Automation is a product of modern technology by which a process is completed with very minimal assistance from humans. Automation revolutionized the process of manufacturing enabling factories to produce products at a very much higher speed and significantly reduced the cost of labor. There is no stopping to progress, and automation will continue to modernize. While it is expensive to set up factories with automation, let’s take focus on the many benefits it delivers to the modern manufacturing industry. For the best automation solutions for your business, visit IntelLiDrives
Automation Lowers Production Cost
Mass production was designed to fit perfectly in a factory setting. In the old days, factories were run by humans. Even though ancient factories use machines, still humans run them manually. Fabricating products by hand will require several skilled humans to do the job. In turn, a factory has to spend money on its laborers.
The problem with product fabrication handled by a human is the rate of output. The output rate of a factory will depend on how fast an individual can fabricate a product. As a worker gets tired, the output rate also goes down – worse, the quality of a product may also suffer. This can cause product rejects and delays in the orders.
Through automation, the intricate process of manufacturing a product can be much more simplified. Through the use of computers and robotics, factories were able to mass-produce without the need of a huge labor force. The quality of products is maintained with high consistency as computers and robotics were designed for precision. With such capabilities, automation in factories significantly reduced its production cost and raised its profits.
Automation Increases the Buying Power of Society
As mentioned earlier, automation lowers production costs. While the cost of products decreases the buying power of society increases – since the prices of commodities went down. Competition among automated factories is also a key factor that affected the decrease in the price of commodities.
Automation Creates a Safe Workplace
The record shows that there was a high rate of accidents in factories worldwide. But that was long before automation was introduced to the manufacturing industry. Working with machines in a factory is very dangerous – in fact, it is life-threatening. Statistics show that a high rate of amputations and deaths were directly caused by the hazards in the workplace. There was also a handful of data directly relating factory jobs to the increasing health problems of workers. While automation replaces humans in the workplace, it doesn’t necessarily mean that factories no longer need humans for production. Robotic systems still need humans to guide them in the manufacturing process. The most dangerous tasks previously handled by humans are now being taken by robotic systems.
Automation Kills Jobs but Creates other Jobs
As automation reduced the need for human labor, more and more workers from factories worldwide were being displaced losing their factory jobs. While the unemployment rate in factories rises, the need for the human workforce in other sectors emerges. Since automation enables factories for mass production, the order rate increases. This created the need for opening more warehouses, which in turn created the need for more warehouse workers. The demand for R&D jobs, technical skills (in the maintenance and repair of machines), and skilled operators has also increased. Modern studies proved that there exists a positive relationship between modern technology and increasing employment. This applies not only to the manufacturing industry but across all sectors especially those industries that adopted the use of computers.
Automation Increases Productivity of Workers
The integration of automation in the manufacturing industries doesn’t mean that human labor is no longer needed. This is very evident in production lines. As you can see, workers can focus more on their jobs of quality assurance because they no longer need to run every item to the next station – as this is done by the conveyors. Even in automated warehouses, workers can produce high output of packing boxes as they no longer needed to run in between stations for collecting each item to be packed. With the utilization of automation, employees gain more focus on their manual jobs making them more efficient factory workers.
Automation Creates Higher Wages
The impact of automation on wages has gone through many debates. Most people think that automation is the culprit for low wages. In fact, records show that with the introduction of automation, the need of companies for skilled machine operators has significantly increased. The scarce number of skilled operators created competition among employers, thus resulting in offering high wages for skilled labor.
