Eaton deploys autonomous mobile robots in Romanian factory

The factory operated by power management company Eaton, located in the western Romanian city of Arad, has deployed four MiR-branded autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to optimize intralogistics processes. According to the company, this is the first factory in Romania to implement MiR autonomous mobile robots.

The robots, produced by Danish manufacturer Mobile Industrial Robot, transport loads of up to 500 kg at a speed of 7.2 kmph, working in two shifts, six days a week. They can travel 40 km daily in the factory transporting more than 100 pallets between assembly lines and loading stations.

The use of robots generates significant time savings and allows workers to be directed towards more valuable tasks, Eaton said.

The main challenges at Eaton’s Arad plant have been staff shortages and the handling of heavy loads with the risk of physical injury to employees. Prior to the implementation of AMRs, the process of transporting components to assembly lines and picking up finished products was handled by plant employees who used manual or electric forklifts.

Facing such problems, the company has set its sights on automation. It started with two MiR200 autonomous mobile robots. The machines can carry loads weighing 200 kg and move at a maximum speed of 4 km/h.

In 2022, factory engineers deployed more AMRs - two MiR500 models that can carry loads of up to 500 kg and drive at a speed of 7.2 km/h. The next deployment is on the way - the MiR250 robot will take care of product delivery and collection in a newly established plant.

“The Eaton project has a high level of complexity, both because the robots operate within a fleet and because they work in the same environment as humans. Furthermore, presence sensors were installed at the racks to reduce the time spent on each task performed by the robots. The project is representative of MiR and was successfully completed thanks to the involvement of our partners Alfa Test as the distributor and AI Automation as the integrator. We hope that such projects, through the real and measurable benefits they bring, will become a standard for the optimization of intra-logistics processes,” said Paul Olariu, area sales manager for Central and Eastern Europe at Mobile Industrial Robots (MIR).

Currently, AMRs operate 52 lines and numerous kanban locations.

The robots begin their tasks after receiving a signal from an employee. MiR500 machines move pallets from the line to the docking station.

On the other hand, MiR200 robots start working when an assembly line worker lets them know that a particular material is missing. The warehouse operator then grabs the raw material from the rack, places it on the robot, and selects one of the saved routes. When the MiR200 arrives at the site, it signals its presence with a sound, the worker picks up the load, and the AMR returns to the loading station.