Changing workflow: Bringing work to the workpiece

Since the early days of Henry Ford’s assembly lines, the flow of manufacturing has moved a workpiece from machine to machine or from station to station. In the traditional job shop, that has meant a machine tool remains in place.

Developments such as CNC programming, robotics and other automation have improved and streamlined the process, making it more efficient and accurate, but have not changed the fundamental flow.

Each move of the workpiece creates downtime and setup time. Quality is challenged by potential damage to the workpiece and repositioning at each new place.

The Picum One robot that can move along components and hold on to them while drilling, milling and grinding. Image courtesy of Picum MT.

Picum MT, a startup at Leibniz University in Germany, is collaborating to redefine workflow. The team intends to incorporate the principles of Industry 4.0, which looks to automation, the cloud, the industrial internet of things and data exchange among machines to advance manufacturing processes.

According to Dominik Brouwer, Picum MT’s managing partner and CEO, the company envisions a future of multiple mobile robots that can essentially crawl on workpieces—instead of the workpieces moving—and complete a broad range of manufacturing tasks.