Technology as a Helping Hand

Bajaj Auto Ltd, the flagship company of the Bajaj Group, is not only a well-known name in the Indian household, but it also holds an impressive reputation worldwide. Ranked as the world's fourth largest three and two wheeler manufacturer, the Bajaj brand is popular across several countries in Latin America, Africa, Middle East, South and South East Asia.

In need of standardized automation

“We were looking for solutions to automate our assembly lines,” said Vikas Sawhney, General Manager Engineering (Robotics and Automation), Bajaj Auto, in response to the automation advancements in the manufacturing industry over the last few decades. “Two-wheelerassembly lines are highly labor-intensive, spatially challenged and they have physically taxing movements that require high-end precision. While trying to automate these lines, one of the basic requirements was for standardization. Moreover, we also wanted to be cognizant of the requirements of the large women workforce at Bajaj.”    

While standardization of models was a key tenet of Bajaj’s success in the market, it was rapidly expanding its production capabilities due to the growing scale of multiple models and the  wide-ranging number of vehicles supplied in the market. The key then was to find a standardized automation solution that could be horizontally deployed and that could provide the productivity, flexibility and reliability that Bajaj’s workers could capitalize upon.  

Cobots as the solution

After three months of extensive testing of Universal Robots’ collaborative robots at its facilities, Bajaj deployed them as a standardized solution for all its functional requirements. Several processes such as material handling and machine tending were collaboratively handled by the cobots and Bajaj employees. Moreover, new decal applications, which are now patented by Bajaj, were also devised by the company to make the most out of the flexibility provided by the cobots.

Advantages abound

Other benefits such as zero annual maintenance costs, reduced power consumption and retention of IP within the company are also organically driving forward the growth of the organization. Additionally, almost 50 percent of Bajaj’s workforce is comprised of women on this assembly line.  

“Thanks to the high-quality output I achieve with the cobots, I feel very proud of my accomplishments,” said Rameshwari, assembly line operator at Bajaj Auto. “Operating this advanced technology is interesting and easy, and all the physically challenging parts are taken care of by it. I and the other women employees enjoy working with these cobots.”

Bajaj Auto employees now have the advanced tools to carry out repetitive tasks with faultless precision; this is one of the key factors driving the company’s phenomenal growth globally. Not only does Bajaj deliver high-quality vehicles to its customers, it does so with a collaborative technology that leaves its employees beaming with smiles at the end of
their day.

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