The U.S. Census Bureau recently reported that American manufacturing is off to a good start in 2016. The number of new orders for manufactured durable goods in January increased by just over $11 billion to $237.5 billion. This is an increase of nearly 5%, which is the largest increase in the industry since March of… Read more »
People like to portray advances in automation as being a job war between humans and machines; a thunderdome type situation in which there can only be one winner. This isn’t always the case, however. Industrial automation has provided a lot of benefits to the manufacturing industry, and while it’s true that there are fewer jobs… Read more »
Robots can do things better than humans. When it comes to heavy lifting, precise motion, and not breathing, machines will best humans every time. But robots aren’t universally better than humans. Humans can do things better than robots, too. There’s not a robot yet that can top humans at empathizing with others, contemplating the meaning… Read more »
The fact that data is important to automation isn’t exactly news. Data is necessary in automation and motion control, but Industry 4.0 will elevate the importance of monitoring, storing, analyzing, and using data in automation. A recent report examining key trends in automation over the next 4 years listed data acquisition and data analysis as… Read more »
For as long as automation has existed, people have been speculating about how automation will impact human jobs. People have predicted that machines will replace the need for human workers for centuries, yet there are still plenty of jobs to go around for people today. That’s not to say that automation has not affected work,… Read more »
Engineering has traditionally been a job for boys. It’s not that men are better suited to be engineers, it’s just that statistically more men have sought careers in engineering than women. But the idea that engineering is a masculine job is slowly fading. The world needs more female engineers, and there’s a growing movement encouraging… Read more »
Moore’s Law says that CPU power basically doubles every two years. This theory originated in the 1960s and has held true for half a century. Many think that this exponential growth will eventually level off, but until that happens, technology will continue to become more advanced at a drastic rate. There’s a nice quote from… Read more »
Robots exist to help people. Automation makes work easier for humans and does so faster, more affordably, and more consistently. We specialize in Indramat motion control systems, so the type of robots that we’re familiar with are, of course, industrial machines. These are the robots that help people make goods or package products. There are… Read more »
It’s hard to peg down the greatest benefit of automation. Increased speed and productivity are certainly up there at the top of the list, and improved safety for humans can’t be ignored. But of all the numerous advantages that automation has to offer, one stands out as being the most easily appreciated. Automation makes our… Read more »
Maybe one day when people are talking about robots in the classroom they will be referring to walking, talking automated robots strolling up and down the aisles asking “What is 2+2?” with a ruler in tow, ready to swat unruly students. Maybe these robo-teachers will fire off preprogrammed jokes and gauge the joke’s success via… Read more »
