Sink and Bathtub Manufacturer Soaks Up the Benefits of FANUC Automation

Metalac Inko has two production units at its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Gornji Milanovac: one for traditional stainless steel sinks and the other for products made from innovative engineering materials such as cast polymers/composites. These materials include Granmatrix, Metalac’s proprietary solid surface composite material. The main component of Granmatrix is a polyester acryl-modified resin mixed with the mineral aluminium trihydroxide, which gives shape and hardness to the resin.  

“The finishing operations for our composite sinks and bathtubs, such as grinding and polishing, are rather challenging,” reveals Ivan Milošević, Project & Design Engineer at Metalac Inko. “As a result, we wanted to devise a solution that provided high productivity, stable quality and released our operators from hard manual labour.” 
 

With help from Technosoft, a Serbia-based specialist in robotic and automation products, and a FANUC M-710𝑖C/50 six-axis multi-purpose robot, Metalac Inko found the optimal solution for finishing its composite sinks and tubs. High axis speeds combined with six-axis versatility make the FANUC M-710𝑖C/50 the perfect choice for handling awkward payloads. For this reason, it is a highly popular robot for grinding, polishing and deburring applications. 

Control arrives courtesy of a FANUC System R-30𝑖B Plus robot controller that offers more than 250 software functions and provides the key to robot performance in terms of cycle-time, speed, accuracy and safety. Metalac Inko also takes advantage of FANUC ROBOGUIDE 3D simulation software.  

FANUC ROBOGUIDE simulates both the robot’s motion and application commands, significantly reducing the time it takes to create new motion set-ups. Ensuring minimal impact on production, it is possible to design, test and modify cells entirely offline. To save 3D modelling time, users can import part models from a PC as CAD data. The robot simulation software’s extensive library also allows users to select and modify parts and dimensions as required. Designed to be intuitive and extremely easy to use, ROBOGUIDE requires very little, if any, training.  

“ROBOGUIDE enables quick and precise production set-up, assisting us in analysing and choosing the optimal working tool,” confirms Milošević. “We therefore have full control of the process.”