Can automation solve manufacturing labor shortages? The answer is yes.
People want jobs that require something other than difficult manual tasks. Repetitive, heavy lifting is physically demanding and mentally unsatisfying. The aversion to labor-intensive jobs is also evident in economic statistics. 45% of durable, premium manufacturing positions remain unfilled. In the United States, this highlights the significant gap between available opportunities and the propensity of the workforce to be injury-prone and hard-working.
We know that the lack of sufficient people to fill roles is particularly acute in the manufacturing sector. People employed in manual roles, such as palletizing, want to stay in that position for a short period of time. As a result, operations managers must constantly move or add people to address each process bottleneck, leaving them in a constant onboarding loop. There are real costs to hiring workers. According to ZippiaRecruitment costs can be significant.
- The average hiring cost is $1,633 per job posting.
- HR spends 15% of its budget on recruiting.
- It takes an average of 39 days to fulfill a role.
- Training costs between $650-$1,100 per year.
- It takes an average of 12 days for a new hire to reach their productivity potential.
Amid recruitment challenges and rising costs, it is clear that specific labor shortages need to be addressed. This blog article explores the dynamics of manufacturing labor shortages, with a particular focus on palletizing operations. In this blog, we will review misconceptions about palletizing and automation, the role of manual labor, the disadvantages of human palletizing, solutions to the manufacturing labor shortage, and look to the future.
look to the future
that much automation environment As Anders Beck, Vice President Strategy and Innovation at Universal Robots emphasized, significant changes are poised to occur. As demand for turnkey solutions grows, automation must become more user-friendly and accessible to small businesses.
Businesses are under pressure to find low-risk automation solutions that deliver immediate cost savings. The solution is expected to integrate seamlessly into existing processes without disrupting upstream and downstream operations. There is also a change towards modular production Use lightweight collaborative robots (“cobots”). These cobots continually expand their payload and reach, providing an adaptable and scalable solution.
Shrinking talent pools and manufacturing talent shortages are forcing companies to take another look at automated solutions. This is a good thing, because automated solutions have improved significantly over the past few years. For example, collaborative robots have made robotic palletizers accessible to companies with different levels of expertise. Companies do not need internal resources with extensive technical expertise to operate these palletizing solutions.
Misconceptions about palletizing and automation
The most important part of production is delivering the product to the customer. As we know, palletizing shapes supply chain efficiency and profitability of the entire value stream. Pallet packaging is the final touch point before entering the shipping and warehousing process.
What is palletizing?Palletizing is the process of arranging products in primary or secondary packaging and stacking them on pallets. The pallet is protected to become a single handling, transport, storage and distribution unit. Palletizing was a manual process until robots could keep up with human capabilities. Today’s turnkey palletizing solutions offer adaptable hardware and user-friendly software, allowing more manufacturers to invest in palletizing automation. |
Misconceptions about palletizing automation
Despite advances in robotic palletizing, many common misconceptions persist. This is understandable. Progress has accelerated over the past few years. Some of the myths Robotiq encounters are:
| mythology | reality |
| Anyone who can automate the palletizing process has already done so. | lie. Many businesses (especially small and medium-sized businesses) have evaluated their available options in the past and decided not to invest. Some common reasons include:
Fortunately, solutions are available on the market today to address these barriers. These solutions are economical, easy to use, and can be integrated without extensive reconfiguration. |
| There are only a few automation solutions to choose from. |
lie. There are many robots, software platforms, and integration companies on the market. However, available product solutions are fragmented and disjointed. Solutions must be cohesive, which requires each company to find and integrate solutions. Fortunately, there are also turnkey options that strike the perfect balance between standardization and adaptability. Standardized for palletizing operations, these solutions can be tailored to meet the unique needs of each business. |
| All robotic palletizers require highly skilled personnel to program and operate. |
lie. Companies that adopted robots 10 years ago will be amazed at the advancements in software. For example, turnkey solutions include pre-programmed, user-friendly software that can be mastered in a few hours. |
| Automated palletizing solutions can only deliver a return on investment for large enterprises. |
lie. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) can achieve their ROI goals by choosing the right palletizing solution. For example, choosing a turnkey solution can accelerate your ROI timeline. Our turnkey solutions provide an affordable solution for stacking pallets within a shift. that much Palletizing case studies on our website Here are some ROI examples, including: 18-month ROI Advanced packaging manufacturing sector |
| Palletizing robots require a significant footprint and ample overhead space. |
lie. Collaborative robot solutions require much less installation space than traditional robotic solutions. Traditional industrial robotic palletizers are large and require safety barriers to keep them away from people. Installation requires reconfiguring the factory floor or creating a separate centralized palletizing location. |
| Palletizing robots always require a fenced and safe area. |
lie. Not all palletizers need to work inside the barrier. Collaborative robots are designed with safety as a top priority and are designed to work alongside humans. Equipped with force sensors, the robot can stop quickly to avoid collisions. While every installation requires a safety assessment, there are applications where cobot palletizers operate in close proximity to people. |
The role of labor in palletizing operations
People like to avoid placing boxes on pallets. So why are we still relying on this manual process? It has persisted for two main reasons.
- adaptability: Human operators have the ability to adapt to varying case weights, dimensions, cycle times, and other real-time factors.
- flexibility: Humans have dynamic problem-solving abilities and can adapt in real time.
However, there are some disadvantages to relying on people to palletize products.
Disadvantages of human palletizing
tall palette
international shipping cost keep high This is expected to continue due to factors such as conflicts in shipping routes. To alleviate these higher costs, manufacturers are increasing the quantity of product on each pallet. This includes maximizing vertical space utilization.
Manufacturers increase pallet heights, but this practice increases the risk of injury to employees. As boxes increase in weight and height, manual stacking becomes difficult, especially when placing boxes overhead.
safety and quality
Loading boxes onto pallets can be a monotonous task. The box can be heavy especially in food production. Picking up boxes on a production line means packers have to carry products up and down their waists, making them prone to repetitive strain injuries (RSIs) and other safety hazards.
When manufacturers detect bottlenecks in production, they move people into the value stream. Moving people to other tasks can help morale. However, in the process, when trained people move to other areas, more environmentally friendly people move in. This person must quickly learn dozens of palette configurations. Manufacturing companies may have thousands (or hundreds of thousands!) of SKUs to manage. The complexity of the product and the inexperience of palletizers increase the risk of making mistakes or taking safety risks.
Quality is essential in every industry. However, the consequences of a mistake are higher in the pharmaceutical, food production or beverage distribution industries. For companies with hundreds of SKUs and dozens of pallet configurations, this means ongoing training and oversight from leaders to avoid mistakes. This is a time-consuming task for full-time operators and plant leadership.
Solutions to manufacturing labor shortage
Workers are less concerned about being replaced by automation. Instead, they expect automation to help them with their daily tasks. More than 80% of workers You want to invest in automation that will help you get your work done. Deploying the right automation solutions can help you increase the value your workforce contributes.
- adaptability: Flexible software should allow for rapid changeover and new programs. For example, Robotiq uses auxiliary tools and Simple configuration So switching to different settings is easy. Our turnkey solution makes it easy to create pallet layouts. additionally, Robotiq Palletizing Solutions Automatically generates optimized trajectories for collaborative robots, reducing cycle times and making workers’ jobs easier.
- flexibility: Robotic palletizers can adjust case weight, dimensions and cycle times. that much Robotiq Palletizer Simulator Shows how simple it is to configure a palletizing robot.
conclusion
Can automation solve the palletizing labor shortage problem? At Robotiq, we believe that automating these types of tasks – especially those with a risk of injury – is the simplest way to solve this problem. Automation offers businesses of all sizes the opportunity to save time, reduce costs and keep employees well-being.
Labor shortage figures and worker turnover prove that people do not want to work in repetitive, low-skilled jobs. We have found that any manufacturer, including small and medium-sized businesses, can automate their palletizing process using a turnkey solution. Integrating cobot palletizers at the end of the production line provides manufacturers with the opportunity to empower individuals, improve productivity, and promote adaptability.
Move
It could be fully automated by next month. Robotiq offers a variety of palletizing solutions to ensure an option is readily available to meet your requirements.
Schedule a time with an automation expert to discuss your requirements, evaluate feasibility, and estimate ROI.
