FOUNDER Smart Supply Chain Platform for Cast Aluminum Embraces the World Stage – General Manager Lin Wendou stated that through the integration of AI, IoT, and other information technologies, our technology…

FOUNDER General Manager, Lin Wendou, is dedicated to aluminum material technology and integration. By introducing AI and IoT applications, he has built a smart supply chain platform to improve production yield and efficiency, making FOUNDER an important supplier for the Swedish brand IKEA.

Located in the Changhua Coastal Industrial Park, FOUNDER 's aluminum furniture punching production line features Staubli robots that process and cut aluminum frames with speed and precision, measuring actions in seconds. Assembly workers receive the aluminum frames and skillfully assemble the products according to orders, placing them on the packaging table. This human-machine collaboration not only enables the production of 1,000 different frame specifications but also significantly reduces delivery time from two days to immediate shipment.
As Sweden's largest aluminum furniture supplier in Asia, FOUNDER has been implementing automation and robotic arm production since 2008, establishing production lines for "welding automation," "processing automation," and "packaging automation." It has also implemented an enterprise integration planning system (SAP), a manufacturing execution system (MES), and a supply chain management system (SCM), making it a pioneer in the domestic light metals industry involved in Industry 4.0. FOUNDER has accumulated a large database of big data over the past decade and participated in the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Industrial Development Bureau's "Smart Machinery - Industrial Cluster Supply Chain Digital Streaming and AI Project," pioneering the application of artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things, and successfully building a smart supply chain integration platform.

FOUNDER decided to integrate AI and IoT technologies two years ago, primarily because as the company grew, the biggest bottleneck was no longer hardware investment, but rather human-machine collaboration and software implementation. Mr. Lin stated that while FOUNDER already had considerable experience in automated processes, the initial motivation stemmed from FOUNDER desire to "precisely pinpoint where we went wrong." This project involves building AI technology and process software to digitize technical data in the process and inviting FOUNDER 's suppliers to jointly establish a supply chain integration platform for mutual communication.

"Taiwan's manufacturing industry has good production efficiency. Our company mainly uses the integration and analysis of AI, IoT and other information to digitize our technology and make production more efficient," said General Manager Lin. He explained that many techniques in the light metal industry are in the minds of experienced craftsmen. For example, even with the same 360-degree welding, an automated robot costing over a million NT dollars can't achieve the same welding strength as a skilled craftsman. What's the problem? By analyzing the craftsman's technique through slow-motion video recording, it was discovered that "he just shakes the metal a couple more times." Further analysis with thermal imaging revealed that the temperature at the weld joint was insufficient. By shaking the metal a couple more times during tempering, the aluminum material can be maintained at 500 degrees Celsius, allowing for a one-second window for complete sealing.

Through this project, FOUNDER successfully digitized all existing technologies and parameters. In addition to learning, monitoring, and recording during the process and continuously optimizing, after accumulating two years of experience, they have extended from the back end of aluminum furniture to the front end of gravity casting, equipping all machines and molds with temperature and control sensors. "Where there is a temperature difference, you can see it at a glance. Everything is digitally managed," said General Manager Lin. The technologies and parameters in the manufacturing process can be digitized, including combining with the Metal Industries Research & Development Centre to study materials science and find the optimal solution through sufficient testing conditions. "Every problem solved becomes the core technology of FOUNDER ."

FOUNDER Cast Aluminum adheres to information integration and analysis, digitizes technical data, and finds the optimal production solution through human-machine collaboration to improve the utilization rate of machinery.

General Manager Lin emphasized that connecting previously unconnected information systems such as SCM and ERP is the biggest hurdle in implementing AI and IoT. Furthermore, getting partner manufacturers to participate in building a smart supply chain integration platform is another key challenge. FOUNDER aluminum alloy furniture's production supply chain includes stages such as aluminum extrusion, cutting, processing, and painting. Because production scheduling is mostly manual, and processing, procurement, and quality control rely on paper-based documentation and manual copying, human error often leads to delivery delays, inconsistent quality, and production stoppages due to material shortages. Therefore, the platform aims to integrate suppliers to strengthen quality management and collaboratively address the challenges of small, diverse orders.

To avoid increasing the burden on suppliers due to digitalization, FOUNDER adopts a "concept-first" approach. FOUNDER invests in all equipment, including computers and scanners, and provides them to suppliers. Once the entire supply chain is operating smoothly, suppliers will naturally reduce costs and expenses, becoming more competitive.

During the operation, FOUNDER found that the cooperation level of the cooperating manufacturers changed significantly. "Some moved faster and some moved slower." Larger cooperating manufacturers are inherently more difficult to change, and only some departments may be able to cooperate, while other departments need to be strengthened. On the other hand, smaller family businesses, because the younger generation has just taken over, are quicker to connect and get up to speed. "When the young people do it, they find that this is more time-saving, and the delivery quality and communication are very accurate. We found no problems through three random inspections, so we basically adopted a trust mechanism. Our efforts have also gained the support of the relevant manufacturers. Initially, eight suppliers participated, and eventually all 60 suppliers went online."

Many outsiders believe that automation and AI are only necessary for mass production, but General Manager Lin stated that small-batch, diversified production actually requires even more integration of automation and AI. "Because in the past, small-batch production relied on the personal experience and recollection of experienced workers. Human experience wasn't digitized, so it couldn't be retained and incorporated into mass production. As a result, we might receive an order every six months, and then the employee would leave after six months. If the skilled worker left, the entire process would have to be repeated. Even if they didn't leave, they would forget after six months and would have to familiarize themselves with it all over again. Computers, on the other hand, don't do that. Once the parameters are input and the robot is set up, production can begin. The programs are all in the database."

However, the biggest fear in implementing automation and AI is failure. Mr. Lin frankly stated that no one can guarantee success, but with the experience gained over the past two years, FOUNDER has reached a consensus: "We can definitely do it," it's just a matter of time. Mr. Lin emphasized that the key lies in "our speed and ability to solve problems. If not, we need to spend more time addressing them; if we do, we'll handle them immediately, and step by step, they will become our core technology. It's just a matter of how long it will take. Mr. Lin personally believes that within three years is absolutely no problem."

Many people believe that the introduction of AI and automation will reduce job opportunities, but Mr. Lin disagrees. "It is perfectly fine to replace the labor force with machines, but the number of people will not decrease." He pointed out that many people have too idealistic ideas about automation. It is not possible to make money by directly producing with robots, especially for contract manufacturers like FOUNDER , which face complex and diverse production processes. In order to solve human error, they rely entirely on computers, but the computers then create other problems that require more people to handle.

General Manager Lin stated that since FOUNDER implemented automation and AI, the number of employees has increased from 120 to 160. The use of manpower has shifted from manual labor to relying on brainpower to solve the problem of automated data collection. In other words, it's no longer just about mass production, but about ensuring smooth production, improving product quality, or avoiding problems during the production process. With the introduction of AI, there is more verification work to be done. Once verified, efficiency can be improved, so experience becomes very valuable, and this part of the workforce requires more training.

General Manager Lin pointed out that as the value of human resources increases, minimum wage or basic salary is no longer a consideration for the company's labor costs. Before FOUNDER implemented automation, labor costs accounted for 10-15% of total costs. However, with the implementation of AI on the two production lines, it is clear that labor costs have dropped from 20% to less than 10%. But experience is valuable. How to retain these people working at FOUNDER for 5, 10, or even 20 years is a more important issue.
Data-driven communication makes creative thinking no longer impossible
The ability to identify, analyze, and solve problems is the most significant change FOUNDER has seen in the past two years since adopting AI and IoT. The results are directly reflected in the numbers: "In terms of per capita efficiency, FOUNDER has improved by approximately 47%, and the number of operators on the production line has decreased from 70 to 33. Gross profit and net profit have increased by about 4%." The company's own-brand production value is projected to expand from NT$60 million per year to NT$450 million (2023). General Manager Lin pointed out that since the COVID-19 pandemic, the market has changed faster and more rapidly. FOUNDER focuses on how to leverage existing resources, such as talent, equipment, and creativity, through data-driven communication to make work more precise and reduce unnecessary waste from rework.

General Manager Lin said that after the two-year plan is completed, FOUNDER will continue. Everyone has a clearer example of success, so when discussing things, everyone seems to be clearer and there are fewer conflicting discussions. The biggest gain is that it is no longer impossible.

FOUNDER has adopted a smart supply chain system to make the supply chain more transparent and reduce customer returns due to quality issues.

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Source: Website of the Information Services Industry Development Plan, Digital Industry Agency, Ministry of Digital Development