RML Automation
Pre-gained Knowledge
The collator was controlled by a large amount of sophisticated electronics
Time management and Project planning are integral for any project. Before a 'job' is even secured a significant amount of dialogue occurs between the two parties. RML are usually requested to create preliminary solution to a problem. To do this, machine and safety specifications are needed from the potential client. Actual and implied key factors are discussed also. This is all kept within an 'Administration Folder'. While this is most important prior to securing a contract, it is kept and often referred back to in the duration of the project. Once a project has been secured many more folders are created for each individual part, however these all stem from this first Administration Folder.
Often clients come to RML requesting projects completed within a very small time frame. Being able to deliver within these constraints is only achieved by highly involved planning. As with Sharp Concepts, RML use the software Microsoft Project to plan their projects by method of timelines. These timelines hold a significant amount of information. Key milestones are able to be set at different dates, each one containing a set of tasks needing to be completed. These tasks are each allocated a certain number of working hours within which they must be completed. This allows for a very accurate way of judging if a project can be completed within a requested time frame before a contract is even secured. In addition to being able to plan the project task-by-task, it also has the facility to plan resources. These resources range from anything such as sheet steel through to the amount of working hours a particular employee will be working on a specific task. For example, a task may be that a certain part of the machine needs assembling within 3 hours. If 200% employee resource is associated with this, it means that two people will be assembling the machine for completion within 3 hours. At a glance it could also be seen that a certain amount of specific grade steel is required from another department etc. Being able to do this is a huge advantage as it reduces the risk of taking on too many projects or having unallocated time which reduces revenue. It also allows for an instant pricing of the machine as all resources are allocated prior to the project being commenced.
Once the over-all project is planned using the specialist software and a job is secured, the machine is designed and prepared for manufacture. At this stage each part is made separately, often by different people at different times. Keeping track of these and ensuring everything is completed to specification is essential. To do this RML use a unique folder system. Each part of the machine is assigned a folder within which all the drawings for that part are kept. This folder effectively follows that part of the machine as it is manufactured and then finally checked to ensure quality and accuracy. Once all the parts are completed the folders are collated, re-checked and the machine is assembled from the drawings.
Material Knowledge is a large part of RML's success. Due to the fact that their forte is cutting and packing within the food industry, much experience has been gained over the years in this area. For example the stringent hygiene standards usually require the materials to be of stainless steel and specific plastics. All past projects are filed on a central database which the designers can access to review what materials have successfully been used in different situations. Perhaps even more of value is their ability to meld Software, Electronics and Hard Materials into a fail-safe automation solution. In this case study Nestlé was quite a unique client due to the fact that they have their own engineering department within their factory; however their engineers were mainly trained in maintenance and diagnostics rather than the actual construction of machines. RML had the knowledge that was needed to meld together the three components (Software, Electronics and Hard Materials) along with the need of Nestlé's to produce a fail-safe solution in the form of the s540 collator.
Specialist design in their field of expertise is what makes RML the forefront of their field, even to the extent of Nestlé, an Australian company, contracting them in New Zealand. As mentioned earlier, Nestlé have their own engineering department within their Melbourne factory. This meant they knew exactly what they wanted in their machine, even to the point of being able to name specific components. RML stated that approximately 80% of the machine was pre-determined by the Nestlé team. However the remaining 20% needed to be solved by the RML design team. They had the knowledge to take what Nestlé had specified and construct it into a working solution.
The initial concept of the s540 Collator designed on the CAD software Solid Works
This was done by a slightly different method than that employed by Sharp Concepts in my previous case study. Instead of first building a mock-up to see if the solution could be solved, they went straight into design with the confidence in themselves that they could solve the problem with the knowledge and expertise they had. This did not mean that they blindly constructed a final product hoping that it would function. Instead, they carried out all their design, modelling and testing on the computer based application Solid Works. This is CAD authoring software which is used throughout much of engineering industry today. Fully scaled three dimensional models can be created from which plans can be taken for construction. RML 'buy in' the knowledge to run this in the form of the engineers that make up the deign team. The ability to do this testing meant much time and money could be saved by avoiding constructing a physical working mock-up. It was during this design and computer testing stage that the remaining 20% was solved to formulate the working machine which Nestlé could not create themselves. This 20% consisted of being able to run the machine at up to 100 tubs packed per second, being able to fill either 1.2L or 2.0L tubs and complying with certain safety standards (See safety procedures for more details on this) while retaining functionality.
Manufacturing quality is taken very seriously at RML as it is not only how they maintain a good name within industry, but also to reduce the need for costly call-outs and repairs. Quality is assured in a number of ways, the most obvious being the use of good materials and selecting the right processes to accompany them. In addition to this is the need to remove the likelihood of human error. This can only be done by comprehensive checking. After the drawings are completed by the design team for manufacture, they are checked over before being sent to the construction floor, if anything is picked up it is corrected and re-checked. Once the manufacturing of all the separate parts is completed, again a process dubbed "QA” (quality Assurance) is carried out. This is where a team of people physically check the dimensions etc against the associated drawings. Once all the parts have passed this and are assembled, the machine is set fully running on RML's premises, observed by the client's staff before it is installed and commissioned.
