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What do most contract machining companies consider when looking to reach the next level of efficiency, productivity and reliability? The answer, of course, is automation. For this very reason, Germany-based WU Mechanische Werkstätte GmbH built an automation cell -featuring a FANUC industrial robot - for loading and unloading one of its own machine tools. Two years later, a visitor liked the concept so much he asked WU to build him one. This marked the beginning of an additional revenue stream based on the design and build of automation cells featuring high-performance industrial robots from FANUC.

In the manufacture of popular household appliances such as coffee grinders, a number of prerequisites determine production success. For instance, only clearly structured, efficient and target-orientated processes will result in the required levels of production reliability. Achieving this ambition becomes significantly more realistic using automation, as market leader Eugster/Frismag AG can testify following its adoption of 14 FANUC LR Mate industrial robots and FANUC ZDT (Zero Down Time), which now enable the continuous automated assembly of a coffee grinder every 7 seconds.

In a fast-moving fresh-food distribution plant, efficiency through automated packing operations is paramount to keep pace with demand. As a by-product of this approach, robot adopters also gain from less physical strain for employees, gentler handling of delicate produce like fruit and vegetables, and more a uniform and repeatable process. Among the latest factories to benefit from all this added value is the Bätterkinden, Switzerland facility of major food distributor Inoverde, where carrot filling, packing and palletising operations are benefiting from the introduction of three FANUC industrial robots.

Developing a new take on an age-old process such as turning requires superhuman levels of creativity and innovation. Moreover, converting those new machine visions and concepts into reality necessitates extremely advanced control technology. With this thought in mind, machine tool builder FFG Werke knew exactly where to turn for a CNC system with necessary capability and performance to complement its groundbreaking new vertical turning centre: FANUC.

Automating the full minting process from individual coins to finished palletised boxes is no mean feat. However, that was the task facing Swissmint, the Federal Mint of Switzerland. To make this complex concept a reality, Swissmint deploys high-performance FANUC robots in tasks that include pick and place, assembly of boxes and palletisation.