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    What is automation definition and its value in manufacturing?

    The appearance of automation has a great impact on people in various industries because there are many highly repetitive labor jobs in factories, and the production capacity may be various due to different operators. With the introduction of Industry 4.0, the automation of the production line can be controlled by the machine from raw materials, and assembly to distribution and packaging through the combination and application of various technologies. People only need to set and check which is a very important change for the factory. This article will share the definition of automation and the value it brings.

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    What is automation?

    Automation refers to the automatic detection, processing, and analysis of mechanical equipment, systems, or processes in the case of no one or a few people, according to the set requirements, and achieving the expected goals. Such development can avoid human beings in dangerous and cumbersome labor environments, also increase efficiency, and improve quality, accuracy, and precision.

    Automation is mainly focused on two aspects, labor, and the other is information processing. The former is usually manual work with high repetition and independence, and the latter is collecting information through data, which requires artificial intelligence technology to analyze and provide solutions.

    The value of automation

    Automation has a significant impact on production, changing the operation mode of factories, assemblies and warehouses, and in the process, it also brings out many new values, which can help companies improve the productivity, accuracy, and flexibility of production. Here's the value of automation for your reference:

    1. Production increased: In order to maintain productivity, factories had to employ a lot of laborers to work long hours in the past. During vacations or maintenance, productivity may be reduced. Through the combination of automation and other technologies, it can maintain normal operation for nearly 24 hours and significantly increase production.
    2. Production costs reduced: Using automation technology for production, although required cost to integrate the automation system initially, which can reduce labor costs in the long run, and only need to employ a few manpower for control.
    3. Employee environment improved: Many industrial environments will have chemicals or high-voltage electricity dangers, etc., which puts workers in a dangerous working environment. Safety will be the most important issue that needs to be focused on. In these cases, the company may pay related accident fees. Therefore, through the automation system, the production line can become a safe working environment and reduce the occurrence of accidents.
    4. Product quality controlled: Automated machinery does not suffer from fatigue, burnout, or other factors like humans, so there are few errors in the production process relatively, and the production process is more accurate than manual production, which can provide high and consistent quality of products.
    5. Customized products provided: The demand for customization in the market is gradually increasing. The factory can meet the quality and safety standards through the automation system, improve the flexibility of the production line, and mass-produce customized products for the enterprise which brings new income.

    Advantages and challenges of automation

    Many people think that automation will replace manpower and cause many people to lose job opportunities. Of course, when some operational processes are reduced, most of the manpower will be deleted, however, the advantage of automation is to improve productivity, consistency, and efficiency. At this time, the participants will be more important and more able to focus on other important tasks, rather than spending energy on routine and repetitive tasks.

    Automation is not all advantages absolutely; it will also face some challenges. For example, the solution requires time and energy to achieve optimization. The benefits of automation cannot be produced only with the introduction, it is necessary to adjust the entire production line, and also to manage functions according to the project and construction method, in order to optimize the benefits of automation.

    Main image photo by photographer: Alex Knight, link: Pexel

    Sources: market

    References: oosga / Zhihu

    This article was written by Machsync, please do not distribute, give, or sell for commercial use or in any way. Any use such as reprinting, excerpting, copying, and creating images is prohibited without permission.

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