Valk Welding: 2000

Better software tools, standard PCs and systems for parameter monitoring will bring robot welding to a higher level. Today, welding robots can be programmed in a more user-friendly way. "But service rendering support for our customers remains a priority", Remco Valk of Valk Welding says.

René Raaijmakers
Anyone who purchased a robot some twenty years ago, was considered an adventurer. "Illusions were created", says Remco Valk of Valk Welding from Alblasserdam. "That resulted in frustrated customers. In the beginning of the eighties, know-how and experience still were in their infancy. Robots were thought to give the solution for all problems. It was even considered to do even the most difficult constructions with welding robots. The general thought was: if the robot does it, the problem is solved. Our salesmen had a difficult time convincing customers that they had to get acquainted with the robot first in doing simple work. I compare this with learning to drive a car. You do not start in a Formula One car."

"In the meantime, the welding world talks about a 'second robot wave'. Welding robots are faster, more compact, more accurate and not that sensitive to defects. But also the information technology regarding robot welding has grown up. There is plenty of software available with which the welding process can be controlled and optimised. We can find this in the most extreme form: the do-it-yourself robot, an 'Ikea'-building kit that customers can mount themselves following the guidelines. "With this 'plug-and-weld' robot, the cost price no longer contains the time needed to convert the robot: unpacking, mounting, dismounting and again mounting at the customers. We are only able to do this thanks to our established reputation. But those companies have a lot of experience. Most of the time, they already have several of our robots"

Functionality increases in all fields: robots are now equipped with a welding parameter-monitoring system. Valk: "We can monitor amperage and welding speed and measure with high frequency, allowing us to adjust or stop at any given moment. In the United States, there are systems that measure amperage and gas flow every tenth of a second. Before, such registration meant heaps of paper work. Now, you burn two months of welding data on one CD-rom."

Software
"The future and the added value of robots is the software", says Valk, "with operation and all extras and options." We are now working together with Panasonic to develop a management information system that will give us a simple graphical summary. Which products are being welded? What is the arc time? What does the operator have to do? What is the welding duty?"

"It is no longer difficult to programme robots off-line with a better control panel,  whereby the operator creates a welding task on the computer and then sends it without further corrections to the computer. In 1996, Valk Welding supplied the first software package and was the only one operational in the Netherlands. "Four years ago, I myself took the programme with me from Japan. Based on my fifteen years of experience, I thought it was not suitable for our customers. It was intended for larger companies. We then gave one of our collaborators two years to make a software programme that is accessible for everyone. Most manual welders can learn to use it in three-four days. Not only is it user-friendly, the value is mainly in mechanic calibration. When you draw a line from A to B of 1036 mm on your computer, the robot control has to weld exactly 1036 mm. That is the main work."

Successful brands
Valk expects that the developments in the domain of software will continue. "In every field of application, a number of specialists is emerging. For us that is arc welding. Valk Welding provides the added value with the know-how for remote programming of the robots. Main reasons for success are the integration in the production process and the presentation to the end customers, as proven by the figures. Valk Welding is successful in the Benelux, but Panasonic has no large market share in the rest of Europe. Other dealers in the Benelux of very successful German or French brands have no success in the Netherlands."

Valk Welding has a good reputation in the field of software development. "Software means expertise", the director says. His software developer frequently visited Panasonic in the US in order to train people to develop new applications. "For further development, you must keep yourself focussed. That means more and more supporting functions for people who need them. Few people need all the functions of a word processor or spreadsheet. We help them depending on which software functions our customers need. If the desired functionality is lacking, we develop it."

Service and support for customers remain important in the world of welding. For Valk this is a 'hot item'. His helpdesk works from 7a.m. to 11 p.m. and half of the questions come from abroad. For the moment, payment according to use is not applied. "In doing so, we are creating goodwill. The customers can have a maintenance contract. If we think that our customers need a software update, we provide that for free."

"We have customers to whom we deliver a robot, and then we never hear from them again. Others demand turn-key solutions. We set the software and mostly we run a test set. Depending on the complexity and the size of the programme, companies are able to take over or not. One of our customers is every day welding chairs at high speed for Volkswagen. That is a product with three small welds for which people do not have to learn to programme. Koni wanted a line that would produce a shock absorber every 30 seconds, completely automatically welded, mounted and assembled. For this customer, we did the cell design. Other customers have to change programmes up to three times a day. These are programme intensive companies, where operators use a programming package off-line on the PC to prepare the complete programme while the robot is producing." Nowadays, Valk Welding also meets his customers' wishes with rent robots, to temporarily expand their capacity. Another development: in five years time, standard PCs will replace robot controls, Valk predicts. "Network technology is entering welding robots, in the future you will be able to provide service via the internet. We will end up with one or two PCs for a whole series of robots. Controlling a robot arm is done with a mathematical function, either from a PC or from a large control cabinet with transformers, servos and other components. The question is, which robot manufacturer is going to take the first step. If you end up making the welding tasks and the control from a PC, the robot manufacturer becomes no more than a supplier of mechanical arms."

(Source: Metaal & Kunststof no. 3 - 21-02-2000)