Case Study: Freedman Seating boosts foldaway seat welding efficiency with Yaskawa Motoman robotic workcell

Freedman Seating cuts weld cycle time to 7 minutes per part with Yaskawa Motoman

Freedman Seating Company, a manufacturer of mass transportation seating, faced a challenge in keeping up with customer demand due to the lengthy cycle times of welding components for foldaway seat frames. Their existing process, which utilized three robots and manual welding, took 18-20 minutes per part. They reached out to Yaskawa Motoman for a more efficient robotic welding solution.

Yaskawa Motoman implemented a custom robotic welding workcell featuring an arc welding robot integrated with a coordinated tilt-rotate positioner. This solution dramatically increased production efficiency, reducing the cycle time from 18-20 minutes to under 7 minutes per part. The new system, managed by one operator, freed up three other robots and redeployed two workers, allowing Freedman Seating to exceed customer expectations and achieve a return on investment within the designated payback period.

Freedman Seating Company