Application
ABB’s GoFa collaborative robots help employees on packaging lines to feed products at the right speed, while keeping them at a safe distance from the machines.
The challenge
Belgian social enterprise AMAB recently purchased new packaging machines and needed a safe and user-friendly way to feed them with products. As the aim of the initiative is to create employment, the solution was needed to assist the workers to perform their tasks at their personal speed and within their respective safety distance.
The solution
ABB GoFa collaborative robots (cobots) feed the products into the machines and push them through to the next stage, where they are then labelled, boxed and put onto pallets by the workers. With the added flexibility enabled by the cobots, AMAB can now take on more and larger projects, generating extra work for its employees.
ABB's GoFa cobots are helping Belgian social enterprise AMAB to improve productivity on packaging lines across its three sites.
Operating from three locations around Brussels, AMAB was created to provide employment opportunities for people with difficulty accessing the labor market. Now employing around 800 people, the organization provides outsourced facilities for a range of activities, including goods packaging.
With a commitment to sustainability as part of its operating ethos, the company had recently installed new packaging machines that use up to 80 percent less plastic. These machines were initially fed with a servo-pneumatic system which proved to be too fast and too noisy for the working environment.
To address this, AMAB opted to replace the system with an ABB GoFa cobot on one of the packaging machines. With its fast and precise performance, ability to move freely, and the lack of compressed air noise, the cobot proved ideal for the job, improving both worker productivity and safety by feeding products into the packaging machine.
By matching the speed of the machine, which operates at up to 35 cycles per minute, the cobot creates a buffer, allowing the workers to operate at their own pace while increasing overall output.
"Our packaging line is a great example of what cobots are meant for: making work safer, more enjoyable, and ergonomic, without replacing anyone," said Rudi Crombé. "With the help of ABB's GoFa cobots, we can now quickly adapt to handle new products and take on new projects that generate extra job opportunities."
Although it features extensive safety measures that enable it to be used directly alongside human operators, the cobot is installed in a cage to keep workers safe from the packaging machines.
The success of the installation has led to eight more GoFa cobots being ordered, resulting in a total of nine cobots that will be used across AMAB's three sites. Together, the cobots will enable AMAB to transform productivity and offer a competitive service to potential customers.
The cobots are quick and easy to set up. Using ABB's intuitive Wizard easy programming software, which replaces complex coding with block-based drag and drop commands, they can be easily programmed to handle different products and meet different packaging requirements. The simplicity of the software was a key factor in enabling ABB to train AMAB's team on operating the robots in just one day, with no additional support required since.
"We opted to use cobots because they can move freely. We can program their movements flexibly, and there is no noise from compressed air," said Rudi Crombé, Technical Manager at AMAB.
Perfect workmates
Despite some initial concerns about the cobots taking their jobs, AMAB's employees have found them to be the perfect workmates. Since the cobots were installed, employees have reported that their work has become easier and more pleasant.
The installation of the cobots has helped the workers to improve their productivity and handle other tasks, with no jobs lost.
