Robotics is the Formula 1 of cable manufacture. The materials have to be able to withstand years of extreme loads with high torsion and tight bending radii. If a robot fails in automotive manufacturing, production comes to a halt. Losses can quickly run into millions. This is exactly what happened 16 years ago in Turin. Those events led to far-reaching improvements in cable engineering in the high-end sector. As part of the Lapp Group, Lapp Muller has written a piece of cable history.
In March 1998 Comau, one of the most important robot manufacturers for the automotive industry, was struggling with technical problems. Some robots were equipped with cables of an existing supplier that were unable to cope with the severe strain in the robot arms, which resulted in production stoppages.
Comau quickly called in the experts from Muller – Lapp Muller since 2003 – based in Grimaud in Southern France to solve the problem. By the next day, a team of cable experts had travelled to Turin and set to work identifying the fault. The robots had major problems with their moving cables and controls. “We analysed every single robot, including the motors and cables,” says Emmanuel Palmas, export manager at Lapp Muller. After this technical inspection, the experts concluded that the cables used to date had been unable to withstand the strain in this application. It was also quickly apparent to Lapp Muller that achieving the required load capacity would be a major challenge. “We noticed that there was no standard solution designed to meet these requirements,” Palmas continues. “As a result, we had to develop a total of nine different cables from scratch. We completed the prototypes in just four months.”
Unique application
The latest production solution from Comau is called OpenRoboGate, which is used at the Fiat plant in Melfi. The factory, located in Southern Italy near Naples, produces the entry-level Jeep model 'Renegade' and the Fiat 500X. The system can produce up to six different vehicle bodies in an arbitrary sequence. The robots work at high speeds, with one body taking less than a minute to produce. The very short cycle times alone – which demand rapid acceleration and hard deceleration – mean extremely high mechanical loads on the cables. In addition, all cables on the production robots are located inside the robot arms. This is essential because up to 18 robots are working simultaneously in a very tight space on the production line. If the cables were installed on the outside of the robot, they would inevitably get in one another’s way. Safe and reliable operation would be impossible. However, what this means is that the space for the cables is limited, requiring exceptionally small bending radii of a maximum of eight times the external cable diameter. The tighter the bending radius the greater the stress on the cable and the more difficult it is to achieve the long service life required.
“Robotics is the supreme discipline for cables, there is nothing more demanding,” says Palmas. Due to the heavy mechanical loads caused by the constant bending with narrow radii, high-quality tinned copper strips are used for the EMC screening. This screening lasts for up to 10 million movement cycles before it wears. With conventional screening types, this often happens after just 100 000 cycles. The cable insulation is made of extremely durable TPE or polypropylene, depending on the application.
Close cooperation and constant dialogue
“Initially, I was in daily contact with the robot technical manager from Comau. It took four months for us to produce the prototypes. In that time, the project team received additional weekly information to verify whether the cables met all the technical requirements. We then put together a team at Lapp Muller to produce those cables. Close cooperation and constant communication are vital in the automotive industry because nothing is standard here.”
What began as an emergency call out ended up defining new requirements for cable durability. Every cable made by Lapp Muller is specially designed to meet individual customer needs. At Comau, this has meant that the manufacturer can now give an eight-year warranty on its hollow wrist production robots. Comau regularly takes samples, installs the cables in the robots and tests them. The robots are programmed to complete the most demanding movement cycles at maximum speed. After six to eight months of this extreme load, Lapp Muller can state how many million cycles the robot is guaranteed to complete without a cable breaking. Today, Comau can sell the robots with an eight-year warranty because the cables – traditionally the weakest link in the chain – have become so strong that they will last for at least that long. In practice, this means that Comau’s hollow wrist robots do not need to be replaced during the robots’ service life. This is a significant competitive advantage where manufacturing companies cannot afford long downtimes.
Lapp Southern Africa with new management
The Lapp Group is strengthening its commitment in South Africa. With the recently completed full acquisition of all shares in Lapp Southern Africa and a new management team headed by sales professional Chad Andrews, the world’s leading provider of industrial connectivity solutions has invested in South Africa.
With Andrews as managing director, Alan Liebenberg as head of sales and marketing, and head of finance and HR Venessa Botha, Lapp has brought in a powerful management team, keen to implement the values of this long-established family business. The policy of company founders Ursula Ida and Oskar Lapp has always been to put the customer first, and to work very closely with them in order to make sure they always get the best possible solution. “Customers can rest assured that they will always get the best solution from Lapp,” says Andrews who has 28 years of experience in the distribution of electrical products in South Africa, including many years in the cable industry. He has opted to take up this challenge for Lapp to build the local business of a global market leader. “I identify myself with the Lapp culture and its customer orientation.”
While some international companies may plan to withdraw from South Africa, the Lapp Group has chosen to invest in the region. “We believe South Africa is an important market for the future,” says Andreas Lapp, CEO of the Lapp Group. “The company’s strategy is to develop global markets by focusing on local customer needs and maintain a cooperative relationship.”
Three questions to Chad Andrews
Q: Why have you chosen to work for Lapp?
I have worked for the last 28 years in marketing and sales of electronic and electrical products, but always from a national resellers and manufactures perspective. I was very excited to be offered the opportunity to develop and build a similar business for a global manufacturer, which has such a good reputation both in South Africa and internationally.
Q: What skills are demanded for this undertaking?
It is important to have excellent communication skills and the ability to develop close relationships both internally and externally, and of course, knowledge of the industry and country is a prerequisite. I started my career as an aircraft electronics technician and have a tertiary education in the management of innovation, technology and people. It is also thanks to the many mentors in the industry over the years who I believe have prepared me well for this challenge.
Q: Why was it important for Lapp to acquire all shares of Lapp South Africa?
That was crucial because we now have the ability to treat customers in accordance with the company’s values, above all customer orientation. Friendliness and a cooperative relationship are extremely important values for Lapp, as well as for my team and me.
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