UK automation specialists Forward+Thompson, based in York (northern England), have produced a robot with the potential to save flat glass companies millions of pounds.
The GBP 150,000 robot named IG…
UK automation specialists Forward+Thompson, based in York (northern England), have produced a robot with the potential to save flat glass companies millions of pounds. The GBP 150,000 robot named IGAR, or Insulated Glass Articulated Robot, is programmed to sense the size of newly-produced glass sealed units then perfectly tape their edges to prevent cuts and damage in transit. It is a safety process usually carried out by up to eight glass factory operatives per plant who often have to process 4,000 glass plates per day of varying sizes, at some risk of injury. Not only does IGAR work round the clock without getting tired, the robot is quicker than human workers, taking only 15 seconds for a task which normally takes twice as long. The automation firm has orders in hand for two of the robots with five more expected by the end of 2004. Martin Askham, managing director of Forward+Thompson, is introducing potential customers from all over the UK to the robot so that they can see IGAR at work. He believes that the expenditure will pay for itself within a year. “The potential is enormous,” said Mr Askham “There are hundreds of glass manufacturers in the UK, each with at least two lines. We are pretty excited because the savings IGAR can effect are in millions of pounds and it means that staff can be more usefully deployed in the glass production process.”