Application of Technological Procedure Automated Guided Vehicles in the Production Hall of a Company Due to Increasing the Automation—Case Study

Abstract

This paper discusses the possibility of deploying automated guided vehicle (AGV) technology in a company’s production hall. Chronometric measurements of material handling and people handling were performed. The handling processes were divided into five sub-processes, which were analysed in terms of production line operation, distance, and carrying capacity of the automated guided vehicles. Based on the measurements, we found that it was necessary to use four vehicles for handling in the foam production hall. The company is applying this automation project to foams, and after successful testing, plans to continue with automation for leather upholstery. To ensure the correct chronometric results, we measured the distances between each workstation on the production floor at the company. Based on an analysis of material handling on the production lines, we evaluated that there is a possibility of applying AGVs on the entire production floor. We analysed the volumes of material transfer and the possibilities of interconnection within the existing material handling in the enterprise. Complications arise when deploying AGVs in the plant because the handling to the production lines is not only provided by the parent company, but also by the component suppliers themselves. Based on this observation, we have identified potential collision points within the operation between automated guided vehicles and other material handling equipment or people. For this reason, we deployed one more AGV on the handling routes to prevent unwanted collisions. This means that a human would be able to perform even more processes than a machine and can circulate 80 times, where a machine under the same conditions would only perform the entire circulation 57 times. There is room here to use humans for other processes and to automate the handling of goods, although it introduces delays that can be eliminated by deploying additional automated guided vehicles. This opens room for further research questions on how these vehicles can be deployed, even in a small space, and how existing material handling can be automated.