5 Advantages of Robotic Welding (But 1 Big Disadvantage)

Welding robots are nothing new, but the demand for these systems continues to grow.

Why is Robotic Welding More Important Than Ever?

It’s no secret that the welding trade is facing a significant skills shortage. The warning sounded by the American Welding Society found that by 2024, there would be a shortage of 400,000 qualified welders in the industry with older tradespeople retiring. In fact, the average age of a welder is 55, and only 20% of the current workforce is younger than 35. 

The reshoring efforts of the American manufacturing industry are also bringing more welding tasks back to the country which is already having a hard time to fulfill demand.

Conversely, the growing manufacturing sector depends on quality welds for all types of industrial and commercial products.  

Welding robot applications can help the industry overcome these challenges and add new efficiencies to organizations.  

What are the Advantages of Robotic Welding?

When industrial welding robots first appeared, the solutions required significant, upfront investments and were only available to large manufacturers. With the advance of modern technologies, the cost-effectiveness of the solutions became accessible to almost any kind of manufacturing operation.

If you’re wondering whether a welding robot is suitable for your company, here are five advantages to consider. 

1. Consistent Welding Workflows

Even experienced professionals get tired and make mistakes. A high-quality weld depends on the consistent execution of each operation across the manufacturing workflow. When welders are overtasked, mistakes creep into the process that requires expensive rework. 

Some of the common issues with manual welds include:

• Failure to comply with industry-specific welding codes and standards
• Incomplete penetration of the filler and base material
• Undercutting that weakens the bond between the fused materials
• Slag inclusions in multi-layer welding operations from electrode coating and flux materials

Cobot Welder workflow examples - 2 robots on 1 table vs 1 robot for smaller parts

By systemizing the welding workflow using cobots, you can set up the entire operations for increased consistency for any welding application.

Since you can set up the welding platform for increased precision, it reduces the number of welding passes required to complete the process while consistently executing each task. 

2. Increased Weld Quality and Efficiency

Not only does a robotic welding system speed up your task execution, but it also performs each operation according to your parameters and thereby improves quality. A robotic welder also doesn’t need to take breaks or become fatigued after a long shift.

By accentuating your workforce with a robotic welding system, you can increase your throughput without compromising quality. 

Once you’ve set up the system, you can:

• Reduce spattering and save on time spent cleaning each weld
• Increase customer satisfaction by delivering faster on every welding task
• Run operations 24/7 to increase your productivity for increased profitability
• Eliminate repeat tasks that are common when using manual welding

With welds, quality is the primary concern for every company. Welding cobots can ensure quality while speeding up the execution of each task. 

3. Conserving Raw Materials

In addition to time savings, a robotic welding platform will also reduce material waste during each operation. As you program the cobot for precision execution, you eliminate mistakes that would require rework and the use of additional materials to correct the weld. When running the welding robot consistently, you reduce the frequency of machine startups that increases your energy consumption. 

Robotic welding gives you control over how much material goes into each weld, eliminating variations in cost for each welding task. 

4. Reduced Labor Costs

Hiring professional welders can be expensive. Even intermediate-skilled welders are harder to come by, driving up the cost of these resources. A robotic welder may be more costly to acquire in the beginning, but once the platform is up and running, you can consistently execute tasks without the need to hire any additional welders.