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Outfitting Industrial Robots for Extreme Warehouse Environments

April 20, 2022
Hot, cold, corrosive – these environments, and more, inherently require a little extra care when it comes to planning labor and tasks. The same goes for introducing any automated technologies. After all, you need them to operate correctly and avoid any unnecessary damage. Often pulled in to support tasks that need to be reliably repeatable, industrial robotics are an excellent option to support safer work in unique environments. When looking at any robotics application, it’s crucial to consider the conditions under which the task is happening. Whether it’s palletizing, welding, paint, or part handling, the working environment – temperature, exposure, application, and materials – plays a key role in the way automation equipment is selected, outfitted, and designed. Let’s take a look at some of the most common challenging environments and what can be done if the environment is too harsh for most standard industrial robots.

Conveyor Systems: The Easiest Automation for Speedy Workflows

February 22, 2022
For decades, conveyor systems have been crucial for warehousing and logistics operations. Conveyor systems are used in all fundamental warehouse processes to transport raw materials out of storage to the production line, move products into other storage devices, and move final product into packaging lines, or transport packaged products to shipping. It is the most basic automation for anyone in the facility to transfer materials between long distances on varying elevations.

Getting Started with Custom Warehouse Automation Solutions Development

November 18, 2021
Unique challenges invite opportunities for custom automation solutions – custom design and engineering. So, how does the process work? We meet you at your current state and lead you through our development process based on your custom needs.

Manufacturing Automation: 3 Key Technologies for Improved Safety and ROI

October 06, 2021
Compact and scalable automation options are trending across consumer-facing markets like grocery and retail but when it comes to manufacturing, leading advanced technologies are also proving to be foundational for future growth.

Kaizen Supply Chain: 8 Focus Areas for Achieving and Maintaining High Quality

July 14, 2021
Kaizen is a term that we’ve all likely heard at some time or another. Its use in various companies around the world has only grown, especially as they look to improve and refine materials handling and order fulfillment practices.

Making the Most of Automation for Food and Beverage Manufacturing

May 05, 2021
Adding advanced technologies to a distribution or manufacturing operation can certainly create efficiencies. With food and beverage, I’ve found that there are four key focus areas that can help manufacturers truly make the most of automating their processes.

Employee Development: Path to a Lean Supply Chain

April 14, 2021
As a fundamental element, supply chain and logistics requires delivering a quality product to the consumer. The details behind quality product and on time delivery are complex and filled with complexities such as distribution center locations, advanced automation technologies, product specifications, throughput goals, and software support. And, while selecting the right automation equipment is important for a company’s competitive advantage, sustainable growth is most centered around the people. Lean supply chain management and the operational success is a product of the strength of your human resources. How do you create and foster sustainable human resource growth? While COVID-19 has forced companies to shift priorities and adjust manufacturing processes to deal with changing consumer demand and new safety precautions, the fundamentals continue to hold true for employee development: clarify goals and direction, identify the challenges, promote learning, and put that learning into practice.

Implementing AGVs with Robotic Palletizing Systems

August 05, 2020
An automated guided vehicle’s (AGV) key role when interacting with robots is the delivery/removal of materials. Special attention needs to be given to interaction points in order to have a successful automation ecosystem

How to Properly Select a Vertical Reciprocating Conveyor

June 17, 2020
With skyrocketing warehouse real estate prices in many parts of the country, Bastian Solutions is finding more of our customers want to make better use of their vertical cube.

How Automation is Helping During a Pandemic

May 14, 2020
Because of COVID-19, many manufacturing companies are finding themselves needing to change operating procedures. Here's how automation is helping one company make much-needed PPE.

Integrating Conveyor into a Part Press Operation

January 25, 2019
When trying to determine the best automated solution for a manufacturing application, it’s important to ask the right questions.

Surprising Applications for Plastic Modular Chain Conveyors

June 28, 2018
Part 2 of our series on plastic chain conveyors. Typically used to transport clean, cool, or small products, plastic modular chain conveyors are surprisingly well suited for the opposite, too.

The Benefits of Automating Line Replenishment with Electronic KANBAN

June 01, 2018
With the improvements and new technology in material handling, we can take the idea of Kanban to whole new levels. The question is, what level of Kanban implementation, if any, is right for you and your facility? Read: The Benefits of Automating Line Replenishment with Electronic KANBAN

Robótica e a otimização de espaço de armazenagem

November 10, 2017
Apesar da tecnologia de armazenagem e retirada automatizada (ASRS) não ser exatamente recente, é notável o nível de desenvolvimento e sua capacidade de solucionar problemas complexos otimizando processos logísticos economizando espaços ao máximo.

Is it Time to Automate Your Machine Tending?

July 18, 2017
With the continued advancement of the automotive industry and the high demand placed on manufacturers, is it time to automate your machine tending operation?

Manufacturing Automation, Material Handling, and the 21st Century

July 11, 2017
Modern manufacturing facilities are relying on new technologies and innovations to produce higher quality products at faster speeds with lower costs. Implementing more intelligent software and hardware is the only way to compete; however, those technologies have levels. Read: Manufacturing Automation, Material Handling, and the 21st Century

Navigating the World of Automated Warehouse Vehicles

May 12, 2017
The world of automated warehouse vehicles can be confusing. Just consider the various types of available guidance systems: wire-guidance, magnetic tape and magnetic paint, laser-guidance, inertial navigation, and camera based imaging (i.e. vision-guidance). When you factor in the type of vehicle, e.g. tugger, unit load, custom, etc., the task of selecting a specific platform can be overwhelming.

Industry 4.0 - Are you Prepared for the Winds of Change?

March 15, 2017
Industry 4.0 poses massive implications for OEMs and equipment suppliers who don't keep their feet under them. Industry 4.0 is already paving a viable future for manufacturing and distribution advancement. The first gusts are here, and it begs a proper storm warning.

What to Look for When Sizing Up High Capacity Industrial Trailers

January 11, 2017
There are many applications for high capacity industrial trailers in industry today. A couple examples may include handling aluminum slabs, coils, and die handling. Capacities can quickly exceed a hundred thousand pounds or more, and it is essential to match the right trailer components with your warehouse or manufacturing application.

Leaning on Smart Manufacturing

August 16, 2016
In the modern world of industrial robots and manufacturing, there are many new and innovative ideals being proposed as guidelines to streamline the mechanisms cranking out the incredible magnitude of products populating our world today. For instance, the Lean Manufacturing movement.

New Singulator Handles 60-Pound Tires

February 18, 2016
There are various types of singulators, and they can handle everything from boxes to specialty products, or in this case, circular/cylindrical items. One of our newest projects coming off the production floor is a singulator designed to efficiently handle heavy tires during the manufacturing process. Read: New Singulator Handles 60-Pound Tires
Posted in Manufacturing

Conveyor System Best Practices in the Pharmaceutical Sector

March 03, 2015
After comparing its warehousing operations to industry best practices, Roche Diagnostics Operations (RDO) revealed opportunities to improve processes by standardizing across all warehouses and implementing a more automated material handling system. In doing so, Roche was able to increase pack rates, reduce operating costs, and gain better visibility of carton-level details. Read: Conveyor System Best Practices in the Pharma Industry

Cross-Training: The Key to Manufacturing Success

January 07, 2015
When it comes to manufacturing, schedules are constantly being shifted and moved around in order to accommodate projects in the most efficient way possible. In order to improve our productivity, we had to go against the traditional methods and adapt a dynamic cross-training method. Here are some tips to get your team started as well.

Tips for Selecting the Right Tire Handling Equipment

November 19, 2014
The tire manufacturing industry continues to push for automation of tire handling, resulting in reduced labor costs and improved quality. The automation of this process includes a variety of conveyors and material handling situations. We will highlight several of these key processes and the equipment used to properly convey and store tires...

What's Your Exit Strategy? 5 Methods for Variable Height Access

October 22, 2014
Safely and efficiently accessing and exiting variable height platforms is important for operators who spend their days going between levels. Here are 5 of the most popular methods for variable height access and the pros and cons of each.

A Review of 3 Popular Lift Tables: Pneumatic, Hydraulic and Ball Screw

July 02, 2014
The lifting, bending and twisting that often comes with manual labor in our field, can quickly cause neck, back, and other upper body injuries. One easy solution to help with ergonomics is industrial lift tables. Here is a quick review of the 3 most popular types of lift tables...

When Meat and Material Handling Equipment Meet

April 03, 2014
When in review of some of the most demanding and extreme conditions that material handling equipment (MHE) can be subjected to, the applications can be quite daunting. But despite all the smoke, fumes, dirt, grease, and grime, perhaps the most extreme applications for MHE can be found in one of the cleanest industries of all: meat and poultry processing plants.

How Do We Recruit the Next Generation of Skilled Workers?

October 02, 2013
I regularly hear from manufacturing business leaders about how hard it is to attract and retain top skilled workers for manufacturing. I know firsthand how hard it is to bring on the next generation of craftsmen in our plant. There are many reasons for this shortage, but I think a lot of it stems back to lack of a successful career path for our young people coming out of high school...

Factory Acceptance Testing for Custom Automation

July 12, 2013
How do you test and prove functionality of a piece of equipment that has never been designed or built before? The answer is an obvious one: custom automation requires custom acceptance testing...

4 Emerging Technologies That Will Change How We Do Business

June 17, 2013
It is easy to look back and say how different technology was fifteen years ago. It’s also not a stretch to say that technological innovations like laptops, broadband Internet, and USB drives have made the workplace more efficient. But what comes next? Below are 4 emerging technologies that should, in the next 15 years, make as much of an impact as the laptop computer had on the last.

How Industrial Robotics Improve the Economy

June 05, 2013
There have been many discussions regarding Americans losing jobs to overseas manufacturers and to increased use of robotic automation, and with fair wage employment on the rise in many other countries, there has also been an increase in the use of robots there. Amid these discussions and trends, recent studies show that, in fact, industrial robotics actually positively impact jobs and the economy.

Automation Products and the Traits of a Rock Star Distributor

May 10, 2013
As an independent systems integrator, Bastian Robotics is able to source virtually any technology. Some technologies are strategically sourced, and some we manufacture. For the ones not manufactured on our own shop floor, we rely on an array of excellent distributors...

Enclosed Track Overhead Conveyor: True, Tried and Tested

May 09, 2013
Enclosed track overhead conveyors have been around for many years, some dating back to 1919 when they were used in automotive assembly plants. However, this type of conveyor is not just for moving automotive parts or clean clothes. It provides a host of other benefits as well...

Fundamentals of a Successful Material Handling Weekend Cutover

April 09, 2013
Weekend cutovers are becoming more popular as demand for system reliability, increasing throughput, and ever-changing products drive facility managers to find new system solutions, while avoiding the headaches of taking down their current system during business hours. I have helped in a few material-handling cutovers, so I would like to share my thoughts on how to complete one successfully. Here are a few of the fundamentals...

Quality Through Innovation Builds Lasting Relationships

February 07, 2013
Have you ever heard the saying “You get what you pay for”? This is usually synonymous with the thought that you need to spend more money to get higher quality products. However, this is typically not aligned with the majority of consumers who want more for less. The higher quality products are expected...

The Importance of Understanding Your Pallet for Proper Conveyance

February 05, 2013
I spend much of my time in manufacturing facilities dealing with material handling issues related to moving and positioning pallets, plastic bulk box containers, steel racks, and multi-footed thermoformed pallets. Often times, we are given very little information on these objects, let alone the details of the bottom surface. This prompted me to write about the importance of this often skipped over, yet extremely important topic.

Benefits of Single Sourcing Your Manufacturing Automation Partner

March 22, 2011
With the summer project season just around the corner many industrial manufacturing companies are shoring up plans for their big projects. I recently had the pleasure to walk a manufacturing plant from front to back and back to front again in search of automated material handling opportunities. It certainly was a shocking experience because in this case, the client went naked! While this client was the expert on their systems and operations, a trained eye in material handling-- especially robotic --was a welcome investment of their time.

From Military Satellites to Material Handling, Engineering Processes are Key

February 25, 2011
In the past several months, I have been making the (more or less) smooth transition between my previous career as an engineering manager in the aerospace sector and my new role in the material handling industry with Bastian. While originally it was somewhat scary to move from one industry to another, I was pleased to discover the many connections between my previous career and my new one.

The Material Handling Industry: More Exciting Than You Think

February 11, 2011
Before I accepted my position as a research and development engineer at Bastian Material Handling , I only knew of a peripheral definition for material handling. This was due to my focus as an undergrad in automotive engineering, with some topical interest in aerospace and biomechanics.
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