The ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub team hosted Pittsburgh manufacturer, Robinson Fans, at our facility to explore solutions for robotic multi-pass welding for structural components and to help their team get hands-on with robotics welding and the greater robotics landscape. Brian Weinkamer, a robotic welding expert from ARM Member Yaskawa, also joined the ARM Institute on-site as the group replicated Robinson Fans welding procedures using a robot.
Key Takeaways from the Robotics Welding Demonstration
By the end of the no-cost three hour meeting, Robinson Fans gained:
- Hands-on familiarization with industrial robots, collaborative robots, and Motosim simulation software
- An understanding of the differences between industrial and collaborative robots and how those differences can play to their strengths and weaknesses
- Knowledge of the process it takes to apply robotic automation to their welded parts
- Knowledge of the market landscape for robotic welding and capabilities
- A sample robotically welded part, programmed by Robinson Fans staff as taught by the ARM Institute team, to take home for x-ray inspection so that the ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub experts and Robinson Fans can continue to perfect the process before Robinson Fans commits to purchasing a robot arm
The ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub is a free service for small and medium-sized manufacturers in the Southwestern Pennsylvania Region and is funded by the Southwestern Pennsylvania New Economy Collaborative, the Pittsburgh region’s Regional Challenge grant. The Robotics Manufacturing Hub helps manufacturers explore and test robotics solutions at no-cost using our team of experts and the capabilities of the ARM Institute’s 400+ member organization ecosystem. By prototyping and testing solutions at the ARM Institute’s Pittsburgh facility and getting hands-on with real robotics equipment, manufacturers can feel confident that the robotic solution they pursue will strengthen their operations, address their challenges, and enhance their competitiveness.
Thank you to ARM Member Brian Weinkamer for contributing his robotic welding expertise and to Yaskawa for supporting the Robotics Manufacturing Hub!
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If you are a small or medium manufacturer in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region, this could be you! Complete the form below to get started or email us at [email protected].
Get Started with the Robotics Manufacturing Hub
Note that you are eligible for this no-cost service if you are a small or medium-sized manufacturer with operations in one of the following Pennsylvania counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, or Westmoreland. Manufacturers must also fit into the small and medium sized range, defined as having 500 or fewer employees and less than $100M in annual revenue.
Learn more about the Robotics Manufacturing Hub
About the ARM Institute
The ARM (Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing) Institute is a Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) funded by the Office of the Secretary of Defense under Agreement Number W911NF-17-3-0004 and is part of the Manufacturing USA® network. The ARM Institute leverages a unique, robust, and diverse ecosystem of over 400 consortium members and partners across industry, academia, and government to make robotics, autonomy, and artificial intelligence more accessible to U.S. manufacturers large and small, train and empower the manufacturing workforce, strengthen our economy and global competitiveness, and elevate national security and resilience. Based in Pittsburgh, PA since 2017, with a regional office in St. Petersburg, FL, the ARM Institute is leading the way to a future where people and robots work together to respond to our nation’s greatest challenges and to produce the world’s most desired products. For more information, visit www.arminstitute.org and follow the ARM Institute on LinkedIn and X(Twitter).