Save Your Factory

Fanuc Robotics America Inc. is looking to dissuade North American manufacturers from the notion they must move production to more economical sites offshore in order to stay competitive.

Low-cost labor markets such as China, India and South America and an expanding global consumer base are enticing reasons for companies to pack up and move production overseas. But Rick Schneider, president and CEO-Fanuc Robotics America, says automation and the implementation of robotics in current production facilities can increase production and improve quality, while keeping costs low enough to make North American manufacturing viable.

“Our message is clear — there are alternatives to plant closings and moving offshore,” Schneider says as part of a “Save Your Factory” presentation at Fanuc's U.S. headquarters in Rochester Hills, MI. “With robots and automation, North American manufacturers can be profitable and competitive in today's global market.”

Although the cost of labor may be cheap, Schneider cites shipping delays, long-distance quality issues, communication malfunctions and currency fluctuations as potential risks of offshore production.

U.S.-based production suffers from numerous regulations, taxes and much higher labor costs, but through automation and lean production, quality can improve and costs can be lowered in line with foreign competition, says the “Save Your Factory” group, an organization of interest groups and suppliers looking to promote U.S. manufacturing competitiveness.

Benefits of an automated factory also include: increased production of highly machined parts, higher quality parts with less defects, reduction in workforce and floor space due to the elimination of larger, less-sophisticated machines, and the ability to perform automated secondary operations such as material handling.

Schneider says automation will become more important over the next 15 years, as only 40 million new workers will replace the 70 million retiring baby boomers.

This leaves 30 million fewer U.S. workers. The problem is 90% of the 60,000 potential users that would benefit from automation initiatives have not purchased their first robot, according to Schneider.

North American manufacturing will be increasingly important as the U.S. trade deficit rises. The U.S. Department of Commerce claims the recent growth of the U.S. trade deficit is largely the result of a surge in imported goods and the rapidly declining competitiveness of U.S.-based manufacturing industries.

Fanuc formed the “Save Your Factory” initiative in September to promote the benefits of automation, robotics, lean manufacturing and quality control in U.S. factories as alternatives to plant closures and offshore manufacturing.

Seven other manufacturing organizations and businesses have partnered with the “Save Your Factory” program since then, including: American Machinist, Automated Concepts Inc., Automation Alley, Genesis Systems Group, the National Council for Advanced Manufacturing, Lincoln Electric Co., Robotic Production Technology, and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers. The group offers information on how automation can be used to cut manufacturing costs at www.saveyourfactory.com.