This is just one of the key takeaways from a session at the First Friday Club Editors' Briefings delivered by Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) chief automation officer Mike Wilson.
“If we want to be competitive, we need to improve that productivity – and automation is one of the solutions,” he said. “We are currently facing significant labour shortages throughout UK manufacturing, and as a result, we are getting significant interest from the use of automation.”
The MTC is seeking to increase the adoption of automation – a technology that is applicable to all industrial sectors – but Wilson identified small medium enterprises (SME) as “the biggest challenge”.
“We have got to find ways of getting the message into SMEs so they use a lot more automation, and the MTC is there to help,” he added.
As part of this support, the MTC is helping SMEs write specifications so they can procure the right solutions while also helping them pick the most appropriate supplier for their applications.
When asked if there is a role for the UK government to aid a move toward automation, Wilson would like to see them encourage the use of this technology in manufacturing.
“Politicians think robots means less employment, but automation and robotics genuinely lead to more employment because businesses get stronger and more competitive and employ more people,” he concluded.