One of the most widely-used metal forming processes can be made even more efficient with automation.

Die casting is a popular process for good reason. It produces castings quickly and consistently, with a high level of precision, and can minimize the amount of post-processing needed for the final product. The dies themselves, as well as the injection and processing equipment, represent a significant capital investment up-front—but for high-volume production, the efficiency gains are a clear win. Processes that hinge on this kind of precision and repeatability are excellent candidates for automation—in these cases, automated systems can act as a multiplier, creating efficiency gains at every step.

Additionally, die casting involves high temperatures, pressurized molten metal, and other potentially dangerous materials that can represent a risk to worker safety. Introducing robots that can tolerate such conditions helps create safer and more comfortable work environments for human operators, and delays wear and tear on existing equipment.

Automation is one key option for increasing the throughput, safety, and quality of the die casting process. Here are four areas where it can have a sizable impact.

1) Faster handling, safely

Worker safety is the highest priority in any manufacturing setting. In die casting, high temperatures and pressures mean that safety procedures are crucial, and that speeding up production involves plenty of additional considerations to protect life and limb.

Robotic equipment, however, offers additional flexibility when designing workflows for ladling or injecting, ejecting molds, or positioning and gripping die halves. Automated systems can be designed with temperature-resistant and protective surfaces that can tolerate the harsh requirements of working with molten metal. These automated processes offer the opportunity to increase the efficiency and throughput of existing processes, while maintaining—and even enhancing—worker safety.

2) Machines tending machines

Before casting, dies need to be lubricated, to ease the removal of the finished product. This lubrication must be done precisely and consistently, otherwise the casting might develop flaws during cooling or ejection. Automated dispensing technology can carefully control the lubrication process, ensuring a consistent amount of lubricant, evenly applied.

However, the lubricant—and other fluids involved in the casting process—present their own problems. Material removal during post-processing creates dust and metal shards, which, when combined with casting fluids, produces an abrasive sludge that can cause wear and tear on the moving parts of existing equipment.

But the consistency and precision of an automated casting process can reduce the amount of post-processing needed on each individual casting, making the removal of flashing, sprues, and other waste more efficient and contained. That leaves fewer scraps to contribute to abrasion, increasing the longevity of the system as a whole.

3) Visual inspection and quality control

One of the greatest advantages of the die casting process is its repeatability. But even with the consistency of the finished product, inspecting each piece after it has been ejected and cooled is critical—particularly considering die casting’s use in industries with tight tolerances for variation, like automotive and aerospace. Slight surface defects or minor internal flaws can result in serious downstream safety risks or major equipment failures.

Fortunately, automated inspection processes are becoming more accurate every day, thanks to an array of technological improvements. Vision systems are more sophisticated and flexible, with access to a variety of measurement tools and large training datasets. These and other high-tech metrology systems that verify the fine details of a product’s shape, or detect production flaws using sensors and techniques inaccessible to human workers, can be incorporated smoothly into an automation workflow. Material handling and conveyance systems can then use the information provided to sort out and remove any imperfect products efficiently.

4) Reduced waste, reduced cost

Robotic equipment can accomplish dangerous or intricate jobs precisely and without declining in quality over time. These characteristics alone mean a higher success rate on products, with less rework and fewer rejected pieces. But on top of that, the ability of robots to work in ways that human operators can’t means that automated systems have additional flexibility when positioning dies, injecting alloys, ejecting hot castings, or completing any necessary post-processing. Automated systems can handle these tasks efficiently and with a consistently high-quality output.

Robotic material handling also means that dies can be designed to minimize the occurrence of sprues, flashing, and other post-processing concerns. A robotic arm can access tight areas for drilling or deburring, and can handle extremely precise material removal with a minimal risk of errors. With their emphasis on repeatability, the results of automated systems—including waste—are much more predictable. Processes can be designed to control their own dust, metal scraps, and other byproducts, which can be disposed of safely or reclaimed for other uses.

Die castings’ biggest hurdles are where automation shines

Die casting involves detailed, precise tasks done under conditions potentially dangerous to workers. Ladling hot metal, handling hot dies and castings, and post-processing castings amid metal scrap all carry the potential for injury, to say nothing of product waste if the processes aren’t completed correctly. The repeatability of these tasks makes them excellent candidates for automation by equipment that’s been designed to handle the harsh operating environment.

Convergix Automation Solutions specializes in creating automated systems that include a wide variety of material handling technologies. We work with specialized solutions like dial machines and hitch feeds, as well as more traditional options like conveyor belts. Our expertise also covers material removal technologies, from deburring and laser ablation to plasma cleaning, designed to suit your specific needs. If your metal forming business is ready to take the next step in safety and efficiency, contact Convergix today. We can help you find the right automation solution for your factory floor.

Population growth and climate change are placing pressure on the agricultural industry. Automation provides a path forward 

In November 2022, the global population crossed the 8 billion threshold. That number is projected to pass 10 billion sometime in the years after 2050. Meanwhile, shifting climate conditions and ecosystem disruptions are having a drastic impact on crop growth. Flooding, drought, destructive storms, and invasive species are all taking their toll on crop yields for farmers at a time when increased output is desperately required to stave off mass food shortages. 

However, there is plenty of reason for hope. The current situation is far from the first time in which humanity has approached its Malthusian limit—the point at which population has outpaced the ability of the world to feed it. The lessons from the past indicate multiple paths forward for the future of farming. 

To feed the coming population boom, a new agricultural revolution is needed. Fortunately, there are signs it is already underway, both in traditional agriculture, and through new vertical farming systems. While the advantages these new technologies may have for agriculture are hard to overstate, there are still unsolved questions ahead. Nevertheless, the combined capabilities of automation and Industry 4.0 have the potential to transform agriculture, the environment, and food quality for billions of people worldwide. 

4 Agricultural Challenges Aided by Automation and Industry 4.0 

The primary focus for agricultural automation is to solve many of the most pressing issues threatening global food networks. Already, many of these issues are causing significant ecological and economic problems worldwide. Here’s how automation can help. 

1) Crop yields

Currently, crop yields are being damaged by climate conditions, such as flooding or drought, and biological conditions, such as pests and disease. On the side of traditional farming, scientists are working to develop crops that are more resistant to disease, or that can tolerate a broader range of environmental conditions, including rice that can withstand higher salt concentrations in areas prone to flooding. 

Meanwhile, vertical farming grows crops in a protected environment, safe from pests and other harsh conditions. Indoor farms can also grow crops year-round, including in locations not suitable for agriculture such as the desert or the arctic. 

2) Effective land and water use

It only takes flying over the great plains to notice the drastic effect modern agriculture has had on land usage. Traditional farming requires huge swaths of land and also billions of gallons of water each year in the United States alone. Both these factors put hard limits on how much food can be sustainably grown using traditional methods. 

Vertical farming effectively circumvents those limitations. While the numbers vary by crop, vertical farms use roughly 90% less land than traditional farms, and 95% less water. The water factor is especially important, as most water in traditional farms is lost to evaporation and runoff. In controlled environments, water can be recycled for use within a closed system. 

3) Labor efficiency 

According to a recent report from Meili Robots, the global supply of agricultural workers is projected to decline significantly over the coming decade, as more workers move into professions with better wages and less punishing working conditions. As this happens, the farmers who remain will need to look toward automated solutions to fill the labor shortage. 

Vertical farms have the potential to be fully automated, with relatively minimal on-site staff tending the crops and ensuring that everything is working well. But traditional farms are also set to benefit from automation, whether in the form of autonomous farming vehicles, drone pollination, or robotic harvesting. 

4) Environmental impact 

As effective as the Green Revolution of the 1960s was in solving world hunger for the short term, we have since had to come to terms with the environmental impact that pesticides and fertilizers have had across ecosystems of all kinds. Moreover, monocropping practices have also undermined biodiversity while flirting with the specter of catastrophic crop failure should a staple crop fall victim to a new disease. 

Vertical farming can protect crops from failure, but it also enables a wider variety of crops without the need for pesticide and with less reliance on fertilizer. Meanwhile, the land no longer required to grow traditional farms can be returned to nature, allowing richer biomes to flourish. 

3 Consumer Benefits of Automated Farming 

Automated agriculture has the potential to bring some revolutionary benefits that simply aren’t possible with traditional farming methods. Even simply automating construction of farming facilities or processes for heavy duty and off-road vehicles used in farm and agriculture helps reduce costs and improve efficiency. While these advances sound like ideas from a science fiction novel, many of them already exist in the early stages. 

1) Local food sources 

Transporting food hundreds of miles from where it’s been grown is obviously not good for the environment, but it’s also not good for produce. In order to withstand the jostling and days of sitting in crates, many fruits and vegetables are grown for durability, putting flavor into the back seat. Vertical farms can be located closer to population centers, lowering transportation costs (which contribute to the cost of produce) and providing fresher, tastier fruits and vegetables. 

2) Specialty produce 

If you’ve spent much time looking carefully through the produce section of your grocery aisle, you may have noticed a variety of fruits and vegetables that you’ve never heard of before. Many of these are recent imports from other parts of the globe, but others are recently developed, such as broccolini (a hybrid of two different broccolis). 

The control vertical farms offer farmers over growing conditions makes it easier to experiment with new hybrids, but it also enables them to adjust other factors, too, such as light spectrums and nutrients. This allows smaller farmers to create vegetables finely tuned to match local preferences. 

3) In-home growth stations 

Sometime in the 20th century, gardening moved from a practical necessity to a popular hobby. Many people garden for the joy of it, but also for the convenience of having fresh produce within arm’s reach, and the pleasure of garden-fresh fruits and vegetables. 

As automated farming becomes more compact and efficient, there’s reason to believe we could begin to see indoor growth stations enter the consumer market. With sensors in place to monitor light, hydration, nutrients, and readiness, indoor gardening could be a sustainable, year-round way for households to supplement their grocery budgets. 

The future of farming is not without its hurdles, but technological breakthroughs show promise 

As with any technological forecast, it can be all too easy to view the future with rose-tinted glasses and ignore the many barriers that exist to implementing these changes. For instance, despite its promise, indoor farming still has to become much more conservative in its energy use to be environmentally effective. It is also true that many tall grain crops, such as wheat or corn, are not as efficient in indoor farms as other more compact crops. 

However, many of the underlying technologies required to support vertical farming already exist, and it’s clear that the concept itself is viable. Meanwhile, as those underlying technologies become more refined, the startup costs for vertical farms as well as their energy use will go down. This makes many of the future predictions for farming less of a pipe dream, and more of a near-future likelihood. 

As automation experts, we work with both the agricultural industry to develop vertical farming systems, and other manufacturing industries such as energy and advanced technology. Our cross-industry expertise gives us deep insight into a range of manufacturing solutions. If you would like to find out more about how these learnings could be applied to your sector, contact us today for a consultation.