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Improvements to cost, safety and efficiency will see much wider applications of cobots in the manufacturing sector, says Jim Davison from Make UK:
The biggest trend over the next 10 years is going to be the response to connected technology linked to the fourth Industrial Revolution (I4.0). There is pretty much full employment, and the government is likely to restrict immigration to people with higher skills. The availability of labour will become tighter, driving companies that haven’t adopted automation and other I4.0 capabilities to do so.
Robotic technology is becoming far more cost effective. Machines that would have cost hundreds of thousands of pounds now cost tens of thousands, and they can be applied to many different areas. Traditionally they were kept in cages, but now with cobots you can work alongside robots safely and efficiently. There will be many more applications emerging in the next 10 years.
That said, I don’t agree with this idea that all our jobs will be replaced with robots. Yes, a lot of activities will be automated – like we have seen in banking, for example, where automation has driven productivity and efficiency – but the idea that everyone is going to be replaced by robots in 10 years is not going to happen.
We will also see 3D printing becoming more prevalent. The common application today is around jigs and fixtures, and additive manufacturing is a great method for that.
At the moment, it’s not necessarily cost effective unless you’re making one-off parts. By 2030, however, we will start to see more products being completely printed, including metal parts. Every year that goes by the technology is improving. It’s still bleeding-edge and it will continue to grow.
When it comes to Brexit, our position at Make UK – based on member feedback – is that the country has made its choice and wants to leave. Our message to the government is we need to protect the UK economy however we can, and we need access to skilled labour.
For global companies with pan-European supply chains, movement of goods needs to be as frictionless as possible because otherwise the supply chain just can’t work. It’s not the case for every manufacturer – companies that sell domestically might not have just-in-time delivery.
But if you’re an automotive manufacturer it really does matter. We spent 40 years developing the supply chain and we need to protect it if we can.
Read our expert predictions for other sectors:
Aerospace
Biomedical
Energy
Automotive
Rail
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.