• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Subscribe
  • Your Membership
    • Edit Your Profile
  • Services
    • Advertising
    • Case studies
    • Design
    • Email marketing
    • Lead generation
    • Magazine
    • Press releases
    • Publishing
    • Sponsored posts
    • Webcasting
    • Webinars
    • White papers
    • Writing
  • Shop
    • My Account
    • Cart
  • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy
    • Terms of use
  • Events

Robotics & Automation News

Market trends and business perspectives

  • News
  • Features
  • Video
  • Webinars
  • White papers
  • Press releases
  • Featured companies
    • AMD Xilinx
    • BlueBotics
    • Elite Robot
    • RGo Robotics
    • SICK Sensor Intelligence
    • Vicor Power
OnRobot 1

Opinion: Robots are the solution, not the problem, to the workplace safety challenge

October 11, 2019 by David Edwards

By Richard Mawson, sales manager UK and Ireland at OnRobot

Since the mid-twentieth century, robots have been implemented by businesses worldwide to enhance efficiency and multiply productivity levels.

However, while the introduction of robotic equipment in industrial contexts undoubtedly helped organisations increase their profits and revenues, it also transformed the working environments.

Safety concerns inevitably arose.

Though incredibly beneficial to the business, the first generation of robots were never designed to operate in close proximity to humans due to their size and potency.

That’s why many companies resorted to confining robots in a dedicated space of the factory, where human workers simply weren’t allowed.

Things have changed. The annual World Robotics report released last week by the International Federation of Robotics revealed that collaborative robots are taking the automation sector by storm and have shown an installation increase of 23 per cent.

A robot model intended for human collaboration naturally challenges traditional safety measures which involve segregation and call for a new approach to creating secure automated work environments.

Businesses must cease to consider solely what hazards robots may introduce in the workplace, and open their minds to what dangers they can in fact mitigate by taking over certain unsafe tasks usually assigned to humans.

Not that kind of robot

There are some substantial differences which set robots and cobots apart and notably affect the automated workplace safety conversation.

Collaborative robots are essentially robotic arms, infinitely nimbler than traditional robots.

Designed for human interaction, their sensors allow them to perceive the presence of other objects in the vicinity and help them avoid these accordingly.

This couldn’t be more different from the originary industrial automated machines – large, heavy and unaware of their surroundings.

It’s apparent that new-generation technologies have left behind the big scary robots of the past and evolved into intelligent, worker-friendly allies.

Experts believe that the businesses of the future will thrive thanks to a creative combination of technology and human touch.

This has spurred the creation and increased popularity of collaborative robots, which not only allowed workers to learn new skills and focus on more high-value tasks than mindless carrying and assembling, but also made working alongside them immensely safer.

A change in perspective

Workplace accidents happen. It is virtually impossible to create a workplace with zero hazards for employees.

This is perhaps even more true in factories and warehouses, where employees carry heavy loads back and forth, handle a range of disparate materials and interact with machines.

That’s why business owners and health and safety professionals must carefully analyse the most frequent situations which put workers in danger in order to manage them correctly.

The Health and Safety Executive reported last year that the most common type of fatal workplace injury in the UK is fall from a height. Only 9 per cent were caused by contact with moving machinery.

With regards to non-fatal injuries, the second most common cause is handling, lifting and carrying, accounting for 21 per cent, while moving machinery was only involved in 4 per cent.

It’s not difficult to imagine that carrying large boxes containing heavy items multiple times a day could lead to accidents or result in damage to muscles or bones, or that performing monotonous tasks such as manually assembling product after product can result in workers suffering in repetitive muscle strain.

It does, however, seem odd that robots are still perceived as the cause of safety issues in the workplace rather than embraced as a solution.

While factory work is dangerous due to its very nature, humans can be spared from completing hazardous jobs such as heavy lifting, working from elevated heights or handling harmful chemicals, if they are handed over to robots.

Cobots can take over activities like moulding or welding, where humans handle heated material, are exposed to metal fumes and to ultraviolet radiation, and risk of burns or eye damage.

They can also be deployed in research laboratories – where processes not only involve toxic materials, but also require monotonous gestures which demand consistency and precision – thereby preventing humans from suffering contamination and repetitive strain injuries.

Automation has the potential to revolutionise the way we live and work, improving the quality of our professional lives and propelling our economy to unprecedented prosperity.

Employee safety and job satisfaction are fundamental aspects of a thriving organisation and should be top priorities for business owners.

What’s important to understand is that these two statements are not necessarily conflicting demands which companies must learn to balance, rather two sides of a single movement towards embracing automation as an enabler of business success as well as worker safety.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Print
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • Skype
  • WhatsApp
  • Telegram
  • Pocket

You might also like…

Filed Under: Features, Industrial robots Tagged With: automated, automation, business, businesses, carrying, cent, collaborative, heavy, human, humans, robots, safety, tasks, work, workers, working, workplace

Join the Robotics & Automation News community

Primary Sidebar

Latest articles

  • Factory Visit: Investment bankers tour client’s robot-filled machine shop
  • Hengbot unveils ‘world’s first robotic dog with musculoskeletal limbs’
  • AutomationWare prepares for future with new robotic joints
  • RoboUP launches ‘the most intelligent and precise robotic lawn mower ever created’
  • Switzerland’s IAR Group establishes new subsidiary in Germany
  • Techman unveils ‘industry’s lightest high-payload AI collaborative robot’
  • The Future of Personal Computers: What to Expect in the Next Decade
  • 5 Ideas for Getting More Clients for Your Business in 2023
  • Improving Building Entry Security with AI
  • How do you heat a car to sleep?

Most Read

  • Hengbot unveils ‘world’s first robotic dog with musculoskeletal limbs’
    Hengbot unveils ‘world’s first robotic dog with musculoskeletal limbs’
  • Stiga launches ‘world’s smartest’ autonomous lawn mower
    Stiga launches ‘world’s smartest’ autonomous lawn mower
  • Top 20 electric vehicle charging station companies
    Top 20 electric vehicle charging station companies
  • Scientists have found more water in space than they ever knew possible
    Scientists have found more water in space than they ever knew possible
  • Difference Between Three-Phase and Single-Phase Power
    Difference Between Three-Phase and Single-Phase Power
  • Factory Visit: Investment bankers tour client’s robot-filled machine shop
    Factory Visit: Investment bankers tour client’s robot-filled machine shop
  • What You Need to Know About Fixing an Engine Misfire
    What You Need to Know About Fixing an Engine Misfire
  • Why is My Car Key Stuck in the Ignition?
    Why is My Car Key Stuck in the Ignition?
  • Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
    Schneider Electric invests €40 million in new smart factory in Hungary
  • How to Know if Your iPhone is Being Tracked? Check This!
    How to Know if Your iPhone is Being Tracked? Check This!

Overused words

ai applications automated automation automotive autonomous business companies company control customers data design development digital electric global industrial industry logistics machine manufacturing market mobile operations platform process production robot robotic robotics robots safety software solution solutions system systems technologies technology time vehicle vehicles warehouse work

Secondary Sidebar

Latest news

  • Factory Visit: Investment bankers tour client’s robot-filled machine shop
  • Hengbot unveils ‘world’s first robotic dog with musculoskeletal limbs’
  • AutomationWare prepares for future with new robotic joints
  • RoboUP launches ‘the most intelligent and precise robotic lawn mower ever created’
  • Switzerland’s IAR Group establishes new subsidiary in Germany
  • Techman unveils ‘industry’s lightest high-payload AI collaborative robot’
  • The Future of Personal Computers: What to Expect in the Next Decade
  • 5 Ideas for Getting More Clients for Your Business in 2023
  • Improving Building Entry Security with AI
  • How do you heat a car to sleep?

Footer

We are…

Robotics and Automation News was established in May, 2015, and is now one of the most widely-read websites in its category.

Please consider supporting us by becoming a paying subscriber, or through advertising and sponsorships, or by purchasing products and services through our shop – or a combination of all of the above.

Thank you.

Independent

Archivists

October 2019
M T W T F S S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  
« Sep   Nov »

Complex

Old-skool

This website and its associated magazine, and weekly newsletter, are all produced by a small team of experienced journalists and media professionals.

If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to contact us at any of the email addresses on our contact page.

We’d be happy to hear from you, and will always reply as soon as possible.

Future-facing

Free, fair and legal

We support the principles of net neutrality and equal opportunities.

Member of The Internet Defense League

Copyright © 2023 · News Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT