As the Nordic defence industry now increases its production rate, new demands are being placed on how materiel is developed and manufactured. It is no longer enough for a product to function at the prototype stage; it must also be capable of being produced efficiently, in the right volumes and with maintained quality. This is often where a bottleneck occurs.
Camatec is an engineering firm with around 120 engineers across four locations, as well as its own workshop. The company operates in the border area between product development and production development, helping industrial companies both create new products and ensure that they can be produced in practice.
"Generally, 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. 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, Head of Business Area at Camatec.
As the defence industry moves from smaller series to larger production volumes, the link between development and production is becoming increasingly important. Many of the products now being produced on a larger scale were developed several decades ago and were designed according to the production conditions of that time. They are therefore often poorly suited to today's possibilities in automation, robotics and efficient production flows.
"A lot of what is now being scaled up in volume was developed 20, 30 or 40 years ago. Back then, no one was thinking about producing these products on automated lines," says Oscar Adolfsson.
This creates challenges when production needs to be scaled up quickly. 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 get to be involved, the greater our opportunity to make a real difference. The optimal scenario is to come in before the product is fully developed, so that the production perspective can influence solutions before the design is locked in," says Oscar, continuing:
"That way, you can not only create more robust supply chains, but also develop products that are better suited to modern production, automation and efficient scaling up. Production, manufacturability and supply security need to become an integrated part of the product development phase. In today's unstable geopolitical situation, many companies have experienced first-hand how vulnerable global supply chains can be."
It can involve seemingly small details that have major consequences for production. Adolfsson highlights examples such as marking paint 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 who cannot switch marking paint, even though alternatives exist that dry in three seconds instead of several hours. That would have made a big difference. The same applies to screws; a slotted screw is much harder for a robot to handle than, for example, a hex socket screw."
The point is not to change function or compromise on quality, but to enable more rational manufacturing.
"If you can make small adjustments that don't affect function but make the product easier to manufacture, you also get better quality in production."
Camatec works both on 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 being involved in modernising and automating production within the Swedish defence industry.
"We want to help modernise and automate Swedish defence production. This is needed if the industry is to be able to meet the volumes and pace now being demanded," says Oscar Adolfsson.