New industry partner joins Repair Bot project at Swinburne

Australia’s largest automotive collision repair network, AMA / Gemini Group, is the latest industry partner to join collaborative Swinburne research project, Repair Bot.

AMA / Gemini Group joins the $1.2 million project that is making use of 3D printing technologies and robotics in rapid car repairs.

With backing from the Australian Government’s Innovative Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (IMCRC), AMA / Gemini Group joins Swinburne’s existing industry partner on the project, Tradiebot Industries.

Roboticist and Swinburne Senior Research Fellow, Dr Mats Isaksson, says the project team will benefit from AMA / Gemini Group joining the research project.

“My team and I look forward to the added depth and industry knowledge that AMA/ Gemini Group will bring to the project.

“The automotive vehicle repair industry is highly concentrated and ferociously competitive, so a solution like the Repair Bot has the potential to be truly transformational, using Industry 4.0 technologies,” Dr Isaksson says.

Transforming the car repair industry

In Australia alone, the automotive vehicle repair industry generates more than $15 billion annually.

The Repair Bot project aims to enable a low-cost rapid repair service for automotive plastic trim and assembly components that can be commercially implemented in a same-day fix of vehicles damaged by collisions.

Swinburne, along with its industry partners, will develop appropriate technologies to digitize and analyse large plastic car parts and generate an automatic fix. They will use 3D scanning, robotics and additive manufacturing to make this happen.

Remaining industry focussed by partnering with industry leaders

Dave Calder, Corporate General Manager, AMA / Gemini Group says, “Innovation is core to our business and we are delighted to be collaborating with the leaders in this space, Swinburne and Tradiebot Industries,” says Dave Calder, Corporate General Manager, AMA / Gemini Group.

“With advances in vehicle technology, parts costs rising and skills availability ever challenging, we are constantly looking at ways to advance the industry, refine our operation and continually deliver on our ability to provide value to our clients and customers.”

Mario Dimovski, Tradiebot Industries Founder, says: “Commitment from leading industry players such as the AMA / Gemini Group is a positive indication we are on track in solving current obstacles in the automotive collision repair industry around the repairs of plastic components.”

About Repair Bot

The Repair Bot project has accumulated over $1.2 million in funding, and research will take place throughout 2018 and 2019.

The research collaboration was first announced in February 2018

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