Rockingham Steel chooses Schnell and revolutionizes the production with Robomaster 60 UN.O.

Our customer Rockingham Steel (Virginia, USA) choose Robomaster 60 UN.O. to automate and increase production.

Robomaster 60 UN.O. is the bending robot of the UN.O. Program (Unmanned Operation Program), aimed at producing machines and solutions capable of turning bending centres into fully automated factories.

Robomaster 60 UN.O. is the first bending robot capable of loading bars and unloading the finished product automatically without the need for operator intervention.

Production benefits are numerous:

• Increased productivity thanks to the integration of automatic loading and unloading systems;
• Greater accuracy of bar unloading for easier packing and loading onto trucks;
• Automatic mandrel change;
• Increased finished product quality;
• Drastic reduction in the risk of accidents and thus greater operator safety.

Rockingham Steel's experience

The great success of Schnell's UN.O. programme continues: Robomaster 60 UN.O. also reaches the United States!

Rockingham Steel decided to adopt this new technology to revolutionise and improve the entire production process.

Rockingham Steel, a subsidiary of Construction Materials Group Inc., is a family-owned company providing the highest quality materials and services to the construction industry in the eastern United States for over thirty years.

Rockingham Steel has upgraded its rebar production with the Robomaster 60 UN.O. to continuously improve its products.The switch from manual to automatic bending robots has brought many benefits to Rockingham Steel:

• improved product quality
• increased productivity due to the integration of automatic loading and unloading systems
• increased operator safety

Here’s Brian’s testimony, one of the operators at Rockingham Steel:

I: What’s your name?

“My name is Brian.”

I: Brian, how long have you worked here?

B: “I've been with the company for about three years.”

I: Okay, and how long have you been running the manual bender?

B: “I've been running the bender for about two years.”

 I: Two years, okay. Obviously, we have a new piece of equipment. What were your first thoughts when you saw this?

B: “Well, my first impression was as far as what I could do by myself as far as the machine run. Single bins, double bins, single pieces, things that the tedious job, little changes here”

I: So the machine may do, faster?

B: “Made me faster, yeah.”

I: Okay. What about the quality of work?

B: “The quality of work come out better. You know, with a robot, you don't have to depend on another individual to hold a certain spot”

I: So you can run the machine by yourself and get a more consistent result.

B: “I can do a four-man job with one person.”

I: Okay. What about safety? Do you notice any differences between the old way and the new way?

B: “I feel like this is a lot safer. You're farther away from the product itself, the machine itself. No moving products or pinching products on your way. The machine itself will shut off if you get too close or in a danger area.”

I: And I guess probably the most important thing, what about quality of life? How do you feel after a hard day's work on the robot versus on the old manual bender?

B: “At the end of the day, you can definitely feel a difference in your hands and shoulders. At the end of the week, you know, you've got a lot more energy to go out and do a lot more with your family. And just overall, I just made myself feel good.”

I: Good, glad to hear it. Thank you, Brian.

A new era for shaping centres

Our machines and software are designed for fully automatic shaping centres: operators, without any physical effort, supervise the work of ‘UNMANNED’ machines.

The UN.O. programme provides many advantages:

• Greater efficiency: thanks to complete automation, production processes become faster and more efficient.
• Higher productivity: automated machines can work uninterruptedly, increasing the overall productivity of the factory.
• Greater flexibility: our solutions can be customised to suit different production needs.
• Increased safety: by reducing the need for operator intervention, the safety risks for employees are reduced.

Want to turn your shaping centre into a fully automated factory?

Click here to learn more!