Whole-factory automated manufacturing is one of the important foundations of digital manufacturing.

 

With the increasing number of automated equipment in the production workshop and the gradual reduction of manual labor, is the continuous development of digital manufacturing equivalent to the automation of the entire manufacturing plant?

 

First of all, you need to know that digital manufacturing does not mean complete factory automation. Usually, some people think that in order for a factory to achieve digital manufacturing, it needs to automate the entire factory first. This is actually a misunderstanding.

 

For example, if you develop a whole-factory automated production line, it may take more than half a year. However, according to the industry innovation cycle, under normal circumstances, a product is usually completed in only one month from the initial design stage to mass production. "At this time, most of the work on the production line can only be done manually, and the speed will be faster."

 

When the production line is updated too quickly, higher automation costs are invested, but the production efficiency is not significantly improved. Therefore, product manufacturing solutions are almost never completed using automated production lines, and assembly links rarely use robotic arms.

 

This leads to thinking about a profound question: What is the relationship between "people" and "machines" in the production line of "future manufacturing"? How to adapt the relationship between the two?

 

The flexibility possessed by humans cannot be replaced by intelligent machines for a long time. In other words, humans cannot and cannot be replaced, and the relationship between humans and machines is mutual assistance. In the next 20 years, most production links will still need to be completed manually.

 

In digital manufacturing, which production links require machines to replace labor?

 

When products or materials need to be updated, managers need to conduct analysis to determine whether to stop producing related products. In this process, the entire factory needs to communicate with the design department, production department, R&D department, purchasing department, etc. However, these links can be completed by changing the data in the data center system. Once the data is adjusted, the interconnected systems and software will automatically update and calculate the latest production solutions.

 

The essence of light industrialization is to improve quality, not to reduce costs

 

Labor costs are considered to be the reason for the decline in competitiveness of manufacturing companies in recent years, but companies should not just focus on the costs of the manufacturing process, but should also pay attention to supply chain costs. Even in labor-intensive enterprises, labor costs are only part of the overall cost, not the entire cost.

 

Moreover, digital manufacturing is not just about reducing costs from the beginning, but more about improving product quality, and high quality does not mean high cost. The domestic manufacturing industry is encountering development bottlenecks. The management of many manufacturing companies like to discuss cost control, but quality is the core competitiveness of the company.

 

In order to improve the overall quality, digital manufacturing must first use the machines on the automated production line to act as "correction officers". For example, when a worker misses a screw somewhere, the machine will automatically issue a warning to prevent the product from entering the next production step. In this step, through the assistance of machines, the probability of manual errors is reduced. Eliminating manual errors in the production process through machine "inspection" is only the basis for ensuring product quality. Product quality, which consists of production quality, R&D quality and raw material quality, requires the help of digital manufacturing.

 

Towards Industry 4.0, automated management is the key

 

In the stage of digital manufacturing, management efficiency can be effectively improved through data interaction. To measure whether a company is truly moving towards Industry 4.0, it does not depend on the level of automation of the production line, but on the level of corporate management. To achieve automated management, it is necessary to realize that people are completely obedient to "computers" in management. This is the future of intelligent manufacturing.

 

Regarding the gap between digital factories and smart factories, the key point is whether automated management is truly realized.

 

Shenzhen Baer Energy Technology Co., Ltd.