Sylvain Rusterholtz
Senior Application Engineer, KUKA
C h a p t e r 2
An important benefit of flexible
manufacturing is that it leads to much
more sustainable manufacturing as
compared to conventional processes.
Sustainable manufacturing enables more
granular control over the operations of
manufacturing equipment. Specifically,
in cases of real-time system data and
control, we can optimize processes to use
the minimum amount of energy possible.
Bringing computing to the edge—a major
tenet of flexible manufacturing—aids
this optimization, as edge computing
consumes less power than cloud-based
solutions.
A prime way of achieving more
sustainable manufacturing is through
precise motion and motor control. In
manufacturing, motor control is often
not optimized, meaning varying loads are
not considered and maximum power is
always used, wasting considerable energy.
Precise motor control that dynamically
changes based on varying loads can help
reduce peak power consumption and
ultimately result in significant energy
savings.
Another place for sustainability
improvements is in power management
and battery management. Modern
warehouses and production environments
SUSTAINABLE
MANUFACTURING
Sustainable manufacturing is
important in flexible manufacturing
to avoid tooling, robots, or
hardware being thrown away due
to lack of adaptation or retrofit.
The impact in the recycling chain
reduces both cost and waste."
9
10 Experts on Flexible Manufacturing
