Manufacturers facing surpluses in demand and shortages in the available workforce can be hard-pressed to automate and adopt Manufacturing 4.0 technologies to stay competitive. With this in mind, it’s always encouraging to hear good news about other manufacturers’ success in adopting new technologies.
KUKA Toledo Production Operations (KTPO) recently celebrated the completion of its two-millionth Jeep Wrangler body-in-white for both two-door and four-door models.
KTPO took seven years to build their first million, but by expanding to keep up with growing global demand for the Wrangler, KTPO managed to complete their second million in only four years.
A fleet of 259 robots produce 828 unpainted vehicle bodies per day, equalling one in every 77 seconds over three daily shifts in a 335,000-sq. ft. manufacturing facility in Toledo, OH.
KUKA’s automated metal joining technologies assemble the body-in-white by welding the underbody, windshield and closures together. Completed KTPO bodies mate to the chassis frame during final assembly at the Toledo Assembly Complex.
The plant’s robotic fleet operates with 60,000 other data points, which are linked to a back-end digital monitoring system and a master data management system, to create an intelligent life cycle management platform. The system controls and monitors the entire value chain in real time, from receipt to materials to the production processes and goods dispatch. It also identifies bottlenecks and optimizes capacity utilization.
"KTPO has been a tremendous story for KUKA, a study in technical excellence and ambition, complemented by a strong commitment to the venture's continued success by all involved, especially our Toledo staff," said Larry Drake, CEO of KUKA Systems Group. "It's a platform for implementing KUKA innovation and best practices that attracts visitors from around the world to understand how this works so well on multiple levels."
For more information, visit the KUKA Toledo Production Operations website.