Southwire is thrilled to announce a collaboration with READY Robotics, a pioneer in cutting-edge automation solutions that help manufacturers solve challenges, to deploy automation at five of the company’s facilities.
The automation pilot will include Southwire’s Retail East Customer Service Center (CSC) in Villa Rica, Ga.; Utility Products Plant in Carrollton, Ga.; Kentucky Plant in Hawesville, Ky.; Florence Plant in Florence, Ala.; and Bremen Campus in Bremen, Ind.
READY Robotics completed an Automation Readiness Assessment (ARA) to prepare for the project. Southwire’s production facilities were subjected to a rigorous investigation guided by automation professionals, which discovered possible automation prospects. The ARA procedure assesses both standard automation potential and high-mix, low-volume (HMLV) processes. These HMLV procedures are frequently seen as difficult to automate in the absence of a versatile solution such as READY’s ForgeOS, their patented industrial operating system for robotics and automation.
READY Robotics’ vice president of Automation & Manufacturing Technologies, Allan Gibson, dubbed the collaboration a “game-changer.” “Our collaboration with Southwire to deploy industrial robotics, mobile robotics such as automated guided vehicles (AGVs) or autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT) across their corporation using ForgeOS is transformative,” he continued. It demonstrates Southwire’s dedication to efficiency, quality, and sustainability.”
READY Robotics
Southwire works every day to improve the lives of its team members as part of its commitment to Living Well by creating a diverse, supportive, and engaging environment. The company’s primary goals are safety and health, and this collaboration is an extension of those efforts.
“Our partnership with READY Robotics supports our ongoing assessment and initiative to provide a safe environment for all team members,” said Se Oh, vice president of Operations Sustainability at Southwire. “Through close collaboration between READY Robotics and our Modernization, Health and Safety and Packaging Engineering teams, we plan to cultivate material handling safety and related automation for our existing assets and future investments.”
