Rockwell Automation Reduces Paper Job Packets by 70% for Engineered-to-order Products

MILWAUKEE, September 8, 2021 /3BL Media/ - Using its own advanced automation technology, Rockwell Automation has reduced paper job packets for its engineered-to-order (ETO) products by 70%.  

ETO products are custom manufactured solutions. Typically, a job packet for a single project -- such as one low-voltage Motion Control Center -- required up to 26 pounds of paper documentation, as well significant labor to generate, compile, and distribute.

As part of Rockwell’s Transactional Automation Project (TAP), the company used solutions from its  FactoryTalk® industrial software portfolio to improve efficiency and eliminate waste in the ETO manufacturing process.  

So far, Rockwell has launched nearly 50 separate projects in 14 of its manufacturing plants, eliminating more than 251,000 pounds of paper waste while giving manufacturing associates real-time access to the latest electronic documentation. The company has also reduced the amount of toner and energy used for printing. Overall, Rockwell estimates the TAP effort has reduced its carbon footprint by 50,000 pounds of CO2e.    

“We have had excellent, quantifiable results that we can share and demonstrate to our customers, using Rockwell Automation technology to improve what we do and how we do it,” said Dinis Cabral, Rockwell Automation plant manager in Cambridge, Canada.

“This is a big step toward the next generation of sustainable global manufacturing,” added Chris Mollink, TAP program lead. “We’ve given ourselves a huge amount of agility to match customer requirements making it easier to react to and meet customer needs.”

Learn more about Rockwell’s efforts to minimize environmental impact.