Maintenance 2016 with robots and smart tools

They performed simple repetitive tasks in a highly controlled environment. Since then, industrial robots have become more versatile and 'intelligent' every year. Specialists expect that they will work more and more without human intervention and will be able to take over more and more human tasks in the production environment. In recent years, a new family has emerged alongside the classic production robot: service robots for both personal and professional use. Think for example of robot mowers or hoovers, inspection robots and surgical robots.

Robots are hot

According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), global sales of industrial robots will increase by 15% per year to around 400,000 by 2018. 70% of these sales will be in just five countries: China, Japan, South Korea, Germany and the US. The main driver behind this development is the global competition in the field of industrial production. "The far-reaching automation in the automotive and electrical/electronic industries ensures that they have a 64% market share," said Arturo Baroncelli, president of the IFR.

China's lightning-fast development is unique in the history of robotics. Between 2013 and 2014, sales increased by a staggering 56%! The country is already the largest market for robots in the world, and there is still plenty of room for growth, despite the recent economic woes. The density is currently 'only' 36 robots per 10,000 employees, while in South Korea it is 478, followed by Japan (315) and Germany (292). In Europe, Germany leads by far: 10% more robots were sold in 2014, to a total of 20,100, and growth continues despite the already high density, mainly driven by the automotive industry.

Robots in the process industry

Robots will also become more important in the process industry, especially in the area of maintenance. In this sector, maintenance is an important and 'costly' part of business management, partly due to the age of many installations and the increasingly strict rules in the field of safety and the environment. Asset owners (owners of installations in the process industry) are therefore constantly looking for ways to meet the latest requirements in the area of safety and the environment, and to operate the installation as reliably as possible at the lowest possible cost.  

Smart tools, aids and tools that can perform tasks (semi) autonomously, and robot technology offer an interesting potential of innovative possibilities that respond to this need. A good example are robots and drones that can carry out inspections in locations that are difficult or inaccessible to humans.

A concrete example

HCI, an industrial cleaning company with 400 employees in Antwerp, recently took a self-developed, fully automatic Outside Bundle Cleaner (OBC) into use. This innovative automation for high-pressure cleaning of the pipes in heat exchangers was developed with support from a Ki< project. The OBC 'reads' the bundles and then runs the cleaning programme. The selected cleaning programme depends on the degree of contamination and cleaning. The developed software has been extensively tested in practice and is fully operational. The trained employees operate the machine via a tablet and are completely out of the danger zone during cleaning. After an extensive test phase, the OBC is already successfully in use at the Dow Terneuzen spray site. 

Research

It is clear that robots can make maintenance safer, cheaper, cleaner and more efficient. However, because robot technology is still young, there are many uncertainties and possibilities that have not yet been researched or developed. In order to take major steps in this area, Machine Learning is currently being heavily used. This technique should enable robots, but also autonomous vehicles and virtual assistants to work (semi-)autonomously.

In order to further stimulate the innovative application of robots in maintenance, BEMAS is joining forces with Ki<, Dow Terneuzen, BASF, Sirris and UGent in an Interreg Vb project, with the aim of further developing several prototypes of robots and smart tools for maintenance.

Conclusion

Are robots in maintenance a distant dream or already a reality in the work field in 2016? I already know one thing: technology is constantly evolving and often moves very quickly from an embryonic and vague idea to a generally accepted application that we can no longer do without. 

Wim Vancauwenberghe