Advantages of Robots as a Service – RaaS Gives Instant Return on Investment for AGVs and AMRs
What’s stopping you from using mobile robots (AGVs or AMRs) to boost the productivity, efficiency and profitability of your business? Is it that you can’t afford the capital investment? Or maybe it’s that your company doesn’t have the necessary technical knowledge?
These concerns – and many others – are no longer obstacles, thanks to Robots as a Service (RaaS) business model. Simply put, RaaS allows you to deploy mobile robots without buying them – but the continuing value and risk reduction of this approach go much further.
What is Robot as a Sevice applied to AGV Robots?
With RaaS, AGVs and other robots are supplied to you through a cloud-based subscription package. It’s a bit like renting them and only paying for the amount of robot time and work that you actually use.
Importantly, the subscription package includes a high level of expert support from the RaaS provider. In addition to supply and AGV maintenance, the contract can cover their deployment, integration and other services which require specialist expertise.
As we will see, another important difference between RaaS arrangement and investing in agvs or leasing agvs is that the Raas provider has very strong incentives to keep improving your business.
Of course, the final agv system return on investment will depend on the definitive
The sophisticated and intelligent mobile robots managed and delivered via RaaS are mainly deployed in warehousing, delivery, manufacturing, cleaning and security applications. RaaS can also be applied to robots with relatively fixed positions, as used in some factory processes, including mobile cobots (collaborative robots).
You may sometimes see Robots as a Service alternatively referred to as Robot as a Service or Robotics as a Service. Its key benefits are explained in more detail below.
In this link you can download our infographic about RaaS advantages for mobile robots
What are the advantages to Robot as a Service business model?
Easy affordability
Instead of having to make a large upfront investment, drawn from your capital expenditure (CAPEX) budget, you will be moving the cost to your operating expenditure (OPEX) budget and making comparatively small regular payments.
As well as freeing up your CAPEX for other purposes, this approach greatly reduces risk and allows an almost instant ROI (return on investment). You will pay variable amounts, depending on how much work the mobile robot does.
For example, you may be charged per pick, per load movement or per hour of operating.
The provider will make every effort to keep the robot working quickly and efficiently, as that means greater profit for both companies. Under a RaaS contract, you needn’t worry about the mobile robots depreciating in value or requiring expensive maintenance and repair work.
The provider is responsible for all this, and for disposal of the robot when it reaches the end of its useful life.
RaaS contracts can vary in length. One option available, if you wish to try out AGVs as an experiment, is to agree a very short contract. If the mobile robots meet your expectations, you can then switch to a longer contract at a better rate. If they don’t, you can send them back. The RaaS provider, of course, will work hard to ensure that the robots do improve your business.
Fast implementation
A further benefit of moving the cost from CAPEX to OPEX is that the spending decision can be made more quickly. This means you won’t have to wait so long to have your AGVs on site and starting to repay your investment with increased productivity and efficiency.
By contrast, approval for capital spending normally takes much longer and often requires involvement of directors at a high level.
Expert technical support from the RaaS provider is another factor that accelerates the process of getting your mobile robots up and running. There is no need for your company to employ and train robot technicians.
Whatever help you need can be written into the contract. The provider is constantly in contact with the robots via cloud connection and can provide services such as remote programming and control, as well as on-site assistance in implementing the AGV solution.
Compared to other methods of acquiring equipment, RaaS is based on a closer supportive relationship.
Low – and predictable – ongoing cost
We have already mentioned that maintenance is included as part of your RaaS subscription package, so there will be no additional bills. The cost of downtime needn’t concern you either, as it’s in the interest of the provider to keep your AGVs moving.
If a mobile robot breaks down, or if it’s operating inefficiently, the provider loses profits. To prevent that from happening, AGV health is continuously monitored, remotely. In addition to applying routine and predictive maintenance, the provider’s systems and technicians will issue alarms and step in as necessary to remedy any emerging problem.
Flexibility and continuous innovation
How do you know what size of AGV fleet you will need over the next year, or how much work each mobile robot will have to do? These things may be impossible to predict accurately. Market volatility is difficult enough, but some factors are even more unpredictable. Who knew, for instance, that the Covid-19 pandemic would happen? Who knows what else lies around the corner?
There are many ways in which you could end up having too little AGV capacity or paying for more AGV capacity than you need. Under a flexible RaaS contract there are no such problems, as you can upscale or downscale as necessary.
The same flexibility also allows you to vary your payment and AGV capacity in line with seasonal peaks and troughs in activity. You should find your RaaS provider is keen to meet your changing needs and retain your business.
Another problem solved by RaaS is obsolescence of robotic equipment. If your operation changes, you may find your robots are no longer well suited to your application. In time, their technology may also become outdated compared to newer AMRs on the market.
These situations should not arise with AGVs supplied under a RaaS contract. As new and better software is developed, your robots will be updated free of charge. The RaaS provider should also ensure you have the latest, high-quality models, matched to your operational needs – which may mean replacing older AMRs with new ones.
The bottom line is that RaaS providers make more profit when their robots are fast, efficient and reliable, as they can then meet their contract obligations with a smaller fleet of machines.
At this time, when businesses are struggling to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a greater need than ever to adopt innovative technology.
Mobile robots not only increase profitability today but build resilience against similar supply chain disruptions in the future.
RaaS offers an affordable way to innovate and to continue innovating. Amongst other challenges, RaaS solutions effectively address the higher efficiency demands of e-commerce – a trend which grew during the pandemic and which seems set to persist in the long term.
Data-driven process improvement
While carrying out their jobs, mobile robots are able to gather huge amounts of useful data relating to the user’s operation, inventory, environment and other measurable factors. This can be transmitted continuously, via the RaaS provider’s cloud connections, to a storage area accessible to the AGV user’s company.
The provider can help you with analysis of such data, generating insights which you can act upon to improve your processes.
RaaS AGV applications
Warehouse applications of RaaS range from transporting loads between locations to storing, sorting, picking and packing. There are many different designs and technologies, but some of the most versatile AMRs are compact under-ride carts used as goods-to-person robots.
These can drive under a stock-keeping unit (SKU), lift it off the ground and carry it to where the goods are needed. Amongst the most specialized warehouse AMRs are robotic pickers, which carry out complex search and retrieval tasks or warehouse drones for automated inventory tasks.
For further information on how AGVs are used in warehousing, see the following article: Top Warehouse Robots
Delivery robots provided as a service include those with concierge or waiter roles in premises such as hospitals, hotels and restaurants. Going further, there are local delivery robots which serve campuses or other communities, usually travelling via sidewalks and minor roads within a radius of several kilometers. Meanwhile, autonomous delivery vehicles are now available to transport larger loads over longer distances on public roads.
Factory RaaS solutions include AMRs for transportation of materials and components to process areas and assembly lines. In addition, highly intelligent collaborative robots (cobots) may be supplied for various manufacturing tasks.
Cleaning services are provided via RaaS contracts, using a variety of AMRs such robotic floor scrubbers. These may be specialized for such tasks as cleaning floors, rooms, windows and building facades.
Security AMRs, including outdoor patrolbots and indoor guardbots, offer a cost-effective RaaS solution for filling in gaps in coverage by human guards.
Find the right Robots as a Service provider
There are many RaaS providers hoping to compete for your business, so make sure you shop around and get the right deal. Levels of support, quality of equipment and advances in AMR technology will vary between companies.
Before you sign a RaaS contract, check that it delivers all the benefits outlined in this article – and anything else you need. With a RaaS company’s help, there’s now nothing to stop your business joining the automation revolution.
