KUKA Systems Applies Dassault Systèmes DELMIA Automation to Plant Engineering

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. & FELLBACH, Germany - Dassault Systèmes (DS) (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, today announced that KUKA Systems GmbH, (Augsburg, Germany) a manufacturer of automation solutions, has committed to the DELMIA Automation solution for virtual commissioning of the production facilities that KUKA plans and builds.

A technology leader in plant and systems engineering, KUKA understands that it is important to invest in new technologies in order to stay ahead of the curve in developing innovative manufacturing process and facility concepts. Next to the geometrical validation it is increasingly important to digitally define, control and monitor automated systems entirely in a 3D virtual environment. This cuts development time, reduces costs in both manpower and capital investment, and increases initial PLC program quality and overall factory productivity.

The DELMIA Virtual Commissioning solution enables manufacturing engineers to link the virtual manufacturing model with the actual control system and robot controller. The company can then conduct and evaluate “what if” scenarios to optimize production, allowing to get it right the first time.

When integrating changes within existing plants, the use of DELMIA Automation will help make a significant impact on KUKA’s manufacturing line planning. Any proposed changes are to be explored beforehand in the virtual model of the plants. To do that, it is important to combine actual PLC and robot control with the virtual plant. Actual programs will thus drive the virtual model. “This is the only way to confirm manufacturing system performance prior to system build–by using DELMIA Automation,” emphasizes Günther Mikuta, product manager, Control Technologies, KUKA Systems. “With this solution, we expect substantial efficiency gains for our clients in the future. When re-configuring plants, we will apply this KUKA approach to virtual launch,” adds Dr. Christian Fedrowitz, chief, Technical Data Processing, KUKA Systems. “KUKA will, consequently, achieve an increase in quality while reducing actual production downtime as our solution will eliminate many errors that often occur during system build.”

KUKA’s decision for DELMIA Automation is proof for the fact that the topic of automation-simulation has arrived within the industry. The solution is a natural extension to the Dassault Systèmes PLM offering. While PLM solutions simplify and enhance end-to-end product management, Automation solutions validate and improve the internal behavior of control systems.