Automation
Reduce your engineering costs by automating repetitive tasks
Your most expensive resources are under-utilized.
Engineering hours represents up to 50% of the cost of an automation project. The reality is that a large part of these hours are spent doing incredibly low value-add tasks like creating hardware data in a software environment, parameterizing block calls and copy-pasting parts of documents from previous projects.
This repetitive work is wasteful, tedious and error-prone. How can you better use your resources?
With automation
By automating repetitive tasks, you can reduce your engineering costs and reclaim your team's time to do valuable, interesting work.
By automating repetitive tasks, you can:
Automation Targets
Using software tools, you can automate any repetitive, low-value add part of your processes. The most common areas of automation for OEMs include;
Controls engineers waste time recreating the hardware configuration of a machine in automation environments like TIA Portal and Studio 5000.
Automation tools make it easy to export the hardware and IO data from planning tools like EPlan and import it into an automation environment, saving valuable time and reducing the likelihood of a copy-paste mistake.
Using a generator application and a machine definition file, the PLC Program can be created automatically. When combined with a standard software library, block calls can be automatically created and parameterized.
With the touch of a button, an error-free PLC program can be generated for a machine.
HMI applications can be automatically created according to a machine definition file. Objects from a library of visualization objects are placed on the screens and interconnected with the PLC program automatically.
Based on the content of a machine definition file, project documentation such as Operator Manuals, IO Check Checklists, and Test Plans can be generated automatically based on the components that are used in the machine.
Benefits
The business benefits of automation
Efficiency
Using automated processes saves time and engineer cost on low value add tasks.
Reduced engineering costs
Consistency
Generated software is consistent with company wide rules for programming
- Easier service
Quality
Generated software is error-free. Finally, your projects will be copy-paste error free
- Reduced debug time
Work with Us
Your most valuable assets are under-utilized. Your engineers are wasting their time executing boring, repetitive tasks. By automating these tasks, you can free your team to work on valuable, interesting things and reduce your engineering costs.
But automating tasks is hard. The skill required to automate tasks is very different to the skills required to design and build machines.
At KB Controls, we have more than 5 years experience of automating our clients' engineering processes. With Vanderlande, we implemented the code generator that was used to generate the software for over 200 PLCs in 7 large projects valued at more than 200 million euros in record time.
Schedule a free consultation call to see how our expertise can help you to better utilize your most expensive assets.