Did you know that manufacturing is one of the biggest industries in the world? Whether it is food, vehicles, electronics, chemicals, or other products, it is absolutely massive. Companies work really hard to ensure they produce products efficiently and cost effectively. Assembly is crucial here, whether it is done on a line, on a bench, or in a cell. We want to have a closer look at the former in this post. Then, if you want to arrange services like tube drilling to speed up assemblies, you can rely on us.

Tradition

The Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries was a really exciting time for manufacturing. Technological change and innovation completely changed the landscape. One of the most significant changes was the assembly line concept. It led to an improvement in production speed, efficiency, quality, and division of labour.

Before the move to an assembly line, all manufacturing was done via bench assembly. Here you would have a single person or a team making individual products one by one. For example, if you were making a car, the chassis would be in place on a bench. Workers would then bring all parts and tools to it to complete the assembly.

An early example

While it wasn’t until the Industrial Revolution that the assembly line concept really took off, there was an interesting earlier example in Venice. The Venetian Arsenal was vital to the Empire’s naval and trading power from the 12th century onwards. At the height in the 16th century, it could produce and fit a ship per day.

The main reason the Venetian Arsenal was so successful was the manufacturing process. Ships would move in a line along a canal, stopping at different shops along the way. So, the assembly would progress in stages. Crucially, the use of standard parts and methods also made everything more efficient.

Today

You can see how fantastic the assembly line concept is because it is still used today. Many things improve it too, including things like tube drilling to pre-drill holes. As a result, technicians save even more time.

If you compare bench assembly to line assembly, you can see all the benefits. Most importantly, it is faster and you don’t need as much labour. A key thing here is each stage of the lines will include the relevant tools and equipment to do the job. You don’t need to worry about set times.

An important thing to keep in mind with assembly lines though is there should never be any backtracking. If that happens, it can cause massive disruption and harms productivity. A good line will allow a product to progress carefully with no need to go back.

Another thing to think about is flexibility. One drawback of assembly lines is they tend to be quite rigid and tricky to adapt. So, they are best if you are producing high volumes of goods and don’t need adaptability.

Do you want to arrange tube drilling?

At Multiform Tubes Engineering Ltd, we work with various clients from different industries, including manufacturers. Many of them use the assembly line concept. We help them maximise efficiency by delivering tubing that is ready to go to stations. It can have accurate bends, holes, ends, and other key features.

So, if you want to arrange tube drilling or any other service for tubing, speak to us. We’re efficient and reliable so you get products from us in a timely manner.