With industrial robot installations in the UK increasing for the third year in a row to 2,300 units, there has been much talk about how the future workplace will look and the threat posed to jobs by automation. 1,000 UK employees were interviewed by a market research institute on behalf of automatica, the Munich-based Trade Fair for Smart Automation and Robotics and it was discovered that a majority are happy for robots to take over the unhealthy (83%), hazardous (77%) or monotonous (72%) jobs.
Not only did the majority of those interviewed want robots to take over the dangerous, dirty and dull work, around 70% thought that increased automation in these areas would allow employees the time and opportunity for further training and education.
Human-robot teams
Human-robot teams. Source: automatica
Equally, many welcomed the idea of joining forces in human-robot teams. 68% thought that a combination of human talents, like judgement and fine motor skills, combined with those of robots, like precision and force, would lead to an overall improvement in manufacturing.
Other data showed:
- 70% believe that human-machine collaboration will make companies in the UK more competitive.
- 52% say that robotics and digitalisation will bring back jobs to the country that had been previously outsourced.
- 73% thought the reduction in production costs would have a strong impact.
- 68% thought it would lead to the production of better quality goods and services.
According to data from the International Federation of Robotics, the UK's robot density roughly matches that of the global average of 85 industrial robots per 10,000 employees in the manufacturing industry. This ranks the UK at 15th in Europe and 22nd in the world. Germany came out on top in Europe and the world leader was South Korea.
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