Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

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Wanted: Robot to load dishwasher. Must be careful

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Chris Roberts, head of industrial robotics at Cambridge Consultants, provides an overview of the jobs robots could potentially do in future

Cambridge Consultants recently announced a new technology for automating one of the most unloved jobs in a commercial kitchen – loading the dishwasher.

This technology combines innovative robotics with cutting edge AI to achieve something hitherto impossible – detecting and handling a wide variety of dirty crockery haphazardly arranged on a tray.

However, the fundamental techniques used in this product can be applied to a wider range of situations and problems. There are many different tasks that it is only now possible to automate.

[Read more…] about Wanted: Robot to load dishwasher. Must be careful

American workers sleepwalking into automated obscurity, says new report

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robot replaces human
Picture courtesy of Challenge Magazine

Despite an endless stream of stories in the media warning of humanity’s impending irrelevance in an automated future, it seems American workers remain rather blasé about the prospect of being automated out of existence in the workplace. 

New research by Randstad US contradicts many reports that American workers fear losing their job due to automation.

The 2017 Randstad Employer Brand Research found that only 14 percent of US employees worry that automation will take their job away, and nearly one-third (30 per cent) say they think automation will make their job better.  [Read more…] about American workers sleepwalking into automated obscurity, says new report

Engineering companies struggling to find and keep talented young workers

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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

Self-awareness is the key to career survival as jobs get automated, says business psychologist

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self-aware book

Automation is about to do away with millions of jobs. A business psychologist claims he has at least some of the answers 

The good news is that the job you hate is about to be automated. The bad news is that you’re about to be out of work.

“Jobs that cannot be automated are on a very short list,” says Robert Pasick, PhD, an executive coach and organizational psychologist who also teaches at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. “If you are afraid to leave the job you hate, it may be about to leave you.”

Journalists fear computers that are already writing news stories. Truck drivers fear self-driving trucks, already carrying freight in controlled experiments. Accounting, lawyering, health care, package delivery, even Uber driver jobs are on the verge of automation.  [Read more…] about Self-awareness is the key to career survival as jobs get automated, says business psychologist

Job-stealing robots a growing concern for world leaders

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A “RoboThespian” humanoid robot at the Tami Intelligence Technology stall at the World Robot Conference in Beijing, China. Picture: Reuters
A “RoboThespian” humanoid robot at the Tami Intelligence Technology stall at the World Robot Conference in Beijing, China. Picture: Reuters

By Martinne Geller and Ben Hirschler, Reuters

Open markets and global trade have been blamed for job losses over the last decade, but global CEOs say the real culprits are increasingly machines.

And while business leaders gathered at the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos relish the productivity gains technology can bring, they warned this week that the collateral damage to jobs needs to be addressed more seriously.

From taxi drivers to healthcare professionals, technologies such as robotics, driverless cars, artificial intelligence and 3D printing mean more and more types of jobs are at risk.  [Read more…] about Job-stealing robots a growing concern for world leaders