With 2025 on the horizon, it’s appropriate to revisit a simple but profound truth: It doesn’t matter how fast you go if it’s in the wrong direction.
Currently, there’s a universal push in manufacturing — as a whole and within individual components — to increase speed; many OEMs feel they need to go faster, they need to advance, they need to push the envelope. While the benefits of strategic advancement are clear, how to do so remains undefined for some, who are singularly focused on aggressive throughput goals.
Speed and efficiency are bedrocks of operational efficiency but are only proven in processes that are strategically optimized. Curiously, conveyance, long seen as the backbone of modern manufacturing, is a microcosm, a component case study, per se, in the evolution of assembly manufacturing. Its development as a modern solution offers a unique window into where industry is headed.
From Conventional to Cutting-Edge
Within the past decade, combining linear motor technology and integrating magnets into advanced carriage design have marked a new plateau for conveyance innovation. Their resulting impact on transfer speeds have introduced new possibilities for manufacturers, but as with any new technology, some are hesitant to abandon legacy processes. For more than 100 years, traditional conveyors have proven their efficiency, and they often serve as the spine of nearly every assembly line. As such, any deviance from that is sometimes met with understandable reticence.
As fate would have it, the global pandemic forced the adoption of modern, high-speed conveyance, as many OEMs had to be flexible to navigate not only parts and labor shortages, but also respond to a constantly shifting consumer landscape. Despite its numerous negative impacts, the pandemic did turn out to be a catalyst in advocating for a new era of conveyance.
The most publicized example of modern conveyance adoption has been within battery manufacturing, most notably in electric vehicles. Vehicle manufacturers, when evaluating solutions to meet skyrocketing consumer demand, have been pioneers in how they’re achieving production goals. What was once a long-held belief of simply adding another production line, many EV OEMs have instead increased the speed of their current line.
Packs and modules are being produced at faster speeds, which not only saves manufacturers time and money from having to install, operate, and monitor separate lines, but also raises a critical consideration in prioritizing the true cost of ownership of the processes being utilized. Because more is being asked of those components, its incumbent upon manufacturers to thoroughly evaluate and consider the flexibility and adaptability of each solution they’re implementing. If OEMs can maximize every element of a multi-functional solution, it can free up resources to be allocated elsewhere.
Control the Line
One of the central arguments for modern conveyance’s value lies in its new identity. No longer is it simply a transference tool, but now it’s more of a part of the machines themselves by serving as a control device — it’s communicating with multiple components throughout the process and relaying real-time data back to the operator. This information is having a profound effect on predictive maintenance and quality control. Manufacturers are getting a clear picture of transfer times and quickly identifying where bottlenecks are. By addressing these issues sooner, companies are reducing both valuable downtime spent on repairs and costly scrap.
That concept of communication within components is a keystone that many future factories will be built on, which reveals a sub-component of modern technology that OEMs need to consider: open solutions. Just like with older conveyors, previous control systems were siloed — they were singular, monolithic systems that if one component was underperforming or offline, it could impact the entire process; manufacturers were married to a certain architecture.
Now, modern conveyors are key ambassadors of open solutions that can communicate with a variety of systems and audiences like PLC programmers, IoT gateways, etc. This technology, and its application-based features and mobile HMI capability, is also being taught to a newer generation of laborers that has grown up with technology in their hands. That should further impress upon manufacturers that the earlier they adopt a culture of open modern solutions, the more familiar their environments will be to the next wave of employees.
The ability to speak to a variety of processes is indicative of a central theme of the widely discussed transition to Industry 5.0. Many OEMs continue to place a premium on “bridge technology” that can operate with both older equipment (say, traditional conveyors) and newer solutions. This philosophy of incrementally incorporating modern processes into an established ecosystem helps companies guard against significant upfront cost and downtime trying to install an entirely new line. The most innovative manufacturers tirelessly test out new equipment in a variety of settings to see how it can be used to its fullest extent. If it’s proven to be successful, then they can incorporate it system-wide, with a proven test case as their evidence to not only customers, but also to the internal workforce that’s operating it.
Not only are high-speed conveyors representative of a new look within today’s manufacturing landscape, but also a new sound. You can likely hear a traditional roller or chain conveyor if you close your eyes, but modern conveyors all but eliminate any unnecessary noise within a line. Modern, highspeed conveyors are only using electricity when they’re moving a pallet versus a chain that’s always requiring some source of power. It follows in the general path of electrification within assembly lines, which includes phasing out of pneumatic and hydraulic components, which in turn provides a massive carbon offset for companies who are adopting sustainable practices.
Open to Interpretation
Because of market volatility and uncertainty in parts and resource availability, OEMs may be facing 2025 with some level of apprehension. But rather than assuming a defensive posture and deferring to what’s always been done, manufacturers should be open-minded and willing to step outside their comfort zone in exploring how modern manufacturing can help them respond to consumer needs.
The elegance of an advanced solution, as noted above in modern highspeed conveyance, is in its flexibility to solve for a variety of needs and represent a clear ROI for companies. That’s the technology that will be populating modern facilities and the sooner OEMs recognize their value, the faster their impact will be experienced throughout their assembly lines.
This article was written by John Atchison, Product Manager – High-Speed Smart Conveyance, Bosch Rexroth (Charlotte, NC). For more information, visit here .
