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5 Essential Pieces of Equipment Your Factory Needs
| Published: 16th July 2019 21:31 |
Every factory is a complex operation, and each is unique. You must have the equipment necessary to create your product and deliver it to the customer. Yet there are other types of equipment that you may not appreciate the value of until you have them in the plant, whether they increase employee productivity, product quality or worker safety. Here are five essential pieces of equipment your factory needs.
Robotic Arms
Warehouses tend to stack things to the ceiling to maximise the amount of material packed in a small space. The default solution for getting things down off the top shelves either involves ladders or forklifts. Sending people up ladders to bring down boxes is a safety risk you don’t want to take. Forklifts are expensive, and they may damage items trying to negotiate in tight spaces. Fortunately, there is a solution – robotic arms. Robotic arms can be attached to each inventory row. Tell it which bin number to retrieve, and it will bring that specific item down to the employee.
Pallet Trucks
While warehouses are originally built with straight shelving aisles and open spaces, they tend to be cluttered with stockpiles of parts, pallets left on the floor, and filled with workers. Pallet trucks are an excellent way to move pallets loaded with materials or products in tight spaces. They can be guided by minimally trained employees, allowing them to move a load where it is required without calling in a more costly forklift. This may not eliminate the entire need for forklifts, since most factories need at least one person with the necessary skills to safely operate a forklift on call at all times. After all, forklifts remain the workhorses of the factory and warehouse.
Air Filtration Systems
Industrial ventilation and air filtrations are invaluable. They improve workplace safety by pulling dust and fine debris out of the air. This could extend the operating life of equipment, because that material isn’t gumming up the works or clogging air filters required for motors to run. Fume and waste extraction can improve employee health and long-term safety.
Depending on the air filtration and ventilation system you put in, you may be able to eliminate the need for personal protective equipment that can get in the way of work. A company like Integrated Air Systems can design entire systems that bring in clean air and remove dust and debris. They can also modify existing ventilation systems, whether you need to meet new, stricter requirements or want to increase the energy efficiency of what already exists.
Tablet Computers
Tablet computers are increasingly essential to the smooth operation of any factory or warehouse. They can be used to track inventory as it is consumed and log its location as soon as it is put in storage. Staff can pull up a map and go directly to where the item they need to pull is located instead of roaming the aisles. You can track labour as people work, and let people report problems to tech support or maintenance as soon as they’re seen. Problems are solved far faster, and management gains real-time data on the state of operations. You’ll also minimise mistakes, because every employee has access to the information they need at all times.
Milling Machines
Milling machines can handle a wide variety of tasks. They may support jig boring, drilling, standard milling and compound angle milling. They can be used to manage tapping work. They are a standard piece of equipment for almost any part manufacturing operation.
Factory and warehouse managers should explore every option for increasing the productivity of their team and production line. When the new equipment can improve quality and safety, you can’t afford to keep doing business the same old way.
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