9APRIL 2024payback periods and affording businesses the opportunity to significantly reduce direct labor costs.Granted, there will be some businesses that, despite the latest advancements in automation, run manufacturing processes that are simply performed better by humans. So, what role does technology play in keeping these manufacturing operations cost-competitive?For many, the key is leveraging simulation software to strip the product and its manufacturing process down to their leanest possible forms.Products are predominately designed by engineers who have been conditioned since their earliest training to incorporate sufficient factors of safety into their designs.While these factors of safety are what keep bridges from collapsing and planes from falling from the sky, they can present severely negative impacts on the cost and complexity of the product.Simulation software primarily exists as a tool for engineers to trim factors of safety without compromising safety or customer experience.Refined factors of safety can often translate to smaller and lighter products and sometimes alternative materials. These optimizations provide a driving force to reduce the cost of raw materials and can even result in an enhanced customer experience where lighter and more compact designs are desirable product attributes.But the benefits of simulation software are not limited to product design, it is becoming increasingly favorable to leverage across manufacturing process design.Manufacturing engineers are employing increasingly powerful simulation software to model processes to minimize scrap, accelerate cycle times, and improve the uptime of machines - all contributing to reducing operations costs.The sophistication of simulation software, together with exponential growth in processing speeds, is enabling manufacturers to model the performance of an entire factory before the first equipment is even purchased. This is true even in industries as complex as automotive manufacturing, where there are hundreds of robots working together in tandem.So-called `digital twins' are enabling greater utilization of robots and other machines, thereby reducing the total quantity of such equipment that needs to be procured to meet target production volumes.The need to offshore manufacturing operations to countries with low labor rates is becoming an antiquated solution. Technology advancements in automation and simulation allow businesses to work smarter and maximize value throughout the work stream. Technology advancements in automation and simulation allow businesses to work smarter and maximize value throughout the work stream
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