July 26, 2021 I Supply
Furch Guitars to Increase Production by 50%
Collaborative robots will now be part of nine workstations.
Furch Guitars has plans to increase its production by 50% this year. Modern technologies in particular will aid in the increase, and the company promises further advancement in the already established quality of its instruments.
Furch Guitars produces an average of 7,000 acoustic guitars annually, which are subsequently sold worldwide by its authorized dealers. Increasing demand for its products, caused in part by the coronavirus pandemic and more effective marketing and sales activities, has hit the ceiling of the company’s production capacity. Demand has exceeded supply by approximately 90%. Therefore, the company said in a statement that it has decided to gradually increase production by up to half this year. The company’s production capacity will increase to 10,000 instruments yearly.
According to Petr Furch, CEO of Furch Guitars, increasing production in and of itself carries a number of challenges.
“While increasing production, it is extremely important to me that we maintain the existing quality of Furch guitars and, ideally, further it,” Furch said. “Thanks to research and the latest production technologies, we can guarantee it.”
Playing central roles in increased production throughout are new employees and modern technology, the company said. Specifically, it’s using collaborative robots that allow close teamwork between people and robotic arms without the risk of injury. A major advantage of this technology is also high sensitivity and, thanks to this, it is possible to use robotic arms for very delicate operations.
“Collaborative robotics is an emerging industrial sector. However, I must say that after a year of testing we were able to achieve outstanding results with it,” Furch said. “This technology is a perfect fit for our precision manufacturing and was a great addition to the indispensable hand craftsmanship. If more instrument manufacturers would implement this, [especially] low volume manufacturers, there would be more quality instruments available worldwide, which the players certainly deserve.”
The company started its preparations for increasing production last year, with full implementation starting in February 2021. Within four months of implementation, the company said it has successfully increased its year-to-year production by 30% and is expecting to reach the targeted 50% by October 2021.
