It's been great to have more time during this holiday break. This extra time has given me the ability to write some longer form content and speak on some topics that I wanted to dive into.
Automation has already had a significant impact on industrial jobs. Automation refers to the use of technology to perform tasks that would otherwise be done by humans. In the industrial sector, automation is often used to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase production. This has been a huge focus in my career since the start of the pandemic.
One of the ways that automation is changing industrial jobs is by replacing some tasks that were previously done by humans with machines or robots. For example, robots are commonly used in manufacturing to assemble products or to perform tasks such as welding or painting. As a result, some industrial jobs that were once done by humans are being eliminated, while new jobs are being created to design, maintain, and repair the automated systems. It is important to note that automation is not necessarily replacing all industrial jobs. Many tasks still require human judgment, creativity, or other skills that are difficult for machines to replicate.
Automation has had a significant impact on developed societies, and this trend is likely to continue in the future. One of the ways that automation has impacted developed societies is by replacing some jobs that were previously done by humans with machines or robots. This has led to the elimination of some jobs, while also creating new jobs in areas such as technology, engineering, and data analysis. It has also had an impact on the distribution of wealth and income. In some cases, automation has allowed companies to reduce their labor costs, which may increase profits for shareholders but may also lead to lower wages for workers. On the other hand, automation has also created new opportunities for workers by allowing them to focus on higher-value tasks, such as problem-solving or decision-making.
There are several trends in automation that I'm seeing and involved with implementing:
- Increased adoption of automation: Automation technologies, such as robots and artificial intelligence, are being adopted by a wider range of industries and companies. This trend is being driven by a variety of factors, including the need to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase production. I have added robotic packaging lines to reduced the need for human packers. These projects are fairly easy to implement and are great for high speed operations. However, not ever process needs this type of automation which has been hard to tell management. Slower manufacturing process can actually be negatively impacted by over designing and specifying packaging equipment.
Continued development of new automation technologies: The field of automation is constantly evolving, with new technologies being developed and introduced on a regular basis. These technologies are often aimed at improving the capabilities of existing automation systems or making them more affordable and accessible. One system I have worked on is a vision system for determining quality of parts with the ability to reject the part using a subsystem which tracks and rejects the part. These system are fairly expensive, but when done properly can reduce the risk of getting out of spec parts to a customer.
Greater focus on collaborative automation: There is a growing trend towards the use of collaborative automation, which involves humans and machines working together to perform tasks. This approach allows companies to leverage the strengths of both humans and machines, while also addressing concerns about the potential impact of automation on jobs. I have done most of my work on robot cells that are not Co-bots. This means you need to follow a safety protocol and restrict access to the bot when working. These co-bot are relativity new but allow humans to interact with them. It's pretty crazy to thinking about considering I have see bot do some crazy and dangerous things.
Increased use of data and analytics: Automation systems are often reliant on data and analytics to make decisions and perform tasks. As a result, there is a growing trend towards the use of data and analytics to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of automation systems. Data might be the most interesting aspect of automation in my opinion.
Growing interest in ethical and social implications of automation: As automation becomes more widespread, there is an increasing focus on the ethical and social implications of these technologies. This includes concerns about the impact of automation on jobs, as well as the potential for automation to perpetuate biases or create other unintended consequences.
Speaking of the ethical and social implications you can't have this conversation without discussing the negative impacts:
Job displacement: Automation can lead to the displacement of workers, as machines and robots can perform some tasks more efficiently than humans. This can lead to job losses and a decline in employment opportunities in certain industries. This feeling is very apparent when you have to install these systems in facility. I have heard and seen it all. I even had some working cutting electrical cords on equipment we were installing out of fear that it would be replacing them.
Income inequality: Automation may lead to a concentration of wealth and income among those who own and control the automation systems, while the workers who are replaced by these systems may see a decline in their wages and job opportunities.
Loss of skills: As automation takes over certain tasks, there may be a decline in the demand for certain skills, leading to a loss of knowledge and expertise. Brain drain is a real consequence if you need to reverted back to a process that has been automated. Looking at a welding line to get people hired to manually weld a system if the line goes down is impossible these days. It's better to just take the down time to fix the system vs. bringing in manual labor most of the time.
Social and economic disruption: The widespread adoption of automation can lead to significant changes in the labor market and the economy, which can be disruptive and create uncertainty. Detroit is a great example of this. Back in the automative prime Detroit was a city of economic prosperity for blue collar workers. As these jobs dried up so did the city.
Ethical concerns: There are also ethical concerns surrounding automation, such as the potential for automation to perpetuate biases or to be used for nefarious purposes.
With all the talk and push for automation it is important to consider these potential negative impacts when implementing automation and to take steps to mitigate them. Right now we are providing training and support for workers who may be affected by automation. I would love to see the implementation of policies to ensure that the benefits of automation are shared more broadly, but management never likes to share.
I'll be very interested to see if we keep up on the pace of implementation as we near a recession it may be easier to get cheap and abundant labor so the push for automation may decline. We will have to see what happens.
I know robots can do automated jobs that are complex. As it's programmed to do exactly that. Saves money and use lots of electricity !
That's the goal and in most circumstances it works really well. There typically is a large upfront cost of implementation, but that is made up for in the labor savings. I have seen maintenance cost increase as more automation is made at lower qualities. I had a project were the batteries died on a robot cell and it wiped the program. They did not tell us the cell had to run so many hours a week and those little D cell batteries cost tens of thousands in reprogramming to set the cell back up.
One aspect I am getting feared in automation and AI development is it is reducing the rate of job opportunity for humans
I did not really dive into AI as much a I wanted. I think AI needs its own post or even better yet a series of posts. It has been in the news this week and I don't even fully understand all the things that are happening at the moment.
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I like the idea that automation can take care of tasks that used to be quite dangerous for humans to do. That is a nice benefit of it. I was actually smacked in the face with some automation this past weekend. My wife and I were walking through Sam's Club and there was a robot floor sweeper going through the store. We kept running into it. It almost felt like one of those standoffs in Eurotrip between the one guy and the street performers. We have been having a hard time finding custodians where I work. It would be cool to get one of these automated floor sweepers so at least that was being done.