Setpoint Systems Blog

A view from an assembly shop manager…

At Setpoint we follow the 5 S’s system, as the shop manager here is my take on how we are able to implement this in our assembly shop.

1. Sort - This is the hardest part for me.  I have a hard time throwing things away that could be very expensive or hard to get.  But, if I haven’t needed it in a long time, it ends up costing me more to store it than to buy it new when we need it.  By doing this you will free up more space, make your shop look more organized and less cluttered, make it faster to find what you are looking for, and end up costing your company less in the long run.
2. Straighten - For this you need to find a place to put everything you have decided to keep.  Look around for the best place to put the item, once you find that place mark it with tape or outline it so everyone knows where to put it away.  This needs to be done with everything, make it so at a glance you can tell if there is something left out or not put back where it belongs.  Think of it this way, if you have a new employee you would like them to be productive as quickly as possible so they can start working without looking for the tools they need.
3. Shine - Just like it sounds, keep it clean.  This could mean sweeping, putting tools away, or taking out the trash.  The more organized you are the less time it takes you to clean up.  It should look the same when you leave work as it did when you got there.
4. Standardize - This could mean using all the same brand of drills or tools so they are interchangeable and you can replace them as they wear out;  using the same vendors so they are familiar with your shops lay-out and how you like things, and where to put the items they are delivering.  Also, by using the same assembly and staging methods each time, this will help everyone get accustomed to the rules and guidelines your company has set up.  These guidelines can be followed without thinking about it or asking someone where to put a tool away.
5. Sustain - This is another hard one because when you have a lot of work to get done you tend to skip over some things that may not seem that important at the time.  When you let this happen it can get out of hand very fast, making a habit of cleaning and putting things away makes it easier to maintain them.  This is critical to the five S’s system; if you let it slip you end up doing the first three over and over.  Don’t be afraid to change something that just doesn’t feel right, find what works for you and your company.

We have had some questions lately as to what types of industrial automation Setpoint is capable of so below I have listed some of the capabilities that Setpoint has.

Filmless X-Ray Inspection Machine

We developed a non-destructive test and inspection machine using filmless x-ray technology.  This automated testing system was integrated on a high volume assembly line with complex equipment.  It was inserted in an already lean facility without any problems.  The end result was reducing wasted floor space by 75%, combining two machines into one automated machine, and decreasing labor minutes per unit by 50%.  Follow our link to learn more about filmless x-ray inspection using real time radiography.

Flexible Manufacturing Systems

A specific client needed a flexible torque station that would be able to accommodate quick model changeovers and be able to be modified for future growth and development.  The nesting system was developed so it could be swapped out in less than 30 seconds without needing any tools.  The end results were an auto cycle rate of 3-5 seconds, 30 second tooling changeovers, and orientation part sensing.  You can see a photo of the machine and more details about this flexible assembly equipment.

Turnkey Automated Swage Machine

We developed a hydraulic tube swage machine that came with quick change tooling, was able to process a wide range of bottle lengths, had a vision system verification of final product, and positive head pressure that prevented pump cavitations.  This swage machine had a high overall efficiency and a cycle time of less than 7 seconds per part.  This is another example of how custom automated machines can help increase efficiency and speed.

Lean Production Systems

We have many cases where lean automation and production were critical to the success of the project.  In each system we ensure that turn-key solutions can fit in as little space as possible while maintaining high quantity output and quality.  Tooling changes that can be done quickly ensures the systems are flexible.  A few examples of lean production systems we have developed are the real time radiography x-ray inspection and pyrotechnic powder loading and assembly machines.

I’ve been in the Industrial Automation business for over 15 years now and have seen quite a swing in the way manufacturers produce their products.   About 12 years ago I was working for a major tier 1 automotive components supplier as a process engineer.  The production lines were comprised of these large sophisticated machines that were all linked together with conveyors.  Parts were transported from station to station on small conveyor pallets and would stop at each station to either have value add work done or some sort of test or inspection performed.

There were several key issues with the large fully automated systems that produced our company’s products.

1. The lines were very expensive.  Many times ranging between $10-$15 million each.
2. The lead time for getting a full production line in place was anywhere between 15-24 months.
3. The machines were very complex and required a high level of engineering and maintenance support to keep them running.
4. The inventory of spare parts required to keep the systems up and running was huge
5. The systems, although “fully automated”, required more operators and support than expected to keep the systems running and clear all the faults, jams and other issues related to a complex system.
6. Changeovers took shifts if not days in some cases.  (Loss productivity and lots of labor for the CO)
7. The overall systems up time was terrible and in most cases ran in the 60-65% range
8. If one machine in the overall system went down, the entire line stopped while issues were resolved
9. The lines took up a huge amount of floor space and impeded process flow in many areas

Nice overview of traditional factory automation huh?   Well, the leaders of the company realized that this was not working out.  By the time a system was ordered, built, installed and commissioned, up to 2 years had gone by and many changes in both their product’s technologies and customer demands had changed. 

So lean thinking was introduced into the company and embraced by senior management.  This is ABSOLUTLY!! key for lean thinking to even have a chance.   The first task, after the basic 5’s stuff was out of the way was to find a better way to manufacture parts with simple, flexible equipment solutions that would address all the above listed issues.  Here is what happened.  I actually took part in this transformation and can vouch for how real and powerful Lean is.

1. The cost of the manufacturing lines went from $10-$15 Million to $850k-$2.5 million
2. Lead time for a lean line was around 6 months instead of 1.5 to 2  years
3. Machines were simple, flexible and easily reconfigurable because they were no longer connected via a vast network of conveyor systems.   Most machines were set up in cells in some sort of “U” shaped arrangement that allowed for easy access, flow and visual reference of what was going on in the cell at all times.
4. Spare parts inventory was cut by over 80% due to simple machine solutions.
5. Operators worked on the line to pass parts through the process but it offered the flexibility needed to handle a huge variety of products within a family.  We found that even though there was a manual interface requirement, the overall labor minutes per unit actually went down dramatically.
6. Changeovers from one model to the next were fast, efficient and mistake proofed.
7. Because the equipment was simple, easy to maintain and far less complicated, the overall uptime typically went from 65% to near 95%. 
8. If one machine in the overall system went down the other machines had small buffers that allowed the cell to keep running while individual machine issues were dealt with.
9. The floor space required for the cells was cut by over 75% in most cases.  This freed up valuable floor space for expansion for future business.

All in all, Lean Automation has made a huge impact for those manufacturers who have adopted the Lean philosophy and have strived to keep their competitive advantage intact through out the years of their specific business evolution.

So the theme I’m seeing here is, Go Lean or Go to China.  You decide.

If there was an easy way to make your company more profitable would you do it?  Most people know that a solution is out there but they are either too afraid to venture down that path or don’t adjust well to changes.  Unfortunately, in order to even survive in the business world we must adapt and be ready for change on a continual basis.  For the past three weeks Setpoint has given me the opportunity to read a very interesting book, Lean Thinking, written by James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones, which puts the focus on changes that most any business should do to achieve greater success and profitability.

Lean Thinking is dedicated to guiding the reader by showing us how to get rid of “muda”, or waste as we know it, from every aspect of the organization by following five small and simple processes which are Value, the Value Stream, Flow, Pull, and Perfection.  You must begin by determining what is valuable to the customer from their perspective, then map out all the necessary steps to achieve the value stream.  The next step is to make sure the parts flow through the value stream in the most efficient way so that once a customer places an order it can instantaneously by pulled through the stream.  Finally, always remember to strive for perfection.

This is a proven method that has worked time and time again.  Womack and Jones used case study examples from mass production organizations across the world and in different industries but their thinking could literally be applied to any business or process.  There are always ways to look at processes and eliminate waste.  Setpoint has a great team working towards this ultimate goal that I know we are going to achieve and I’m glad I had this opportunity as it has really opened my eyes to old but new ideas that I can begin implementing in my department.

At Setpoint, we see a lot of remarkable product ideas come across our table.  These products range anywhere from lip balm to aerial vehicle decoy flares, snowboards to bullet shell casings.  Developing, testing, and building a lean process to mass produce these products is our bread and butter here at Setpoint. During our years of working with brilliant and sophisticated customers we have found a common problem that undermines many of their great product ideas. Though these products have great potential and even in some cases, strong appeal to my personal wants (snowboards), they suffer from a common disease - NDFM.  They are Not Designed for Manufacturability.

Designing for manufacturability (DFM) is the process of proactively designing products for optimization during fabrication, assembly, purchasing and testing.  Other factors include making sure the product meets third party regulations and shipping constraints.  For my purposes here I want to focus on the levels of fabrication and assembly. 

The process of designing for manufacturability should happen before the product idea is used as a foundation for building a product empire.  If there’s a critical crack in the foundation, the whole structure will either eventually come down for repair or cost an exponential amount of money to keep stable.  If it doesn’t come down, it will be because there’s a staggering array of expensive bandages to hold it together.  The latter conclusion only works until the next competitor comes along and has figured out a less costly approach.

The “Rule of 10”

In general, the “Rule of 10” states that for every phase through which a design advances, the cost for resolving issues increases by a factor of 10.  Ideally, if the issue can be caught while the part is still going through initial design iterations the cost of resolution is minimized or eliminated. 

Level where issue is found:       The cost to resolve the issue:
If found during design phase             minimal to none
If found during Prototype                   $X (the cost of the part itself)
If found during initial assembly          $10X
If found during mass production        $100X
If found during distribution                 $1000X
If found by the End User                    $10000X

By the time our customers are ready to automate they have normally advanced through the stages of design, prototyping, and initial assembly.  They are now looking for solutions to automate the assembly of their products that often have inherent issues that may become visible only when scrutinized under the light of automated assembly.  

Does designing for manufacturability mean changing the entire product?

Not necessarily, but that doesn’t mean it will be inexpensive to resolve.  It might mean changing the thickness of the sheet metal to a common gage, or making two asymmetrical parts symmetrical, moving a hole away from an edge, or changing a soldered joint to a fastened joint, adding a series of tapers to a part so it can be injection molded instead of cut by an EDM machine, doing a basic tolerance study, or just changing a blind hole to a through hole. These changes may be minor at the part level, but when the change is propagated through adjoining components and the dominoes start to fall it may cost $100X the price of the part, or more. 

MUDA

Muda is a Japanese term popularized from the Toyota Production System that generally denotes a process that is required but is unproductive, wasteful and does not add value.  One example might be automating a drilling process where lubricant is required.  Not only is it extremely messy and requires constant maintenance, but it implies pumps, reservoirs, a filtering system, waste disposal plans – all of which add enormous cost just to drill a hole.  On the other hand if a different approach can be adopted and the hole is preformed or cut by a procedure that doesn’t require lubricant, this automation process just became much more cost effective and maintenance friendly - Lean, you might say.

Why does Setpoint care as long as we get the job?

Our bottom line depends on how satisfied our customers are with the end product we develop.  We want to help our customers ask the right questions during the early phases of design to help them develop a product that is automation friendly and designed for manufacturability. No muda. This allows us to deliver a solution that is robust, cost effective, and lean in every aspect. 

The days of “throwing a design over the manufacturing wall” and waiting to see how they build it have come to an end.  Lean automation may be expensive, but inefficient automation based on a half developed product is out of budget.  

O.K. so what’s with the steel garbage can with a Setpoint logo and the anti TWIT sign on it?

TWIT is now known around Setpoint as it “Takes What It Takes”.  To help cut costs and be more profitable we have been challenged to look for quicker, faster, better and cheaper ways to accomplish the jobs given to us while still maintaining the level of quality that the customers expect.  The TWIT program was setup to encourage thinking in new or different ways to solve problems that are more efficient and less costly than what they have been done in the past.

In the TWIT program, a time or money saving idea that is implemented is recognized at the weekly Huddle.  Those involoved, what the process was and the benefits are explained to the company.  An item representing the cost savings or process is thrown in the can and a brief description is recorded on the can.  The best part is the excellent green bonus for the employees involved.

In one example, a slide that was specified proved to be too flimsy for the application.  An equivalent slide could not be found with mounting holes that were close.  A redesign of an expensive weldment and other parts in the assembly were needed to accommodate a more robust slide, it Takes What It Takes.  The difference came with the thought, “let’s just make our own slide.”  After some consideration, a slide was built using common off the shelf components and simple customized machined components.  The final configuration worked exceptionally well, was about the price of the original slide, and fit the existing mounting holes configuration so that no other redesign was needed.

Getting things done quicker, faster, better and cheaper will take some thinking outside the TWIT can.  If we can save $$$ by eliminating unnecessary operations or by new or different processes we will be more profitable.  As employees we will also have a nice little boost to our wallet.  Besides, isn’t this how new technology and processes are started…by thinking outside of the TWIT can?

Recently a question was posted in the “Machine Design” forum asking “How can America get the manufacturing back from China?”

I pose the question…why did America’s manufacturing move to China and Mexico, and can we ever get it back?

Here are my thoughts:

As more and more companies move to outsource manufacturing offshore looking for short term gains in labor rates what may be the long term consequences of these moves?

As shareholders demand a return on their investments, CEOs and CFOs look for ways to be profitable, after all this is how and why companies stay in business.

Mistakenly believing that labor per unit (LMPU) is the only factor to consider, and all other things being equal, many companies turned to lower labor rates in developing countries, with deficient environmental policies, safety standards, and often low product quality and substandard controls.

Recent examples are all around us, lead in paints, inferior steel, disease outbreaks in imported fruits and vegetables, staggering increases in emissions from these developing countries and rampant pollution.

Most of the companies’ leaders do not have technical backgrounds and do not realize that the problem of expensive labor could be solved here at home with automation, and the associated increase in quality that is inherent with automation.  Instead they focus on short term payback, and are further deterred from an automation solution because of the high initial development and installation costs.

Only after companies make the move offshore do they start to realize all the overlooked factors and start to insist on changes.

Unfortunately these companies are no longer in the United States so there is no recourse when trademarks, copyrights, patents, and just about all other intellectual property protection laws and rules are of no consequence to foreign governments who see this as an opportunity to increase their own standard of living.  Who can blame them?

They have learned manufacturing processes and assembly techniques.  They can maximize profits using the same cheap labor Americans were hoping to exploit and in the end get further gains by not having the constraints from environmentalists, labor unions, quality standards and regulations, nor do they really have to give back anything to the “American” company who showed them the technologies to start with.

So long term American greed, limited technical understanding, and short sightedness is the root cause of the decline of Americas manufacturing resources.

We did this to US!!

Setpoint was asked to retrofit a two up pick and place to a four up pick and place on a leak check machine.  This would be no problem, but due to space constraints we were only allowed to use one gripper. One gripper gripping four pars is not trivial due to the fact that the world is not perfect and every thing is not exactly the same size and shape.  We quickly made a prototype to see if this was even going to be possible. 

When we got the grippers in we tested them on some parts given to us by the customer. The test showed potential. We did, however, see that some parts if rotated became loose.  To solve this, we made some UHMW inserts that would give some compliance to the grippers.  After bench testing the UHMW gripper inserts on the parts given to us it looked as if the grippers would work.  The machine that we were retrofitting ran parts with three different heights.  After retrofitting the machine and running it we found that for the two taller parts the grippers worked fine, but for the smaller one the gripper did not work. 

To make the grippers work on the smaller parts Warren suggested using O-rings.  Instead of using O-rings we went one step further and made the UHMW gripper inserts out of polyurethane.  The polyurethane were more compliant and we could shape it to hug the whole part unlike an O-ring.  This gave us our best result yet.  The only problem with the polyurethane is that it would wear too fast and the gripper inserts were being replaced every three days.  This was unacceptable so we went back to the drawing board. 

We decided to make the gripper a three-point gripper.  This helped, but then we were told that we could not use polyurethane any more due to its poor wear properties.  We were so close to making the grippers work, but if we could not use polyurethane then this 4 up gripper tooling was not going to work.  Then it just so happened that I found an O-ring that worked perfectly with the current configuration of our gripper.  I quickly put them on and found they worked great.  I knew that I was going get an “I told you so” from Warren… and I did.  I took the grippers up to the customer and put them on and they ran fine.  I guess the moral of all this bla bla bla is listen to your shop guys.

The scara robot Setpoint will be integrating into station 1 on the new MGG machine has a spindle (z axis) with an internal diameter of Ø11mm.  All cables, tubes, and wires routed to this tooling must pass through the spindle.  Specifically, the tooling must have one sensor cable, one Ø5/32 airline, and two Ø1/4 air lines - one for vacuum and one for exhausting air. 

Obviously, this will not all fit through the spindle - we recognized this issue early in the design stage.  This resulted in a drastic redesign to develop an end effector that can function under either 80 psi pressure or 10mmHg vacuum while being plumbed through the same port.

We have now designed, prototyped, and tested a configuration of the tooling that is fully functional and all wiring/tubing fits through the unforgiving 11mm spindle shaft.  Central to the success of our first solution is vacuum generator M20A6-BN made by PIAB.  All prototype components were printed on Setpoints 3D printer out of natural ABS plastic.  Initial testing of this prototype unit is complete and ready to mount to the Scara robot.  We are now refining the design further to improve upon those points of the design that required compromise during critical redevelopment phase.

Through the years here at Setpoint we have seen automation companies come and go, and here are some of the things that we have learned as an industry leader. Anybody who is looking for automation should know the following 10 things - but if you don’t, that’s okay; we’ll guide you through it.

1. Automation can be a practical alternative to overseas labor.
Automating processes can decrease labor costs associated with producing products by combining multiple steps into one compact machine, making it cost effective to remain at home.

2. Costs twice as much and takes twice as long as you think.
When automating processes, the inclination is to look at the big components like robots or electrical control systems, add up their costs, and then factor in some engineering hours. What is forgotten, however, are important items like light curtains, safety guarding, brackets, pneumatic valves, hoses, cables or rails to move the robot back and forth as well as the items that are required to make all components work together. Lead times on robots can be 16-18 weeks, with most lead times on major items averaging around 8 weeks. With the lead-time on components being so long, a project can take twice as long as you are anticipating it will.

3. Cheap and fast, or good and reliable: which one do you want?
If you don’t want to pay a lot and still get a Mercedes Benz product, chances are it will be broken and rusting away in a corner. If you want a fast solution, you’re rushing through the design and assembly, risking the chance of excluding some critical safety or quality measures that you need. The good and reliable solution is like getting the Mercedes Benz at the proper cost and in a timeframe that allows for proper lead times and a good design to be built.

4. Technologies are constantly changing.
Just because you bought something 5 years ago, and it works well, it doesn’t mean that it’s still the best technology on the market. Think about how many updates and upgrades there are with the typical computer; there is always some upgrade or new version that makes it function better. The same holds true for automation, products are improving and new technologies are constantly emerging.

5. It’s difficult for companies inexperienced in automation to articulate and visualize what is needed.
If you can’t articulate what you want, you don’t need it. For companies just starting down the automation path, there are a number of processes and capabilities that they do know, but hundreds more that they don’t. A good automation company can help suggest better options to make your process run smoothly.
Reveals flaws in processes and part consistency — inconsistent parts don’t work well with automation.

6. Processes and tolerances must be tightened up
When automating a process, tolerances, dimensions, and part accuracy are critical. Processes must be consistent. If not, the automated process won’t work and you will hate the machine.

7. Just because you can build your parts with a hammer and an anvil, it doesn’t mean the process can be automated.
Although we would love to be able to automate every process, sometimes the cost of the machine versus the payback makes it unwise.

8. Chances are that your automation vendor will be out of business within 2 years.
Most automation companies are small businesses that design machines one at a time and then pass on all intellectual property to the customer along with the machine. When purchasing machines, 60-65% of the price is for materials needed to build the machine. If the machine is not paid for until the end of the project the automation company runs the risk of paying for the machine and the design of it until it is complete. This practice, along with taking on machines that are risky for the company because they may not specialize or have experience in certain areas, can put companies out of business. Be prepared to put money down on a custom automation project.

9. Lean automation still means you need labor.
Automating processes does reduce your labor force, but does not eliminate it. Lean automation still needs someone to run the machine that has the ability to stop the production line if parts are being processed incorrectly or if an error is occurring.

10. A full automation effort will require maintenance and spare parts to sustain reliability and a high uptime.
All machines need to have routine preventative maintenance performed on them. Spare parts need to be maintained to replace those parts that wear out. Sensors and vision systems need to be adjusted and tightened back into place to maintain the reliability of the machine.

11. Automation will never call in sick, show up late, or create a sexual harassment lawsuit for your company.
This one just speaks for itself.

I know that was actually 11, but since we’ve automated most of our processes around here, I had to do something with my extra time.