How to Plan Your First Automation Project

Automation effectively addresses many production challenges, including rising labor costs and shortages, throughput limitations, product quality errors, process reliability issues, and operator safety concerns. While some facilities are already heavily automated, other manufacturers are considering their first investment and thinking, “What’s next?”

This article explores how to identify suitable starting points for automating a process, evaluate the return on investment, and ensure a successful, lasting implementation.

1. Evaluation: Which Parts of Your Process Even Need Automation?

Automating a process is a practical way to increase output, reduce operational costs, improve product consistency, and address some of the most common production challenges, including:

• Tasks that are difficult to staff consistently due to extensive training requirements.
• Bottlenecks that slow throughput.
• Processes requiring strict quality control with downstream impact.
• Operations that involve complex or high-precision steps.
• Physically demanding or repetitive work that contributes to high turnover.
• Tasks with elevated safety risks for operators.

If you’re wondering where to invest in your first automation, look to processes that are clearly defined, repeatable, and that limit overall throughput. Automation becomes especially justified when the costs of maintaining the manual approach, including throughput inefficiencies, quality issues, labor shortages, and safety concerns, persist.

Professional Tip:

Don’t automate everything at once. It will quickly become overwhelming. Instead, target a single, high-impact challenge with a focused solution.

2. Budgeting & Calculating ROI: Is Automation Worth It?

The total cost burden of the manual process provides the foundation for evaluating the return on investment (ROI) of an automated solution. Even a rough estimate can help determine whether automation is financially justified. During your evaluation, consider:

• Labor Costs: Recurring salary and training costs, particularly for roles with high turnover.
• Slow Throughput: Factor in production losses caused by process inefficiencies or staffing shortages.
• Quality, Rework, and Waste: Account for the cost of quality failures and any required rework or wasted materials.
• Injury and Absenteeism: Identify costs related to operator strain, fatigue, or injury, including missed work and workers’ compensation.
• Opportunity Cost: Could employees add more value elsewhere if automation were implemented?

Once you’ve put together a rough estimate of the total cost burden of your current processes, the next step is evaluating the financial viability of the automation solution. You’ll need to budget for both implementation costs and recurring costs:

All things considered, a common target ROI for justifying investment into an initial automated process is 18 months to three years. Automated systems that are properly maintained and periodically optimized often remain in service for up to 20 years or more, an investment that continues to deliver value beyond the initial payback period.

3. The Fun Part: Project Selection

Because automated systems involve specific training, safety, and maintenance considerations, begin with a single, well-defined process.

A small-scale robotic cell that meets the criteria discussed earlier is often a good entry-level project. A single robot typically handles repetitive tasks well, requires minimal changes to infrastructure or layout, and can be reprogrammed for future use as needed.

When designing the solution, include any input from the operators currently involved in the manual task. Their feedback helps ensure the automated design addresses the full scope of the task’s requirements and also fosters a smoother adoption of the system.

Recommended First-Time Projects

• Robotic palletizing of bags, boxes, or other packages to improve throughput and reduce operator strain.
• Robotic machine tending to load or unload parts from CNC machines, presses, or other production equipment.
• Basic quality inspection using vision systems integrated into a robotic cell to verify important characteristics, including presence/absence, orientation, or dimensions.
• Assembly tasks, including inserting, fastening, or positioning parts in fixtures.

These types of systems typically address labor or ergonomic issues, deliver measurable ROI, and allow robotic equipment to be reprogrammed as needs change. Patti Engineering’s robotics eBook, Common Considerations Integrating Robotics in Manufacturing, offers additional guidance.

4. Perform an Engineering Study

An engineering study can significantly reduce project risk and maximize its return. These studies are conducted by experienced engineers who fully assess the current process to determine the best-fitting automated solution, including potential layouts and technologies (e.g. robotics), implementation timeline, and cost. This upfront analysis provides the manufacturer with a complete understanding of the system requirements and project scope.

5. Implementation

A successful automation project depends not only on selecting the right target process, but also on following best practices throughout implementation. Following these tips will help minimize risk and guide you toward better results:

Work With an Established, Proven Partner

Manufacturers should seek a partner with a long track record of delivering automation projects, reliable technical support, and strong customer references. Experienced partners are more likely to accurately scope the project, recommend appropriate solutions, and provide ongoing support post-installation.

As a more detailed example, Patti Engineering helped a client who considered a robotic palletizer to lift 30-pound bags off a conveyor and stack them onto a pallet. This type of task meets the criteria for automation because it includes consistent inputs and outputs and repetitive sequencing. The position already had high turnover due to its labor-intensive nature; automation would result in more consistent throughput and fewer workers’ compensation claims. However, one challenge was choosing between an industrial robot and a newer collaborative robot. Having an implementation partner is critical for first-time adopters because they’ll help you address challenges and obstacles that you didn’t know existed.

Develop a Functional Design Specification

The development and review of a functional design specification (FDS) ensures that both the manufacturer and the integrator are fully aligned on the project’s scope before any physical or software design begins, minimizing mismatched outcomes. The FDS defines the system’s operation, how the software will function, the appearance of the screens, and how the system will interact with the broader production environment.

Select Proven, Supported Technologies

Choose name-brand automation hardware and software. While lower-cost alternatives are available, choosing these options often results in later issues with compatibility, support, and spare parts.

Always Plan for Continuous Improvement

Routine evaluation of the system’s performance is critical to maximizing its long-term value. A common misconception about automated solutions is that they will perform optimally immediately following installation. In reality, automated systems benefit from ongoing data collection and analysis to tune and improve their performance. Overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), a metric combining availability, performance, and quality, provides a benchmark for identifying areas for continuous improvement and maximizing automation value over time.

Best practices for monitoring and improving a system’s OEE include incorporating remotely accessible diagnostics into the system’s design. The system’s OEE performance metrics can then be regularly reviewed to identify opportunities for improvement. Our experts at Patti Engineering have found that sometimes, even minor changes, including how parts are presented to the system or how operators interact with it, can yield measurable gains.

One long-standing client has operated the same automation system for over two decades. The system has been updated twice over this time period and includes remote access and excellent built-in diagnostics. Because this client has maintained an ongoing commitment to optimization, the system remains reliable, effective, and aligned with changing production needs.

Are You Ready for Your First Automation Project?

Automating a process can effectively resolve production challenges related to labor, throughput, quality, and safety, but it must be done correctly and re-evaluated to achieve long-term results. That’s where Patti Engineering can help.

Founded in 1991, Patti Engineering is an industry-recognized consulting firm trusted by engineers from companies such as Siemens, FANUC, and Mitsubishi. We offer proven solutions to manufacturers across industries such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, and distribution, and we’re proud to have a portfolio of world-class clients that include Samsung, Ford, Stellantis, and Tesla.

As a consulting firm, we can help you integrate robotic cells, control systems, Industry 4.0 technology, asset tracking, and other technologies into your facility. Visit our website to learn more about our capabilities, or contact us today to talk about your project.

FAQs

What Applications Are Good to Automate?

Any application that involves extensive training, physically demanding work, or strict quality control. Some great real-life examples of automated applications include robotic palletization, robotic loading/unloading, vision system quality inspections, and robotic assembly.

What Is the ROI of an Automation Project?

It depends on the total cost burden of your application, implementation costs, and recurring expenses. In our experience, manufacturers see significant ROI as soon as 18 months.

How Long Do Automated Systems Last?

If systems are maintained and upgraded, they can last up to 20 years or more.

What Criteria Should I Consider When Evaluating Tasks That Can Be Automated?

• Is the task repetitive?
• Is the current job resulting in high employee turnover?
• Does the job require consistent inputs and outputs?
• Is the throughput clearly defined?
• Are there increasing costs associated with manual tasks, including quality issues, turnover, or workers’ compensation claims?

What Costs Do I Need to Consider?

Implementation costs, including the cost of the technology and equipment, configuration, testing, consultations, and training, as well as recurring expenses like maintenance, spare part replacements, software upgrades, and ongoing training for new employees.

What Is an Engineering Study?

An engineering study is an assessment of the current manual process. The study is performed by a qualified engineer, and the goal is to determine the best automated solution based on factors like the facility layout, budget, and timeline constraints.

Are There Any Mistakes People Make When Implementing Automated Solutions?

Yes. First-time adopters may choose not to work with an implementation partner, so they may not be aware of some of the integration challenges. Another mistake we see is the failure to develop an FDS (functional design specification), which serves as a blueprint for the new system, how it will function, and how it will interact with the rest of the production environment. Lastly, some first-time adopters opt for cheaper technology, which doesn’t offer the same level of support or compatibility.

Do I Have to Refine My Automated System?

Absolutely. Automation systems don’t perform optimally following installation. As the production environment changes, so will the system. We recommend tracking overall equipment effectiveness to identify areas for improvement.