About the Robot
About our robot.
Why is a robot in a ceilling fan store?
How does it interact with the CNC lathe?
How does it interact with the funicular?
In another article 'Why the Railway', we briefly mention the development of a technologically advanced automated machining cell. Wilcop's parent company, Willow Manufacturing, started as a screw machine shop back in 1954. By the 1990's a mass exodus of machined components parts began to move to Taiwan at first, then mainland China. So as our machining capacity diminished, our retail division expanded to fill the space as machines were sold off.
They say timing is everything, and clearly we had invented a very efficient production machining process only to have its performance eclipsed by shops in the Far East who supply parts for less than what we pay for material. Ouch!
At the heart of this new process sits a six axis robot supplied by a small, agile group of automation experts located in Ontario. Countless so called experts in automation had looked at our requirements in the previous two years before this system was delivered, and none could get their heads wrapped around the big challenge in automation. This team of creative engineers found a solution for low volume, high mix. In other words, we wanted to automate the post processing of many different shaped parts, the order for each was low in quantity. Their solution was elegant, rugged and highly flexible. Over the last five years, hundreds of thousands of parts have been processed through this unique handling, cleaning and packaging process in unattended mode. Lights out, or unattended manufacturing is the holy grail of all manufacturing operations, and these guys designed it, engineered it, built it, installed it, and have to this day continued to help us maintain it! Bravo to Canadian ingenuity!!
Our team solved one of the great challenges facing Canadian manufacturers and just for the fun of it interfaced the robotic system to fifteen hundred foot (1,500) overhead miniature railway, such that parts machined at floor level, could be elevated up to an automated delivery system.
Our six axis robot makes all of this possible. It's worth a visit to see how serious automation can also play a part in a feature attraction.
BTW, the Chinese didn't take all the work out of Canada, our shop is busier than ever with smaller volume orders from Canadian manufacturers who recognize the benefits of having a local supplier, providing Canadian content.
Watch the robot, funicular and railway at work.
Copyright 2011 - All rights reserved Willow Manufacturing Company Limited
"This is brilliant!! I don't want to leave...I never expected this!!
C. Ross, Toronto, ON January 11, 2011
