Scan&Sand helps automate labor-intensive ambulance manufacturing

Since 2020, GrayMatter Robotics has provided robotic systems that use artificial intelligence to sand objects of a variety of sizes and shapes. Last year, it applied its Scan&Sand technology to a new application: producing emergency vehicles.

Life Line Emergency Vehicles, a Sumner, Iowa-based manufacturer of ambulances, deployed GrayMatter’s technology to fill gaps in its production process.

The process of building an ambulance is very labor-intensive, and each of Life Line’s vehicles is one of a kind and built according to the customer’s needs and specifications.

Sanding is a particularly difficult part of the vehicle construction process. It involves going up and down ladders, dragging hoses around, and hauling heavy equipment. It’s also time-consuming and pulls Life Line’s employees away from work that is better suited for humans.

Scan&Sand iscans an object and sands it with the push of a button. GrayMatter created the system for high-mix manufacturing, where there is great variety in the shape and size of pieces that need to be sanded. The system can handle complex geometries and sand for shape correction.

Life Line said that GrayMatter’s technology filled essential gaps in its production. The vehicle maker noted that this autonomous technology wouldn’t be replacing any workers, as there simply weren’t enough people to get everything done without the robots.

In addition to filling these gaps, GrayMatter also made production faster for Life Line. Its employees said it was able to shave 45 minutes off of sanding a single raw truck. For a primer truck, GrayMatter was able to knock 30 minutes to an hour off of the sanding time.

Explore the RBR50 Robotics Innovation Awards 2025.