, how much investment is really needed to set up a flexible production line and achieve automation upgrades?
Let’s break it down for you.

▼ First, consider the various costs in the traditional manufacturing model:

• Labor Costs: Each machine tool requires one operator.

• Labor Costs: Manual transportation of materials, fixtures, etc.

• Time Costs: Idle equipment caused by workpiece switching, clamping, and setup changes.

• Time Costs: Machine tool downtime caused by searching for or allocating blanks, fixtures, tools, and CNC programs.

• Time Costs: Delays or damage caused by errors or missing process documents and data transfers.

• Time Costs: Equipment downtime due to breakdowns or worker rest periods.

• Time Costs: Frequent tool setup increases the risk of errors or deviations, resulting in defective parts.

• Low Machine Tool Utilization:
  Unpredictable and unavoidable equipment waiting times and wasted time costs significantly reduce equipment usage rates in traditional manufacturing models, greatly cutting down annual machining hours.

▼ Now, compare this to the costs in a flexible automated production model:

• Reduced Labor Costs: One technician can control multiple devices.

• Reduced Labor Costs: Automatic transportation of materials, tools, etc.

• Reduced Time Costs: Automated production lines operate 24/7, unaffected by worker rest, minimizing equipment downtime.

• Reduced Time Costs: Smart production management software automatically calculates the resources needed for orders, balances production tasks, and schedules production, reducing machine idle time.

• Reduced Time Costs: Centralized management of CNC programs (program versions), tool detection, and tool life management ensures smooth operation during unmanned night shifts.

• Reduced Time Costs: Maintaining the position of pallets avoids positioning errors caused by continuous setup corrections, ensuring workpiece quality and reducing scrap costs.

• Around-the-Clock Production:
  Flexible production lines fully utilize machine tool working hours, enabling “lights-out machining” during unmanned night shifts. This significantly enhances equipment utilization, increases annual machining hours, and maximizes the company’s production potential.

In fact, flexible automation is not a new concept. Its prototype first emerged in the 1960s and began thriving in European and American countries in the 1970s. Today, with the rapid advancements in control and information technology, along with continuous optimization of production organization and management methods, flexible manufacturing systems have become highly reliable, stable, and efficient. They can be reasonably built and expanded according to a company’s actual needs. While achieving high-efficiency production, the costs of implementation have significantly decreased compared to the past.