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- 2X Welding And 6X CNC Machining Output With The Right Cobots | Cobot Spotlight
2X Welding And 6X CNC Machining Output With The Right Cobots | Cobot Spotlight
Find out why this CEO made a purchase order for cobots on the same day he tried working with them.
Catherine Bernier
January 29, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes
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Raymath is an Ohio-based metal manufacturer that does it all—cutting, bending, machining, welding, you name it.
They were struggling with scaling their business and meeting the requirements of the customers.
Customers wanted to meet more demand with fewer suppliers. Instead of 100, they’d rather have 10 suppliers, as Greg LeFevre, CEO and President at Raymath noted.
Being a developed business with more than 40 years of experience, of course they had experience with robotics. However, it wasn’t until they integrated cobots that Raymath was able to effectively automate low-volume, high-mix welding and machine tending tasks.
Not only did they achieve successful cobot automation… But their numbers were off the charts: 200% welding and 600% CNC machining boost.
Mind Boggling!
Cobot Brand: Universal Robots | Suppliers: THG Automation and ProCobots | Applications: Welding, Machine tending |
|---|---|---|
The Key Problem | How the Cobot Was Implemented | The Results |
Struggling to scale and meet customer demands. | Multiple UR robots handling MIG and TIG welding and CNC machine tending. | 200% welding and 600% CNC machining boost with about 12 months ROI per cobot. |
Why The Need To Automate?
To meet the customer requirements, Raymath needed to boost their productivity.
Unfortunately, that proved difficult with the labor shortage. No surprise there. Most manufacturers struggle to find enough talent in their area.
While they had automation experience with high-volume, low-mix tasks, the inherent inflexibility of traditional automation systems was a challenge.
"It was very easy to automate when you make millions of a specific part. Moving into the fab-shop, sheet metal-type business, we're now looking at a large number of different parts, but in much smaller volumes."
Why Raymath Selected THG Automation For Cobot Welding?
Hands-on experience.
Working in the cobot industry from the sales/marketing side, I keep seeing one critical pattern. Decision makers appreciate being able to try the cobot themselves and see how effective it is first-hand.
That’s exactly what happened here.
When Greg discovered THG Automation, a certified UR Plus OEM partner, THG invited him with the production parts to try THG’s MIG welding cobot.
After programming 20 weld points in 4 hours, Greg was confident in their welding cobot.
“I was actually practicing and sampling on the parts that I was going to make. It proved to me without a doubt: if I can program this in four hours and actually have my parts running, this can work in our shop. I wrote the purchase order that same night,” said Greg.
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Going From MIG To TIG To CNC Tending
After a massive success with cobot MIG welding, Raymath decided to pursue cobot TIG welding. That’s a bold thing to try, considering TIG’s complexity. But THG made it happen, and then some.
Raymath struggled with complex aluminum parts that required manual, highly precise TIG welding. Their parts had to have exceptional heat control and approach with challenging angles.
Thankfully, THG’s TIG welding cobot was able to handle the task.
“Once you get the precision and everything down, the THG unit can make a very, very good TIG weld, and can do it anywhere from two to six times faster than doing it by hand,” says Greg.
Besides MIG and TIG automation, Raymath had absolutely MASSIVE success with cobot CNC machine tending. 600% boost in throughput, thanks to round-the-clock tending! They implemented two UR10e ProFeeder machining cells from ProCobots to their two Hurco CNC machines.
What’s Next?
Considering massive success with cobot automation, Raymath said they are trying to figure out how to free up some of their operators from more menial tasks.
Image of the Raymath staff manually grinding materials in their work cells.
“We’d love to do press brake tending. We have a lot of grinding that’s done, and it isn’t the most desirable job. And we think that’s perfect for a robot application,” said Greg.
Another trend that I noticed with manufacturers who successfully implement cobot automation is looking at less explored ways to automate with cobots.
We can weld with a cobot? Check.
Tend a machine? Check.
Can we maybe grind? Polish? Screwdrive? Inspect?
Yes, and more!
While less prominent in the industry, many niched applications are being explored and manufacturers are looking to get into the action, especially those who benefited from cobots.
Learn more about Raymath's success here:
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Enjoy your week!
The Cobot Spotlight Team