Eva is already
hard at work in
a number of
industrial
applications
industrial robot, which are often used
in drones and other relatively high-volume
products,” continued Chandra. “Robots are a lowvolume,
bespoke product, so the parts are very
expensive. Wherever we couldn’t fi nd a low-cost
version, we designed and built our own. In this
industry, if you try and sell something without
having tested it fi rst, nobody will touch it. If a
robot is going to sit on a production line, working
24/7, it needs to be reliable.”
To ensure the quality, Automata turned to
Newcastle-based Tharsus, the company behind
the ‘swarm’ robots used in Ocado’s automated
warehouses. In the early days, El Sayed and
Chandra visited Tharsus’ factory on a monthly
basis to inspect the components and share ideas.
Even now, the two parties have daily phone calls –
something that Chandra said has been vital to the
success of the project. “The partnership allows
us to get to the milestone of being able to build a
robot that passes all the quality control checks in
just nine months. For a robot of this complexity,
that process will normally take 18-20 months.
We were able to make ours in record time because,
we believe, we engaged with a UK partner. That
sort of relationship just isn’t possible if we were to
use an overseas partner.”
Early interest
The robot itself is relatively simple (as Chandra
himself is fi rst to admit – “a robot is basically a
computer and a bunch of joints and motors”).
The software, however, is where it comes into its
own. Choreograph can be run on any machine with
a browser and supports visual programming via
the browser, defi ning points or via a teach method
of guiding the robot and recording positions. It
requires no code. The operator simply tells it
where to go, with instant playback of the robot’s
motion. Any changes to the speed or direction can
be made before the robot is ready to get to work.
Already, Automata is seeing signifi cant interest
from industry – not least from competitors:
FEBRUARY 2020 AUTOMATION
automation giant ABB has
backed the company in two
rounds of fi nancing, as has the
government. From a two-person
start-up, the company now
employs over 45 people. Such
has been the success that the
team is still working through
a backlog of initial orders. The
ultimate aim, though, is a
bold one: to off er Eva in
high volumes with a two-
One early adopter
to four-week lead time.
of the technology is
Cambridgeshire metal
component manufacturer,
Qualitech, which uses the
robot to safely and accurately
pick up metal sheets and
place them on a conveyor
belt. Within eight months,
the robot had paid for itself, and
Qualitech is already thinking
of buying more units (you can
see a video of Eva in action at
https://bit.ly/3aqvPLH). Other
manufacturing applications see
Eva undertaking everything
from pick-and-place to product
testing and inspection.
Too good to be true?
“There are a lot of companies
where having an aff ordable
robot that can integrate
into their off ering is really
important,” said Chandra. “Most
of our customers will buy a oneoff
robot to test its capabilities
and how it would suit their
needs. Often, they’ll say ‘this is
too good to be true – what aren’t
you telling us!’ and need to see it
to believe it. As we’ve continued
to prove ourselves, the case
in our favour has become
more convincing. The average
purchase time now is just three
weeks, often without ever seeing
the robot for real. This is a new
trend for the industry – people
often want a full walk-through
and explanation of capabilities
before they even take one on
test. We’ve changed that. We
have found ways of educating
the customer up-front and
getting them to decide straight
away if Eva is right for them.”
All too often, companies like
Automata pop up with a bright
idea, enjoy some initial success
and quietly disappear again.
Eva, however, feels diff erent.
Chandra and El Sayed have
analysed the market and found
a niche for the product. Going
forward, the company will
work with part-feeding system
partners, channel partners,
machine tool builders and
software developers to create
a fully fl edged hardware and
software ecosystem.
The company is also looking
to its customers’ needs to
guide product development,
but is adamant that its central
ethos – the provide the most
aff ordable, easiest to deploy
solution possible – will remain.
Considering how far it has come
in such a short space of time,
don’t expect this to be the last
you hear of Automata.
Integration (design, fabrication,
installation, programming,
testing, training): £12k+
Robot: £17k+
PLC (programmable logic
control): £3k+
End-effector: £1.5k+
Part
Part presentation: £10k+
Safety system: £3.5k+
Mounting: £1k+
Total deployed cost:
£50k+
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk 35
/3aqvPLH)
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