Case Study: Small Robot Company
Case Study: Small Robot Company
The Small Robot Company is revolutionizing farming with its innovative approach to sustainable agriculture. By leveraging robotics and artificial intelligence, they have developed a suite of robots designed to optimize care for each plant in a field, a method they call "Per Plant Farming." This technique reduces chemical usage and waste, making farming more sustainable and profitable. As the company rapidly expands, the need for efficient and cost-effective development of their robots has become crucial. Geomiq has been instrumental in meeting these needs through rigorous testing, prototyping, and scalable production.
Overview:
Overview:
Company
Small Robot Company
Location
Salisbury, UK
Year Founded
2019
Industry
Agritech
Product
Sustainable farming robots
Why Geomiq?
Short lead times, Simplified supplier sourcing, instant quoting, integrated quality control,
Technology
CNC Machining, Sheet Metal Cutting and Fabrication, Powder Coating
Material
Aluminium 5052, Stainless Steel 316
Projects Completed
40+
Outcome
Reduced part sourcing time, decreased prototyping costs, and scaled production efficiently
Examples of parts:
Method: CNC Machining
Material: Mill-turned EN8
Finish: 0.4Ra Surface Roughness
Method: Sheet Metal
Process: Raw sheet + Bending
Material: Stainless steel 304 4N
Finish: 4N Brushed one side
Company & Product
The Small Robot Company, based in Salisbury, England, is dedicated to transforming agriculture with its fleet of robots named Tom, Dick, and Harry. Each robot plays a specific role: Tom gathers crop data, Dick handles treatment with precision, and Harry plants seeds. These robots are connected through an AI operating system called Wilma, which optimizes their operations. By using small, precise, and lightweight vehicles, the company significantly reduces the need for large machinery and excessive chemical use, addressing major inefficiencies in traditional farming.
Helping Small Robot Company achieve streamlined manufacturing
To keep up with their rapid growth and the increasing demand for their robots, the Small Robot Company needed a partner who could accelerate their prototyping and testing phases without inflating costs. By collaborating with Geomiq, they streamlined their workflow, simplifying supplier sourcing, quoting, and quality control processes. This partnership reduced part sourcing times from months to just 4-6 weeks while maintaining high-quality standards.
With Geomiq’s platform, the Small Robot Company could stay lean and agile, significantly cutting down prototyping costs and development time. These savings in infrastructure and overhead have been pivotal in expanding their fleet of robots. Geomiq’s value engineering and built-in quality control ensured that the company received the correct parts the first time, every time.
"Geomiq are helping us with value engineering to allow us to produce the robots that we need at the right price and they're building in their own quality control, which means we don't have to worry about all the issues of going out to the market ourselves." Ben Scott-Robinson, Co-Founder of Small Robot Company.
Outcomes & Results
- A team of 4-5 engineers have completed over 20 projects with Geoniq.
- Part sourcing times were reduced from months to weeks, drastically accelerating the development cycle.
- Reduced prototyping and development costs have enabled the company to invest more in expanding their robotic fleet
- Every part supplied met rigorous quality standards, ensuring reliable performance and durability.
"With Geomiq, I get a quote back within seconds for easy parts and always within 24 hours for complex projects. I've got full transparency over my supply chain from quotes to receiving the parts. Working with Geomiq and having our parts correct the first time every single time means that we're able to deliver our mission to allow farmers to be more sustainable as they move into the future."
Ben Scott-Robinson, Co-Founder of Small Robot Company.
About the author
Sam Al-Mukhtar
Mechanical Engineer, Founder and CEO of Geomiq
Mechanical Engineer, Founder and CEO of Geomiq, an online manufacturing platform for CNC Machining, 3D Printing, Injection Moulding and Sheet Metal fabrication. Our mission is to automate custom manufacturing, to deliver industry-leading service levels that enable engineers to innovate faster.
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