FIA Automation Conference – Mario Trizzino Presents on Behalf of Adaptec

Last week, Mario Trizzino presented at the Forging Industry Association’s (FIA) Automation Conference. Hosted in Canton, OH, the conference was developed to give forgers a first-hand look into the latest developments in industrial automation and how robotics and automation can help forging companies increase productivity, lower costs, and improve workplace safety.

A dedicated employee for the last 11 years, Mario began his career at Adaptec as a mechanical engineer before moving into the sales engineer role. With a focus on the forging industry, Mario has been fortunate to work closely with one of Adaptec’s founding fathers, Jim Morris, learning extensively about forging automation.

Watch a sneak peek of his presentation below:

The S-curve in the graph to the right illustrates the number of adopters gradually increasing over time, moving through three phases as they do. The first phase – Crawl – represents minimal adopters; the second phase – Walk – represents a sharp increase in adopters; the third phase – Run – represents the majority of the company adopting the technology.

S-curve graph showing three phases: crawl, walk, run.

The Crawl Phase

The first phase emphasizes people and culture; specifically, the internal early adopters. These people can be robot champions – those who are willing to manage equipment, train others, and modify or create new programs as needed. They can also be influencers – informal leaders within the company whose opinions are heard and respected. Investing in educating these individuals about the reason for robotic integration, the impact of automation, and the bigger picture is key.

Strong external partners are essential, such as automation integrators. Develop a relationship with a partner to collaboratively define a criteria for success.

The Walk Phase

Use the second phase to apply lessons learned, begin defining internal team structure, and building the roadmap and standards for future projects. Ask questions such as:

  1. Did I meet the criteria for success?
  2. Where am I at now compared to before?
  3. Who is best positioned to lead the project internally?
  4. Where do we want to be in five years?
  5. What are realistic milestones to aim for along the way to achieving the end goal?
  6. What are the long-term goals?

Data and visibility are key in this phase as problems cannot be fixed if they aren’t identified. Dashboards are tools that can be implemented to increase visibility on performance, business analytics, and help make better financial decisions and investments.

At Adaptec, we refer to our custom software solutions as “Automation Brainpower.” Software can serve as the central nervous system in terms of business operations, support, or intelligence.

The Run Phase

The third and final phase explores growth and execution. With the ability to execute multiple projects at a time, internal core teams can be established. At this stage, the culture has shifted and the foundation has been built to steadily integrate automation to optimize processes. Teamwork is essential as strong leaders are recognized to champion automation projects. While robots serve as immense force multipliers, your people are your true assets.

Interested in learning more? Reach out to us at info@adaptecsolutions.com.