Electrification represents the second step – after reductions in energy consumption – on Freudenberg’s path to climate neutrality. It is a goal that the company intends to achieve by 2045. Electrified automation technology can make an important contribution in this effort.
Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (FST) has almost 20 years’ experience in advanced robotics and in production technology and processes relating to Industry 4.0 and the digital factory. “We have installed more than 800 robots at FST and in different Business Groups over the last few years,” said Maurizio Barale, Manager of the FST Adaptive Technology Group (ATG) in Luserna. He and his team carried out the initiative to standardize robotic cells that are used to produce and finish sealing rings. The work was conceived as a way to gain experience in advanced robotics. ATG, FST’s leading center for advanced, automated manufacturing technology, is developing both expertise and production methods in the field. Rhapsody, TMA 1000 and Gevo are the shining stars of the company’s production engineering innovations and radiate throughout the Freudenberg Group in the form of the Vileda Dinamity and Vileda Infinity 2.0 flexible manufacturing cells
For years, the goal of the Adaptive Technology Group in Luserna has been to press ahead with the electrification of automation. Electrified systems have an edge when it comes to mechanical and energy efficiency compared to classic factory processes that use pneumatics and hydraulics
Today the skills of ATG experts are in demand as the company shrinks its ecological footprint and continues to cut back on energy use. “Our work has long had other drivers. The most important were ergonomics, safety, the flexibility arising from short changeover times, and high productivity, process reliability and quality,” Barale said. In the past, the issue of energy efficiency played a secondary role given the more secure energy supplies and affordable energy prices in many parts of the world. But the importance of energy-efficient production has been increasing tremendously as sustainability has loomed larger in the public mind and in customer requirements. CO2 emissions are becoming a crucial factor in purchase and investment decisions.
The fact that ATG has been ahead of its time for years is paying off. “Our goal has always been to continue to increase electrification in automation,” Barale explained. The key idea here is smart, intelligent automation. He cites a straightforward comparison from the auto industry to make his point. The efficiency of an electric powertrain in a vehicle is considerably higher than that of an internal combustion engine. Similarly, the advantage of electrified systems shows up in comparisons with classic factory processes using pneumatics and hydraulics as well.
Automation secures the future
One example: The Gevo automated production cell for 40-millimeter seals for the D&S Division consumes 400 watts of energy under full load. Is that a little or a lot? Sometimes even experts have a hard time figuring it out. So Barale brought a toaster from home to the factory on a day when an important customer was visiting. In a demonstration, the tiny household appliance needed 700 watts to toast a slice of bread – almost double the amount that the three robots in the production cell consumed as they produced seals completely automatically every few seconds. The customer was impressed.
It’s a simple formula: Modern electrified and automated technologies can replace conventional production systems at FST, shrinking its CO2 footprint. Investments in efficient technologies and energy savings also lead to rapid paybacks as long as the cost of energy remains high. In the future, they will prove helpful as turbulence becomes the norm in energy markets and fluctuations are even greater than what companies have seen so far.
“Modern and energy-efficient machinery in our factories is a safeguard for the future. Regardless of differing energy prices across regions, sustainability requirements are the same worldwide. The operational life of a machine, on average 10 to 20 years, represents about 90 percent of its ecological footprint. This is where we need to start if we are to reduce our carbon footprint in the long run. In comparison, the energy used to manufacture and dispose of the equipment is negligible,” he explained.
Standardized techniques such as life cycle assessments (LCA) of plants, products or machinery make it possible to compare sustainability indicators, which can help teams choose the best technologies. CO2 is one of these parameters. But it is crucial to look at them carefully and not fall prey to premature enthusiasm. For example, in some automated production cells, an i9 industrial PC used for machine vision “gobbles up” a large chunk of the required energy, and not the robots as one might expect. The lesson is clear: if you want to take targeted countermeasures, you need to examine the energy consumption of each subsystem in detail.
