IS AI DELIVERING REAL BENEFITS?
The concept of artificial intelligence (AI) is not new – it can be traced back to the days of “expert systems” and beyond – but it has become an inescapable aspect of almost any discussion about smart factories in recent years. But are it, and its fellow-traveller machine learning (ML), more than just buzz phrases?
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
Being a pioneer in an area such as smart factories and digitalisation can have major benefits for those organisations prepared to take the risk – and invest the money. It can help to boost a company’s reputation as a technology leader and, provided that the project works as intended, it can deliver commercial advantages over rivals who are being more cautious (or spendthrift) in their approach to cutting-edge technologies.
AUTOMATION: A TARIFF WARS CASUALTY
It is often said that the key to solving the UK’s shortage of engineering skills lies in ensuring that schoolchildren know what engineering is and how it could be a rewarding career for them – both financially and in the impact they could make on the world.
AUTOMATION: A TARIFF WARS CASUALTY
Just as changes to the local environment in one part of the earth, can have profound effects many thousands of miles away – the so-called butterfly effect – so it is with business matters.
THE COBOTS ARE COMING
Although collaborative robots – or cobots – have attracted considerable publicity in recent years, they still still represent a tiny part of the industrial robot market. In particular, there are very few real-world cobot applications that exploit their ability to collaborate safety with human co-workers.
CREATING A GREEN AND PLEASANT LAND
Despite the Brexit-induced state of limbo, it seems that UK manufacturers are still managing to work on other issues. For example, a new survey by Make UK (the successor to EEF) shows that many UK manufacturers are making considerable efforts to improve their sustainability. Half of those surveyed say that they are making headway with sustainability programmes, with 71% of those who have implemented environmentally friendly processes reporting a reduction in their costs.