VOLKSWAGEN’s New Anchieta automotive factory in Brazil is set to boost production from 170 panels to 3880 panels per day, with the installation of a new ABB robot line.
The automation upgrade is part of a $565m modernisation project. The press line for eight different families of parts has been equipped with IRB 6650 robots, halving the cycle time from 1.5 parts per minute to 2.8 parts per minute.
According to ABB, its solution uses various efficiency-boosting techniques, such as “turnover” between two robots, and an additional “seventh axis” for six-axis robots, to speed up movement.
The turnover system has one robot passing a panel to another robot for different tasks. This is said to be faster than having a single robot performing several complex and time-consuming movements and tasks.
