As the Nordic defence industry increases its production rate, new demands are being placed on how materiel is developed and manufactured. It is no longer sufficient for a product to function at the prototype stage; it must also be producible efficiently, in the right volumes, and with maintained quality. This is where a bottleneck frequently arises.
Camatec is an engineering consultancy with approximately 120 engineers across four locations and its own workshop. The company operates at the intersection of product development and production development, helping industrial companies both to develop new products and to ensure that those products are practically manufacturable.
"In general, we have two main areas. One is product development, where we help develop a product, sometimes all the way from concept generation to prototype and pre-series production. The other is production development, where we help customers create efficient production flows, from factory layout and material flows to automation and specialised machinery," says Oscar Adolfsson, Business Area Manager at Camatec.
As the defence industry moves from smaller series to larger production volumes, the link between development and production becomes increasingly important. Many of the products that now need to be produced at greater scale were developed several decades ago and were designed according to the production conditions of their time. They are therefore often poorly adapted to today's possibilities within automation, robotisation, and efficient production flows.
"Much of what volumes now need to be increased on was developed 20, 30, or 40 years ago. Back then, there was no consideration at all that the products would be produced in automated lines," says Oscar Adolfsson.
This creates challenges when production needs to be scaled up rapidly. According to Camatec, a decisive factor is therefore to involve production expertise early in the development process, before key design choices are locked in.
"The earlier in the process we are involved, the greater our opportunity to make a real difference. The optimal scenario is to be brought in before the product is fully developed, so that the production perspective can influence solutions before the design is locked," says Oscar, continuing:
"That way, you can not only create more robust supply chains, but also develop products that are better adapted for modern production, automation, and efficient scaling. Production, manufacturability, and supply security need to become an integrated part of the product development phase. In today's unstable geopolitical climate, many companies have experienced how vulnerable global supply chains can be."
This can involve seemingly minor details that have major consequences in production. Adolfsson highlights examples such as marking ink with a long drying time, or the choice of screw type: details that work in manual assembly but create problems in automated flows.
"I have spoken with customers where it is not possible to change the marking ink, even though alternatives exist that dry in three seconds rather than several hours. That would have made a significant difference. The same applies to screws; a slotted screw is far more difficult for a robot to handle than, for example, a hex socket screw."
The point is not to change functionality or compromise on quality, but to enable more rational manufacturing.
"If you can make small adjustments that do not affect the function, but which make the product simpler to manufacture, you also achieve better quality in production."
Camatec works on both shorter analyses and longer industrialisation projects. Some assignments run for a few months, while more advanced automation solutions can extend over several years. What they have in common is that the company acts as a link between development and production, two areas that have historically often been kept separate.
In practice, this means introducing the production perspective earlier in the development process. For Camatec, it also means participating in the modernisation and automation of production within the Swedish defence industry.
"We want to be part of modernising and automating Swedish defence production. That is necessary if the industry is to be able to meet the volumes and the pace that are now being demanded," says Oscar Adolfsson.