Archives for June 17, 2017

Amazon could assimilate Whole Foods workers into robots and drones in some sort of cyber-physical dystopian Borg-like nightmare

June 17, 2017 by Sam Francis

By Lisa Baertlein and Harriet McLeod, Reuters

The merger that shook food and retail stocks on Friday – Amazon’s proposed deal to buy Whole Foods Market – rattled some employees of the upscale grocery chain who expressed fears ranging from layoffs to the loss of their laid-back corporate culture.

The online retailer hopes the $13.7 billion acquisition helps it disrupt the grocery business and expand its real-world store footprint.

Carmen Clark, 37, a six-year employee at a store in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, said some workers worry that Amazon-led automation could lead to job cuts. [Read more…] about Amazon could assimilate Whole Foods workers into robots and drones in some sort of cyber-physical dystopian Borg-like nightmare

The advantages of automation in medical diagnostics

June 17, 2017 by Sam Francis

Technology in the fields of life sciences and medicine is constantly evolving. New manufacturing techniques have made it possible to make more effective therapies, and advances in research have led to more cost-effective solutions to conditions that were once considered too expensive to treat.

One of the most interesting aspects of the evolution of medical technology is the constantly increasing involvement of automation in various medical operations, particularly in diagnostics.

Back then, essential diagnostic procedures relied on manual procedures. While conventional methods were successful to a certain degree, they are hampered by certain limitations.

For instance, manual testing of specimens is slow and prone to mistakes caused by poor human judgment. Automation helps get rid of these limitations to achieve more accurate results in less time. [Read more…] about The advantages of automation in medical diagnostics

Engineering companies struggling to find and keep talented young workers

June 17, 2017 by Sam Francis

engineering graduates — Picture courtesy of WonderfulEngineering.com

To anyone looking for work, it might sound strange to hear that some sectors of the economy are struggling to find and retain workers, but that’s the situation many engineering companies find themselves in.

Finding, educating, training and retaining talented young people is not just a dilemma for engineering companies in one region or country, it’s a global issue.

But, paradoxically, while companies in some countries say there’s a problem finding engineering graduates, in other countries such as India, large numbers of engineering graduates are reportedly not having much luck finding jobs.

In those countries where there is a shortage, such as Germany and maybe the US, it’s not at crisis levels yet, but it’s a complication that large industrial companies are trying to alleviate in a variety of ways. [Read more…] about Engineering companies struggling to find and keep talented young workers

Baumüller and Lemo to partner on building brand new bag machine

June 17, 2017 by Sam Francis

Baumüller, a drive and automation systems manufacturer, has received an order from Lemo Maschinenbau to design a cost-optimized, efficient and sustainable foil bag machine that also affords the manufacturer maximum flexibility and quick commissioning in the production process due to its modular structure.

Baumüller says its engineering specialists were able to meet Lemo’s requirement for modularity and a work cycle increase with the help of a new automation concept.

Among other things, a modern and streamlined drive and control architecture was used for this purpose. This means an integrated fieldbus system, minimum number of devices and a reduced control structure. [Read more…] about Baumüller and Lemo to partner on building brand new bag machine

Books: Journeys into the minds of robots

June 17, 2017 by Sam Francis

Elsevier has released a couple of new books that take deep dive into the programming of robots. [Read more…] about Books: Journeys into the minds of robots