FARO APAC head on the future of manufacturing in the region

QUAH Beng Chieh, Head of Marketing (Asia Pacific), FARO Technologies

QUAH Beng Chieh, Head of Marketing (Asia Pacific), FARO Technologies shares with International Metalworking News for Asia about the future of manufacturing in Asia, and what they are providing to help manufacturers, as they face the ever-changing production landscape.

Change remains a constant for the manufacturing industry — with its increasingly complex market needs and requirements, and the resulting push for innovation to ensure a steady introduction of varied solutions, especially for the 3D measurement sector. Digital transformation or smart manufacturing will continue to be at the forefront of this evolution, urging manufacturers to seek out solutions that will allow them to digitise information and digitalise processes in order to improve their response to market changes.

Solutions based on advanced technology that empower customers to tap on data-driven collaborations for improved productivity are also expected to rise to prominence in the market. With 3D metrology technologies, users from a variety of markets can perform high-precision 3D measurement, imaging, and comparison of parts and compound structures within production and quality assurance processes. 3D measurement solutions feature multiple applications, enabling manufacturers to maximise efficiencies and improve existing practices. During the product and process development process, 3D metrology technologies can help manufacturers in many ways, such as ensuring alignment, conducting first article inspections, and providing reverse engineering support.

FARO is committed to our business in Asia Pacific and will constantly look towards expansion, though future growth and development will always be in tandem with business needs in the region. Within the region — besides manufacturing powerhouses like China, Japan, and India, countries like Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam are also growing to become manufacturing hubs of choice for corporations around the world. As the economy continues to grow, manufacturers will seek to expand their operations, optimise to reduce cost, and expand capabilities to capture new markets. We expect a rise in demand for measurement and imaging solutions to tackle evolving metrology needs, and our team will be ready to respond by educating users across the various cities in Asia Pacific, about our solutions and how their businesses can benefit from incorporating our technology, and leveraging on FARO infrastructure and support.

FARO strives to anticipate the evolving needs of its customers and of the industry, and the company consistently invests in R&D to design products that feature the most cutting-edge technologies. 

Amongst the different technologies developed by FARO, our best-selling solution is the FaroArm®. The FaroArm is capable of supporting manufacturers in measurement tasks such as 3D inspections, CAD-to-part analysis, machine alignment, and reverse engineering. The latest in the series, the FARO® 8-Axis Quantum FaroArm, is the world’s only portable metrology arm solution that features an eighth axis, which enables the workpiece to be rotated in real-time — relative to the Arm. This removes difficulties users may have previously experienced in reaching around the object, and it also eliminates the need to move the device into different locations during the measurement process.

Another versatile solution that is popular with our customers is the FARO® TracerSI Laser Projector, which allows manufacturers to eliminate the need for physical templates with virtual templating and positioning solutions. It is a first-of-its-kind, advanced laser imager and projection system that provides high-resolution image scanning capabilities throughout its entire projection volume. With this cutting-edge solution, manufacturers can streamline a wide range of assembly and production applications — especially for large workpieces.

Apart from solutions that enable manufacturers to efficiently digitise product designs and relevant 3D measurement data, solutions like the FARO® Visual Inspect can also offer manufacturers new opportunities for enhanced collaboration across departments and production processes. Using complex 3D data previously unavailable in a production line, and an augmented reality (AR) function that is suitable for all working environments, 3D inspection and verification technology like the Visual Inspect can help manufacturers streamline their processes for greater flexibility and nimbleness, while taking into account increasing cost pressures.