Ensuring the efficient and safe handling of welding applications is a significant challenge for steel companies. To address this complexity and at the same time achieve the highest production quality, more and more companies are adopting robotic, advanced and intelligent solutions. This is driven by the shortage of skilled labor and the risks associated with harsh working conditions, with the aim of optimizing processes, reducing costs, and improving operator safety.
Such is the case with Tubosider, a manufacturer of steel products used for civil works, such as road and noise barriers, pipelines, and linings for tunnels and tanks, which help protect people and the environment. The global company has adopted an automated solution for arc welding developed by system integrator X-Machine based in Alba (Italy), using Comau technologies. The solution features a small robot from Comau’s new S-Family, enhanced by Artificial Intelligence, which allowed Tubosider to increase precision and safety in all phases of welding, in a more sustainable and cost-effective way.
“The introduction of a latest-generation robot is only the first step towards the factory of the future. The real transformation comes from the intelligence we can integrate into it, capable of making production not only automated, but also reliable and predictable. It is precisely this conviction that has shaped our collaboration with Comau.”
Ediz Paripovic, CEO of X-Machine
The Challenge
Tubosider outsourced to X-Machine Srl of Alba the construction of a robotic arc welding system capable of handling components of various sizes, ensuring maximum production efficiency and reducing the workload on operators.
Unlike manual operations, robotic solutions ensure uniform, high-quality welds, reduce material waste, and increase safety by limiting exposure to hazardous working conditions. This allows for increased productivity and maintains the precision required for continuous large-scale processing.
The solution required by Tubosider had to achieve specific objectives. It needed to ensure more reliable and highly repeatable welds, optimize maintenance operations in the medium to long term and allow the reallocation of manual welding workers towards safer and more valuable activities.
The Solution
X-Machine has a long history of collaboration with Comau, a technological partner chosen for the reliability of its advanced automation solutions, for its fast and constant after-sales services and for a long and consolidated experience in the manufacturing sector, especially for arc welding applications. All Comau robots are designed to ensure excellent repeatability and offer high-level software features that grant increased quality of the weld.
To meet the client’s needs, X-Machine developed a customized, turnkey welding system integrated with Comau’s S-13 robot enhanced with Artificial Intelligence. The S-13 robot from Comau’s S-Family range was chosen for its high performance and for its compact structure. It has a payload of 13 kg, a maximum reach of 1960 mm and an extremely small footprint (33×33 cm), which make it suitable for operating easily in small and narrow spaces. Thanks to these characteristics, it also guarantees excellent cycle times, great repeatability and high precision of path control. Finally, its hollow wrist configuration, which facilitates and protects the passage of cables while avoiding additional external clutter, is ideal for applications in critical environments, such as arc welding in the steel industry.
Each phase of the work path is optimized to obtain the final result. Before starting welding, the robot performs an accurate search for the joint thanks to an intelligent function that automatically compensates for the misalignment of the piece. This ensures greater precision and superior welding quality. After completing the first part, the robot immediately starts welding the second, maintaining a smooth and steady production pace.
The entire process is managed through a centralized control panel, designed by X-Machine. This intuitive and fast interface allows operators to initiate and manage workflows, access digital documentation, record activities, and request support, all from a single location.
To improve the safety of the application, an intelligent ON/OFFswitch has been positioned near the robot, which separates the operator’s work areas from those of the robot. This system further reduces cycle times, as the employees and the welding arm can carry out their tasks in parallel, in total safety, thus increasing overall productivity.
The Results
Tubosider’s objectives have been fully achieved: the welds are reliable and highly repeatable, maintenance operations have been optimised in the medium to long term, and operators previously engaged in manual welding have been reassigned to safer tasks with greater added value.
Thanks to X-Machine’s innovative robotic system for arc welding, Tubosider has managed to significantly increase its efficiency, reducing costs, consumption and time of production.
In particular, the integration with Artificial Intelligence features has allowed the Comau S-13 robot to achieve even higher levels of productivity and diagnostics. Much more than a simple work unit, X-Machine has designed a complete system automation solution that, through advanced software and the use of AI, also provides the customer with a Digital Twin of the plant, allowing Tuboside to track and optimize the entire production process in real time. Furthermore, by collecting, interpreting and consolidating millions of essential data points, the system helps the customer make effective and concrete operational decisions. This solution therefore offers numerous advantages.
The ability to independently analyze production parameters promotes continuous optimization of the application. Work quality can be monitored in real time with waste reduced to a minimum, while the overall efficiency of the plant (OEE – Overall Equipment Effectiveness) is kept under constant control by operators thanks to clear and intuitive dashboards.
There are also benefits associated with predictive diagnostics and Industry 4.0 solutions. Artificial Intelligence identifies anomalies invisible to the human eye, helping to prevent breakdowns. In addition, thanks to intelligent features, maintenance of the welding unit is planned based on the actual condition of the machine. In this way, interventions are carried out promptly only when necessary, resulting in cost savings and reduced downtime.
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