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One of America’s largest retailers, Wal-Mart, has deployed roving robots in 50 stores across the US. The robots are designed to detect low inventory, price discrepancies, as well as incorrect labels. When it sees a qualifying event, the robot sends an alert to employees for resolution.While the program has improved the efficiency of performing these tasks, "This has largely been about how we improve our performance and improve our service to our customers," John Crecelius, Wal-Mart’s VP of Innov …

Subsidies have been introduced that would allow companies to take immediate expensing of high-cost assets, such as robots, instead of depreciating them over time. This plan works to the advantage of companies struggling to either find or keep their workforce which is currently needed to perform jobs that could be automated. Rather than expensing wages as they are paid over time, companies could purchase robots and take the deduction right away. This makes an investment in automation a much …

Universal Robots are quick and flexible cobots - collaborative robots - able to operate without safety fencing after risk assessment is conducted. They save a lot of time and money at Etalex in Montreal, Canada, where a UR10 robot now handles pick and place tasks at a brake press. Installing a UR robot has freed up 7 man hours per day and has cut the price of production. All in all, Etalex has invested in 25 robots, resulting in a 40% increase in sales with no layoffs in staff. Challenge: Et …

The high cost, minimal flexibility and programming complexities of robotic welding cells have historically prevented smaller job shops and manufacturers from considering automated welding as a viable part of the production process. However, with a shrinking skilled workforce, more companies are assigning their welding experts to oversee multiple robotic welding cells. According to the American Welding Society, 40% of manufacturing companies have been forced to decline new contracts due t …

The most common usage of the term “machine tending” is loading and unloading a machine with parts or materials. Since those entering the workforce are becoming less and less interested in positions with this activity, more companies are installing robots to compensate for the smaller pool of potential operators. A robot can insert raw material into a machine, initiate the activity, and remove the finished item once the activity is complete. The robot does not need to take a smoke break, use …