Barriers to automation

"Despite significant falls in the cost of robots and robot systems, there is a lingering misconception that robotic automation is prohibitively expensive for UK companies, particularly in the SME sector,” says Mike Wilson, General Industry Sales and Marketing Manager for ABB’s UK Robotics business. ""There is evidence that an investment in a robot can be recouped within 12 to 18 months."

Another misconception has been downplayed by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Many fear that automated manufacturing will have a negative impact on employment. But experts say that historically, gains in manufacturing productivity have had a positive impact on job creation.

"Automated production enables greater productivity, but it also has the potential to increase employment by enlarging the market for those goods," says Dr Wial of the University of Illinois at Chicago. "Historically, productivity growth has been good for economic development and job creation.”

Finally, a meeting of the All-Party Parliamentary Manufacturing Group met to discuss Automation in UK Manufacturing. It highlighted challenges in attracting young talent into the sector when compared to the staggering rate of engineers emerging from Asian countries. According to keynote speaker Iain Wright MP, the UK seems to have a perception problem as well as a lack of a coherent education strategy aimed at creating the engineering jobs of the future. He called for a national debate on the importance of automation.

* Networked manufacturing: The digital future is available free of charge at: http://www.economistinsights.com/analysis/networked-manufacturing