AUTOMATING WELDING POSITIONS: FROM 30,000 HOURS OF MEASURING TIME TO ONLY 15,000
Challenge
“Measure twice to determine the welding positions, weld once.”
It is the motto of many welders. In the production of complex and heavy steel structures, a great deal of time is spent on positioning and measuring the parts to be welded.
An enormous efficiency gain can be achieved in those working hours.
The welding workshop that approached us thought the same way. They drew their designs in CAD software… only to have to convert those digital models into paper ones. Because their welders still had to manually plot and measure the coordinates of the welding positions.
This is extremely time-consuming – the more so because this workshop specialises in complex and heavy construction jobs. Another disadvantage: the quality of the finished product depended heavily on the experience and craftsmanship of the welders themselves.
It was up to us to develop a business case for a machine that automated the positioning of the parts to be welded.
Solution
A robotic arm equipped with manipulators that position parts with a length of up to 12 meters and a weight of up to 6 tons. All on the basis of the data in the CAD design.
Because our machine reads the coordinates for the welding positions directly from CAD, the positioning is always precise to the last millimetre. This eliminates the need to re-measure.
No more hassle with plumb bobs, laser measuring and paper plans. The welders can concentrate on what they are good at – the welding itself.
Results
- In the past, the total measurement time for the welding positions was 30,000 hours per year. Our machine cuts that down by half – 15,000 hours.
- The quality is also less dependent on the individual welder and thus much more consistent. The chance of errors is minimal.
- The welders’ many years of process knowledge have been integrated into a tailor-made installation.
- A business case with a payback period of one and a half years.
