Changes and Challenges in the Workforce Need New Approach
2021 has been another year filled with challenges and disruptions across virtually all of the manufacturing sectors. It’s also been one filled with positive momentum and recovery, as industrial production and capacity utilization surpassed pre-pandemic levels by midyear. Strong increases in new orders for all major sub-sectors signal growth that is likely to continue into 2022. In an environment still fraught with uncertainty, automated material handling solutions will be needed to meet these increases.
Historic labor and supply chain challenges appeared alongside all the positive economic indicators that arose throughout 2021. Rising demand and the vaccine rollout powered the robust recovery effort, but optimism has remained grounded because of the ongoing risks. Workforce shortages and supply chain instability are chewing away at margins and overall efficiency.
But even as questions persist about the workforce shortage and if (not when) they might subside, there are ways to promote growth and efficiency in every manufacturing facility through the increased use of automation. With 2022 planning already underway for many proactive organizations, now is the time to consider automated material handling solutions throughout your facilities.
Depending on your industry and production, there are numerous opportunities for you to invest in solutions that will yield greater returns — both immediately in the more effective use of factory and warehouse labor and long-term through cost savings and greater production output.
The options include machinery to perform a variety of tasks, all dealing with handling large parts, material, or components. You can set up automated solutions to load a large volume, or heavy weight, at the beginning or end of production. You can elevate parts between machines where loading or dumping occurs above the previous state. You can more effectively meter parts between different phases.
Let’s examine some solutions that help your facility process more parts, more efficiently, no matter the challenges in filling out your workforce.
The Feedall Difference: Unsure about where to start? Visit our Find-A-Feedall page to get suggestions from our expert team about potential solutions.
Tub & Box Dumpers
Tub & Box Dumpers lift and empty a loaded hopper with a square, rectangular, or even octagonal container to the required discharge height and dump angle required of the next step in the production line. Feedall’s Hydraulic Tub and Box Dumpers can stand alone — feeding parts onto loading tables or into vibratory bowls — or are integrated with other Feedall essentials like elevating or hopper feeders. We offer 180-degree roll-over tub dumpers or hydraulic floor-loaded tub dumpers.
Capable of being loaded from the front or side, these dumpers are filled with either a forklift or a hand truck. Using dual hydraulic cylinders and power units, Feedall Tub & Box Dumpers are able to lift loads of up to 8,000 pounds to heights up to 20 feet. Available in several models and with multiple options — such as safety enclosure and discharge valves — this machinery gives you the ability to keep production moving with large loads and the customization options needed to tailor their operation to each facility’s specific requirements.
Vibratory Metering Hoppers
Like Box & Tub Dumpers, Metering Hoppers can work independently or be directly integrated with Feedall hopper feeders. These units meter parts onto loading tables, conveyor systems, or into parts feeders. They work well in concert with Box & Tub Dumpers and add to the shelf life of your parts feeder; the impact and stress of a large load from the tub dumper are removed from your orienting parts feeder and placed onto the metering hopper.
At Feedall, our metering hoppers come in 3,000 and 6,000-pound part metering and escapement systems with a capacity of up to 40 cubic feet. The metering hoppers incorporate a bulk supply hopper with a vibratory feeder to enable the controlled, consistent, and reliable flow of bulk materials and parts into production processes.
The Feedall Difference: View this short video to see Feedall’s Tub Dumper and Metering Hopper working together.
Bidirectional Orienting Conveyors
Feedall’s Model 1500 Bidirectional Orienting Conveyors were designed for gentle/non-mar orienting and non-orienting parts feeding and are easily adjustable to account for various part size ranges. These conveyors can also handle multiple part shapes including rings, discs, shafts, cylindrical or tubular parts.
Parts are loaded from bulk floor hoppers, conveyors from previous operation steps or the bidirectional orienting conveyors can be integrated as the next step in a process involving box dumpers and metering hoppers. These high-speed, low-noise conveyors may be used to feed parts into centerless grinders, thread rollers, forging and extrusion presses, assembly machines, and feed many other applications.
The Feedall Difference: See Feedall Automation’s equipment in action and learn more about how they work on our Helpful Videos page.
Trust your Automated Material Handling Solutions to Feedall
At Feedall Automation, we specialize in designing and engineering custom material handling solutions for your most complex part feeding needs. Our highly experienced engineering team has years of extensive hands-on experience in mechanical motion, complex and detailed machine design, and delivering robust, creative solutions. We also back all our work with a comprehensive services and repair package, complete with an extended warranty, to make sure your investment delivers high-quality performance for many years to come.
When you collaborate with Feedall, you’re not working with a partner who contributes one part or system to your manufacturing process. You’re working with a partner that delivers automated material handling solutions that cover multiple steps in the process and ensure integration for every station on the line.