Automation doesn't have to kill jobs. A factory floor expert argues that technology should augment workers, not replace them, by filling gaps and boosting efficiency. The real work is upskilling existing staff and creating new technical roles so people and machines can partner.
You've got a shop floor and you've got all these people and you've got holes in it. Well, if you look at that, how can you maybe automate something or do something in a more efficient manner using technology and try and bridge the gap with technology instead of— people used to think that automation technology, you lose jobs, but there's got to be a way to augment those workers with technology to make them more efficient in their job and what they're doing and doing that. And I think as we start to add more technology to factories and to plants, that the workforce needs to be upskilled as well along with that technology, and that there you'll be able to find different roles for those people who are engaged to contribute from a technical perspective.
