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Robotic Automation Systems (Waunakee, Wisc.) broke ground in early April on a new 13,000-ft² manufacturing facility that will replace its existing 8000-ft² site, also in Waunakee. Craig Tormoen, Robotic Automation Systems president, expects the new building, which will combine all its design, engineering, and manufacturing operations under the same roof while increasing manufacturing space, to be completed in October.

Tormoen told Plastics Technology the newly constructed facility will house all mechanical and electrical design; machining and assembly; and programming, reflecting the company’s strategy. “We strive to be a vertically integrated company on many levels in order to maintain ‘System Responsibility’ the best we can,” Tormoen said. “The new facility will allow us to do this at a much higher level as the turnkey systems become even more value added and complex.”

Tormoen said the company is also planning on adding staff to keep up with growing customer demand for technical support, including mechanical and electrical engineering and programmers. In addition, Robotic Automation Systems is considering expanding its internal machine shop to offering custom machining capabilities to outside customers.

Robotic Automation Systems’ primary focus to date has been on insert loading, in-mold labeling, and press-to-press transfer, but the new operation will allow it to broaden its scope going forward, according to Tormoen.

“We have since expanded into the blow molding segment as the demand for automation has increased due to the skilled labor shortage,” Tormoen said. The wider worker shortage in manufacturing is also giving the company ´óÏó´«Ã½ opportunities for assembly cells and material handling in sectors outside of plastics. “The world of robotics and automation is growing at a rapid pace due to an ever-growing skilled labor shortage,” Tormoen explained.