Automation in Fenestration: How to Overcome the Adoption Hurdle and Achieve ROI Faster
The value of automation in manufacturing is well established, filling a critical role in increasing profit margins, yields and overcoming workforce shortages.
In fenestration, automation like AUTOSCREEN™ by Haffner can yield up to 1000 screens per shift while eliminating the strain and risk of injury from repetitive motion and elevating your employees’ role in operations.
Some of the hottest housing markets in the country are also areas with the most severe workforce shortages and the highest energy and overhead costs. Automation is a natural solution, with an ROI in under one year, depending on volume and shifts in operation.
Automation can increase output to meet demand, reduce operator sick days and workers’ comp from repetitive stress injury, and allow you to upskill employees and offer more competitive rates. The value proposition is strong, but implementation isn’t always seamless. About 30% of businesses face resistance from employees during automation implementation (McKinsey).
In the fenestration industry alone, the top 4 barriers to automation are:
High initial capital investment
Workforce resistance and skills gap
Customization and product variability
Integration with legacy systems
Hurdle 1: Capital Investment
Let’s start at the top. Newcomers to automation anticipate high upfront capital investment. With full process automation, window screen manufacturers can expect to recoup their investment in 12 – 18 months. It’s not all or nothing, though—automation can be implemented one step at a time.
The AUTOSCREEN™ process is a three-stage process: cutting profiles, assembling the frame, and inserting the screen mesh and spline. Automating any stage can increase yield, helping to fund the next stage of your investment in further automation.
Focus on automating processes that offer the greatest return on investment:
Material cutting and processing: Robotic systems can improve precision and reduce waste.
Frame fabrication: Automation ensures consistent quality and reduces labor costs.
Assembly: Automate frame assembly through crimping, interference press or mechanical attachment.
Choose automation solutions that can grow with your business and allow you to adapt to new product lines or custom orders.
Hurdle 2: Workforce Resistance & Skill Gap
Automation doesn’t eliminate jobs—it helps companies overcome critical workforce shortages and offers employees high-demand new career paths.
Today, 45% of manufacturing jobs sit unfilled, and 33% of today’s workforce is reaching retirement age. Automation like AUTOSCREEN™ can bridge the gap.
Help overcome employee resistance with strong leadership and clear communication.
Communicate your goals and vision. Then listen to their feedback and concerns.
Involve employees in the technology selection and pilot study, and build some early champions.
Be clear and personal in helping employees understand “what’s in it for me?”—rewards if they hit milestones? Career training and advancement opportunities?
Embrace an agile mindset. Break the project into weeks or month-long sprints with clear goals, owners, and deadlines.
Employees will need time to get comfortable with both the shift toward automation and the technology itself. Strong vendor partners can add a lot of value to providing the employee training needed to:
Operate and maintain new machinery
Manage and analyze data from automated systems
The Haffner Group offers onsite training to both operation and maintenance personnel. Haffner’s implementation team is experienced in fenestration, multi-lingual, and backed by engineering support to work through unique needs. Their turnkey service includes planning, implementation, training, documentation, and ERP integration to help achieve ROI faster.
Learn more about how the Haffner Group can help you integrate your systems by contacting us at sales@haffner.us.
Hurdle 3: Customization and Product Variability
Balance your immediate needs with emerging customer demands. Look for automation that is modular and scalable, offering a path to expanded frame sizes and formats.
Consider how the equipment will integrate with your existing quality assurance. Decide and document your specific quality acceptance criteria.
Automation like AUTOSCREEN™ is well-suited to product variability and customization. Operators can easily switch product profiles and screen materials such as clear PVC film or fiberglass screen mesh. This versatility enables sunroom fabricators to insert clear PVC film into window frames in lieu of mesh.
Hurdle 4: Integration with Existing Systems
To maximize ROI from automation, be sure that you can integrate with your existing investments like ERP, quality management processes, and other legacy systems. Look for:
Platform-agnostic csv import/export or APIs. It is a 1-way communication from the monitor to machine, compatible with any ERP system.
Bar-code scanning functionality for traceability and inventory tracking.
Haffner Machinery’s advance team works through ERP integration and database setup in advance of installation, to speed your time to full production and ROI.
Jump the Hurdles
Choose a strong partner in the shift to automation. Automation like AUTOSCREEN™ can improve quality, reduce rework and labor costs, and increase yields, but it’s more than a technology — it’s a mindset shift. Plan for the process and people changes needed to hit your targets, and work with a full-service partner who understands your business.
The Haffner Group can help you to:
Identify and customize solutions for your product mix
Ensure smooth integration
Stay ahead of industry innovations
Whether you're looking to increase throughput, reduce labor strain, or future-proof your operations, the right partner makes all the difference.
Ready to take the next step?
Contact Haffner Machinery at sales@haffner.us to schedule a consultation, request a demo, or explore how automation can be tailored to your production line.
