Metal Hanger Manufacturer Robotic Automation - Technical Brief

In recent decades, increased competition from low labor-cost countries has made it difficult for many companies to manufacture their products at home. M&B Hangers in Alabama, USA, was one such company.

Navigating an uneven playing field overrun by ultra-low cost competition, this 74 year-old business faced a choice: embrace bold new manufacturing methods or outsource production to China. In the end, the company decided to pursue a robotic automation solution with the help of the automation experts at Fitz-Thors.

This modernization effort was undertaken to address three primary goals: (1) improve quality and reduce wastage, (2) improve hanger counts to ensure each packed box contained an exact same number of hangers, and (3) speed up production while lowering inputs for improved profitability. Meshing finicky manufacturing equipment from the 1940s with ultra-precise KUKA robotics proved challenging, but the rewards were enormous.