Synergy of technology breakthrough in medical assembly

Healthcare sector is on the verge of expanding businesses to newer geographical areas and so are their factories and assembly lines. This sector is growing bigger day by day with unique adaptability and aligning themselves towards innovation. Leaders in medical device assembly are creating solutions with the unprecedented ability to produce multiple product types – enabling small-batch flexibility without compromising the unique productivity. This is the new generation of adaptive machines, uniquely efficient at automating dynamic changes. The key challenges in assembling the medical devices firstly are automating the manual tasks, reducing the total cost of production, but with higher Rate Of Interest (ROI), to boost OEE and economic production of small batches. In an aim to achieve all with higher productivity, less time and with less machine footprint, a manufacturer tends towards innovation. This helps to build a compact assembly in manufacturing an ecosystem creating ease in assembling, and optimising the time taken for manufacturing process effectively.

Utilisation of innovation

Adaptive manufacturing creates entirely new solutions to challenges that would be difficult to solve using a conventional approach. For medical device manufacturers, performance starts with data. It starts with full, real-time control and traceability of each step and station in the production line, every shuttle moving material and every operation being performed. All these things generate data specific to the material being produced.

This data can be transferred to analysis and reporting systems in real-time and used to optimise the performance of adaptive machines. Innovation has stirred the manufacturing processes. Every day, with new alternatives and better solution, manufacturers can increase their productivity and have moved a step higher in acquiring market position. An adaptive machine can divert individual products from the production flow for any reason and at any time, without interfering with the overall production. This sets the stage for efficient and economical mass customisation and creates possibilities for efficient in-line quality checks that assure 100 per cent quality while maintaining production speed and reducing loss during production. Also, the use of robots creates big advantages for medical device assembly in terms of both production efficiency and total cost of ownership. With machine-centric robotics, B&R has taken another big step towards higher productivity and efficiency by saving floorspace, and streamlines spare parts inventory. There’s no longer a need for separate hardware and separate communication for robot. This helps to build an independent nature of the machine and the robot, and their simultaneous movements are synchronised with zero waiting time. This helps to increase productivity and take OEE to new heights.

Breaking market stagnancy

Market variations will always exist with ups and downs. Innovations will be accepted and declined as per the purpose, but values and culture with an aim to grow will drive the economy of any sector. Especially, healthcare industry thrives towards growth with help of innovation. The market has endless options and has a good chunk of big players. These players are investing in their research and development with new ideas looking after the simulation and compliances. Market is no longer relied upon traditional technologies, it is up in scale and driving the multi-dollar business hovering upon new technology to reduce machine footprint in shopfloor, higher profitability, and creating a major backbone of economy. Every emerging medical device market has shifted their focus towards development of new products and engaging themselves to build a strong R&D surfacing the same product which determines the seriousness and grabbing the market opportunities. This is a productive turn in their business because all innovators have an aim in progressing themselves with higher return value in market. This holds on to the positive aspect of the industry which is continuously evolving with emerging innovations and using the human brain and muscle power effectively. In such cases, B&R provides the automation technology to make it possible, but more than that, the adaptive manufacturing experts in B&R helps the customers understand the technology and to make it happen, so that they have the independence to work locally too. As a technology partner, B&R’s expert knowledge helps customers to think beyond the traditional concepts and to achieve their goal in bringing new concept or new medium to help run their system smoothly.