ANT Plant Microfactory: A game-changer in automation projects

In a recent interview, we sat down with Paavo Käkelä, Head of Sales and Marketing, to discuss the revolutionary ANT Plant Microfactory and its advantages over traditional custom-made automation projects. Here's what he had to say about the industry's challenges and how the ANT Plant Microfactory concept is addressing them.

Paavo, what are the typical hurdles in turnkey or custom automation projects?

-  The main challenges that are often encountered in traditional automation projects include:

1. Timeline issues: Building from scratch without a ready-made foundation to build upon can lead to significant delays.
   
   
2. Financial concerns: Custom projects often require a significant upfront investment, with the capital being tied up for several months before any returns start to be realized e.g. in production capacity increases.
   
   
3. Reliability: Ensuring consistent quality can be challenging in one-off designs. When designing from scratch, there is always a trial-and-error approach to problem-solving, as there are no existing, proven solutions to rely on.
   
   
4. Project management: High expertise is crucial to effectively replicate features and leverage existing solutions.
   
   
5. Efficiency: Custom lines tend to be heavier, and you can't benefit from volume purchases as the components might be unique, and designs even within lines may differ.
   
   
6. Extended ramp-up phases: without pre-made, separately installable modules with their own PLCs, on-site implementation can be very time-consuming.

From the customer's perspective, delivery times are extended due to the increasing number of variables and the need for from-scratch development. Even the quoting process can take weeks due to extensive planning requirements, whereas with a standardized platform design, it can be reduced to mere days.

To understand what investment includes, custom automation projects also demand deeper design expertise and a wide experience from the customer, including an understanding of automation principles in manufacturing processes.

The definition phase is often very demanding and requires extensive expertise but is crucial in how the entire project plays out. However, getting this right can save hundreds of thousands in the investment phase, impacting everything from product (re)design and packaging to tolerances and assembly.

What are the main benefits of ANT Plant compared to traditional custom automation delivery?

- The ANT Plant Microfactory offers several key advantages:

1. Speed: The platform(s) is pre-designed, so we only need to design customer-specific applications. This saves a significant portion of NRE hours. Immediately after the order, following a configuration round, we can already purchase a large portion of components, saving both time and money significantly. The modular platform design also means that every module comes with its own PLC, allowing a true plug-and-play installation.
   
   
2. Reliability: We use many ready-made, tested modules, minimizing variables to the application level. This allows us to focus primarily on customer-specific module design. This also allows us to put more focus on the customer’s applications as everything around it is standardized.
   
   
3. Ease of use: We have a modularized user interface that can control individual cells and monitor the entire line. If larger updates are needed, for example, product changes, we can detach a module from operation and make necessary corrections or changes with only minor downtime to the process. 
   
   
4. Flexibility: The idea is not to build massive lines with the one big investment round. ANT Plant gives you the flexibility to build small and medium-sized lines and increase the capacity later on based on customer volume growth. This means lower initial investment costs with the ability to scale as needs grow. On top of that, the ANT Plant provides you with the same advantages when building fast, high-volume lines.

Why is the ANT Plant Microfactory a more cost-effective solution?

- ANT Plant's cost-effectiveness stems from several factors:

1. Less design work is required due to ready-made platforms, reducing risks in both design and purchasing.
   
   
2. The basic platform and pre-designed applications often form more than 70% of the pricing, reducing the need to reserve for contingencies and additional risk factors.
   
   
3. Significantly more efficient turnaround times, enabling series production and larger batch purchases.
   
   
4. Streamlined process execution, positively impacting every stage from quotation to delivery.
   
   
5. Faster investment lead times, reducing financing costs.
   
   
6. Reduced footprint: with a range of flexible roof-mounted applications, the footprint is significantly reduced with the ANT Plant platform.  

In essence, the ANT Plant Microfactory offers a faster, more reliable, and cost-effective solution compared to traditional custom automation projects, providing flexibility and ease of use that meets the evolving needs of modern manufacturing.

Interested in learning more about how the microfactory approach can benefit your operations? Contact us!