The ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub team recently hosted a full day, free workshop exploring robotic welding in collaboration with ARM Member Catalyst Connection! The event convened around 80 manufacturers from across the Southwestern Pennsylvania region in-person for a full day of knowledge-sharing, robotics demonstrations, and networking. We also had manufacturers from across the nation join the livestream of our event.

By the conclusion of our event, attendees:

• Gained a keen understanding of the robotic technologies that can help them with welding
• Learned about tangible next steps they can take to further explore robotic welding
• Explored best practices and insights as shared by other manufacturers
• Connected and networked with each other and robotics suppliers 
• Learned about free resources available to them through the ARM Institute and Catalyst Connection to help them on their robotics journey

Key Takeaways

With nearly eight hours of content available from our workshop, what are the need-to-know takeaways? We’ve outlined just a few of the most impactful things we learned below:

• It’s not just about cost. Several manufacturers cited that the use of robots led to happier employees as they were able to ditch the dull, dirty, and dangerous tasks while leveraging their existing expertise, leading to higher moral across their firms. Happier employees led to greater productivity.
• Matt Minner, who moderated our panel discussion of manufacturers who have implemented robotics for welding asked the room “How many of you believe that robots take jobs?” Not a single attendee raise their hand with many manufacturers chiming in to note that robots don’t take jobs, but rather improve efficiency and free up their workers to take on more meaningful, fulfilling, and safer roles. 
• The capital investment needed for robotics can seem daunting, but manufacturers who have implement robotics solutions for welding (as well as other processes) find that it’s worth it. The ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub program, as well as resources from Catalyst Connection, can help manufacturers minimize and better navigate these investments.
• Labor constraints are the number one reason manufacturers need to consider automation. ARM Member Josh Leath, Sr Product Manager at Yaskawa, walked us through manufacturing labor trends. Not only are manufacturers struggling to find workers, but the manufacturing industry is facing a turnover rate of 39%. Josh stated that anecdotally, any manufacturer that he talks to complains about how they can hire five people, but lucky to keep one after the first week. Breaking that down further, the American Welding Society (AWS) says there will be 370,000 unfilled welding positions in just a couple of years. Automation is necessary to navigate these concerns.
• With more open jobs than there are people to fill them, Josh from Yaskawa outlined the tangible ways manufacturers will continue to feel the manufacturing workforce shortage, including less optimal production, falling quality, a burnt out workforce if you try to do more with less, and a delicate supply chain. Automation can help to resolve many of these issues.
• In our presentation, Chris Adams walked attendees through the free services available to manufacturers through the Robotics Manufacturing Hub and highlighted a robotic grinding use case that we worked on with Keystone Ridge Designs, who manufactures outdoor furniture. Keystone Ridge was able to bring their actual parts to the Robotics Manufacturing Hub and, at no cost, our team completed an abrasive study for them and developed a proof-of-concept robotic solution that they’re now working to integrate into their facility. 
• THG Automation helped us better understand how cobots can be used for welding, reminding us that no robot is best for everything; there is a best robot for most applications. Matt from THG outlined several use cases in his presentation, including how THG was able to use ARM Member Universal Robot’s open platform to make a cobot welder easy to use, even for operators without previous robotics experience. Leveraging this system, a manufacturer was able to make complex MIG and TIG welding with cobots 2x-6x faster where operators can fixture and operate several welding cells simultaneously with an ROI in fewer than 12 months.
• Herrmann Ultrasonics took us through the basics of ultrasonic welding. When the ultrasonic vibrations hit a material (e.g. a plastic), the molecular chains start to oscillate. The molecules start to move and rub against each other. This generates energy. In the case of thermoplastic materials, this process causes them to start to melt.  After a short hold time under additional pressure, various materials (components) can be welded together at a molecular level in the joining area. Ultrasonic welding happens in split seconds without the need for any aids such as adhesives or screws. Ultrasonic welding can be used to create packaging, car parts, toys and much more.
• ARM Member EWI (Edison Welding Institute) has been on the forefront of exploring robotic welding. In their presentation, EWI outlined the steps needed to understand when/how/if you should leverage automation for welding, taking us through their detailed evaluation criteria. EWI also outlined the processes that they’re using and the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Resources, Videos, & Presentations Available from Our Robotic Welding Workshop for Manufacturers

You can access the full recording with bookmarks to each session from our event at the top of this page. We encourage you to use the bookmarks in the video to access the presentations.

download the Powerpoint presentations from our event

Our agenda topics included:

Bookmark One: Robotics Manufacturing Hub Overview

• In this session, we outlined free services available through the ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub. We highlighted real use cases showing how the ARM Institute has helped manufacturers de-risk, prototype, and adopt robotics at no cost.

• Catalyst Connection is focused on supporting small and medium manufacturers across Southwest Pennsylvania. In this session, you can learn about their programs and services available to support your technology adoption efforts – be it automated welding or any other business system or operational technology. Resources, including funding, are available to you. Make sure you utilize them!

• In this recording, hear from a panel of small and medium manufacturers who have explored and implemented robotics and technology. What challenges to deployment did they encounter? What benefits, both expected and unexpected resulted? Technology isn’t one-size-fits-all. They shared insights on how their journey unfolded and recommendations for you.

• Josh Leath, Sr Product Manager at Yaskawa, provided a deep dive into the current economic climate, labor trends and projected labor trends for skilled welders, safety, and the current global automation figures. He presented data and use cases on how automation is improving welding quality, lowering costs, improving safety, and mitigating market fluctuations. The future of manufacturing depends on adapting to changes that are currently happening in the world.

• The versatility of collaborative robots (Cobots) has significantly evolved, transitioning from an early adopter market to a mainstream solution embraced by both large and small manufacturers. This evolution has enabled small manufacturers to harness the benefits of automation, previously unattainable through traditional means, thereby enhancing their operational efficiency. Simultaneously, large manufacturers have found cobots to be a versatile addition to their operations, facilitating faster deployment of automation solutions and improving overall productivity.

• Francois Laplaine, Plastics Engineer, from Hermann Ultrasonics provided an educational overview of Ultrasonic Welding technology, how it works, and how it can be used to join thermoplastics, metals, and synthetics. He will also give useful info on dos and don’ts of ultrasonic welding, how this technology can be automated and integrated with robotics, and important factors to consider. Learn how quality, output, and cycle time can be improved with ultrasonic welding.

• This presentation from EWI explored areas where the robotic welding industry is improving usability of robotic welding for small and medium manufacturers. Our speaker also discussed new technologies that have just come to market that help make robotic welding easier to use and how they have incorporated these new technologies into their business.

Beyond formal presentations, we also hosted interactive robotics demonstrations and an exhibit hall of suppliers. Use the button below to access videos of our robotic welding demonstrations and contact information from our exhibit hall partners.

Explore robotics demonstrations from our event here

What is the ARM Institute’s Robotics Manufacturing Hub?

Our Robotics Manufacturing Hub program is a free service that helps manufacturers in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region understand how robotics can strengthen their operations and help manufacturers prototype robotics solutions for free.

Free services available to qualifying manufacturers through the Robotics Manufacturing Hub include:

• On-site automation assessments
• Modeling and simulation
• Proof-of-concepts and demonstrations
• Business case assessments
• Access to the ARM Institute’s Member network
• Request for proposal (RFP) and quote support
• Learning, access to equipment, and more

What does this process look like? We start with a site visit to understand your challenges, equipment, and current processes.

Following the visit, we create a free white paper for you that details where we think that robotics and automation can enhance your competitiveness.

Once we’ve reviewed the white paper with you, with the help and expertise of our 400+ member organization consortium, we’ll help you understand if you can leverage an off-the-shelf robotics solution or if we can work with you to develop a custom solution using our in-house engineering team and equipment in our hub.

Finally, we’re ready to help you implement. You’ll see a proof-of-concept and, once you approve the new process, we’ll connect you to a robotics integrator and other resources to help you implement the solution on your factory floor. During the demonstration at our Pittsburgh facility, your team will get to be hands-on with the equipment and ask questions. We can also connect you to further training resources for your workforce.

Learn more about the Robotics Manufacturing Hub here. Ready to get started? Fill out the form below or email us at [email protected].

Explore More Resources

While the recordings and presentations from this workshop are publicly available, ARM Institute Members have access to hundreds of other member-exclusive resources through the ARM Member Community, including ARM Institute project outputs, white papers, reports, even more event recordings, and more. Log into the ARM Member Community here or email us at [email protected].

Not an ARM Institute Member? Explore membership here to gain access to our Member Community, ARM Institute project funding opportunities, member-exclusive events, and more.

Plus, join our mailing list using the button below to get news, event information, uses cases, project highlights, and other resources sent right to your inbox!

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Thank You to Our Event Partners

Thank you to the following organizations who supported our event: Catalyst Connection, ProFab Solutions, EH Schwab, JWF Industries, J&J Truck Bodies, Yaskawa, THG Automation, Herrmann Ultrasonics, EWI, PushCorp, KC Robotics, RIDC, and others.

Further Questions

Have a specific question about the Welding Workshop? Reach out to us at [email protected].

ABOUT THE ARM INSTITUTE 

The Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) 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 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 satellite office in St. Petersburg, FL, the ARM Institute is leading the way to a future where people & 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 (formerly Twitter).