Exmac Automation has
recently completed an engine
handling project for the Rolls-
Royce facility in Derby.

Besides using a pioneering
method of automated
assembly within the aerospace
industry, the automated
process for the transportation,
assembly and build of large
aircraft engines also highlights
the potential for the transfer
of technology between many
other industries.
Experience of conveying
and handling systems for
complex assembly plants such
as those at Intier, Aston
Martin, JCB, Jaguar and Land
Rover can help other
industries understand how
automotive systems operate
and, importantly, convince
customers that similar
assembly systems can be
made to work for them.

Advanced flowline control
technology similar to that
adopted in automotive plants
can be implemented in other
sectors by scheduling the
indexing systems and Total
Average Cycle Times (TACT)
to produce smaller or larger
production cycles to suit a
wide range of assembly
requirements.

Moving equipment using
automated skillet-based
flowline systems, supplemented
by AGVs if required for
larger components, could for
many manufacturers represent
a step-change in assembly
and make static production a
thing of the past.

The design of such systems
would require the involvement
of the Exmac team with
key personnel from the
customer’s manufacturing
and operational teams.