Plastics & Rubber World - May/June 2019 - 20

AUTOMATION

KHG Plastics in Germany produces automotive
lighting products with Sepro robotics

The automation
conundrum

Robotics solution providers believe their products don't directly eliminate jobs,
but the UK still has one of the lowest automation penetration levels in Europe

I can't think of one
instance where robots
have made people
redundant
Barry Hill, Wittmann Battenfeld UK

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here is a theory that adding automation to a manufacturing process
will inevitably lead to the elimination
of jobs. It makes sense as, after the initial
investment, automation doesn't require a
wage, or have any of the related human
foibles, such as comfort breaks or holidays.
Barry Hill is managing director of Wittmann Battenfeld UK. The Austrian company, which has oﬃces in Wellingborough,
Northamptonshire, is well-known for its injection moulding machines. But the product portfolio further includes a full suite of
automation solutions, including Cartesian
robots (with related accessories), conveyors and other hardware and software.
Hill says that while the discussion concerning automation taking jobs has continued for the past 30 years, for all the
worry the technology brings, those fears
are largely unfounded. "In the injection
moulding space, I just don't see it," he observes. "I can't think of one instance where
robots have made people redundant."
He continues: "There are cases where
automation has required people to be
used elsewhere in the business. But in
many instances, robots simply do the jobs
that employers can't get people to do, or
people don't want to do."

While Hill believes automation can
cause people to be moved around within
a given company, Jean-Michel Renaudeau,
CEO of robotics specialist Sepro Group,
has a diﬀerent view. "On the one side, I will
always say that robots will take some jobs.
Particularly those which repeat the same
gestures, or where production is operating on a 24-hour basis."
But despite the clear interest in selling
robots, Sepro's boss is still concerned with
supporting employees. "The big question
for business owners is how to utilise the
worker who was [previously] working beside the machine. While the robot can add
value, maybe the operator can do something with the parts, organise the ﬂow,
which itself is a very necessary step."
With this thought, Renaudeau brings
up the possibility of using 'cobots', robots
which are designed to work in the same
space as employees to complete a given
task. "Robots are not here to make one
person unemployed, they are here to create value. That's the bigger idea," he says.

SPEEDING UP CYCLE TIMES

Sepro Group has its headquarters near
Nantes, France; UK oﬃces are in Wolverhampton. The company oﬀers a full

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Plastics & Rubber World - May/June 2019

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