IMH recently announced the addition of a Universal Robots machine, which will allow the company to decrease lead time and production efficiency. The new robot arm is IMH’s latest investment in cutting edge manufacturing technology. Recent acquisitions have established IMH as a hub for some of the most advanced machining equipment in the Midwest, allowing the company to handle almost any level of demand.
Universal Robots specializes in cobots—or collaborative automation machinery that enables skilled machinists to produce high-quality parts more quickly and with greater accuracy across parts. These robot arms do not replace the efforts of welders and other specialists. Instead, machinists manually move the cobots into place, where they perform repetitive machining processes that are undesirable for most operators. The automated machine then carries out the desired movement while machinists tend to other tasks. Cobots can be programmed and reprogrammed to tackle a range of operations.
Cobots can offer a significant advantage over traditional industrial robots that IMH has employed for years, as the cost of the fixturing to hold the parts while being welded are generally much lower. Parts volumes as low as 100 units can now be economically robotically welded, whereas traditional industrial robots usually require part volumes into the thousands.
IMH anticipates benefits beyond faster lead times and improved production efficiency. The Universal Robots machine will also allow the company to better utilize staff and maximize output. Talented machinists and welders will be able to allocate more of their time to high-level responsibilities, and Universal Robots machines will be programmed to operate outside of normal working hours, improving production quantities.
Known for consistently investing in the latest manufacturing technology, IMH has acquired nine laser cutters, including a 6000-watt Cincinnati Fiber Laser Cutting System, in recent years. The Universal Robots equipment is the company’s latest addition and first cobot.
About IMH
A go-to contract manufacturer for Tier 1 OEMs across the country, IMH is a one-stop shop for subassemblies with stamped, machined, and fabricated components. With three strategic locations across the Midwest and a combined 285,000 square feet of manufacturing and warehouse space, IMH has the capacity and technology required to fill requests from the agriculture, construction, defense, food service, healthcare, lighting, material handling, and transportation industries.