{"id":22676,"date":"2021-03-11T10:02:23","date_gmt":"2021-03-11T10:02:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/dont-try-to-beat-ai-join-it\/"},"modified":"2023-08-30T12:27:38","modified_gmt":"2023-08-30T12:27:38","slug":"dont-try-to-beat-ai-join-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/ai-ml\/dont-try-to-beat-ai-join-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t Try To Beat AI, Join It!"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Automation will give, as well as take, opportunities for human workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no reason and no way that a human mind can keep up with an artificial intelligence machine by 2035,\u201d predicted the techno-futurist philosopher Gray Scott. But the truth is more nuanced: automation will create as many opportunities for humans as it reduces. Here\u2019s how manufacturers can greatly enhance their processes\u2014and address the U.S.\u2019s skills shortage.<\/p>\n

The fear of machines taking away humans\u2019 jobs has always been prevalent. On another occasion, Scott predicted that robots \u201cwill work in our factories, drive our cars and walk our dogs. Like it or not, the age of work is coming to an end.\u201d<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll examine whether or not this is true in a moment. In the meantime, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has placed a new perspective on the role of automation<\/a> and robots\u2014particularly in relation to the skilled labor shortage in the U.S.\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to recent research by the U.S. government and ThomasNet, 30% of manufacturers say they are seeking new hires. Yet, at the same time, the overall rate of employment in manufacturing declined sharply by 19.1 per cent from January to April 2020. Manufacturers are struggling to hire new people\u2014but what can they do about it?<\/p>

The recent \u201cCOVID-19: What it means for industrial manufacturing\u201d report by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) advised that manufacturers should increase their use of automation to reduce the number of workers on the factory floor. And it seems that companies are doing just that, with one-third of companies interviewed in Euromonitor International\u2019s Voice of the Industry survey 2020 saying they will accelerate investments into automation tools.<\/p>\n

This scenario can easily be interpreted as robots one, humans nil \u2014 that the COVID-19 pandemic, plus the skilled labor shortage, are creating a human-shaped void in machine shops that robots will occupy. But, actually, the truth is far more interesting. <\/p>\n

Automation affects workers\u2019 skills in two main ways. First, automation can also increase the levels of skill required. This tends to reduce the number of employees needed at a given facility, but the remaining staff must be highly skilled. To accommodate for this, companies must invest in, and train, their staff.<\/p>\n

Second, while automation requires higher levels of skill from some workers, it reduces the levels of skill needed from others. For lower-skilled workers, this might entail more accessible data share through customized reports or less skill-intensive control through easy-to-use human machine interfaces<\/a> (HMIs). Put simply, the automated future will create, as well as reduce, opportunities for employees of varying skill levels.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Machine Learning<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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A paper by New York\u2019s Columbia University, \u201cToward understanding the impact of artificial intelligence on labor,\u201d examines the role of machine learning in this new paradigm. \u201cMachine learning appears to bolster the productivity of software developers,\u201d says the report, \u201cwhile also creating new investment and manufacturing opportunities (e.g., autonomous vehicles).\u201d The paper concludes that human workers\u2019 skills do not remain static, but evolve with technology.<\/p>\n

As for the impact of COVID-19, the adoption of artificial intelligence and machine learning were accelerating even before the crisis according to Verizon\u2019s \u201cThe Future of Work\u201d study. The report states that, \u201chuman skills and attributes are even more important as a result of the pandemic.\u201d Its research\u2014based on two surveys of senior executives from a range of industries and regions, one before and one during the pandemic\u2014found that emotional intelligence in the human workforce had grown in importance for 69% of respondents as a result of the crisis.<\/p>

Machine learning can replace certain repetitive tasks and operate at rates unfathomable for human beings. But there is no substitute for human qualities like empathy, which are equally unfathomable to AI.<\/p>

That also extends to innovations like vision systems; an example being where sensors and AI are used to spot product defects. There\u2019s no substitute for human engineering expertise \u2014 and a person\u2019s final judgement is still required for any real-time pass or fail judgements.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Better Working Culture<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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On the subject of empathy, the misgivings of Scott and Musk overlook the importance of working culture within any organization. Any company\u2014particularly manufacturing environments\u2014needs staff to thrive at their jobs and drive continuous improvement efforts. <\/p>\n

As stated in \u201cHuman Factor in Smart Industry: A Literature Review\u201d published by Brazil\u2019s renowned Federal University of Technology \u2013 Paran\u00e1 (UTFPR): \u201cHuman work will be indispensable in smart industries, both for the development of this concept as the management and operationalization of advanced production systems, technologies and processes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although workers in smart factories may be required to do less physically, more efficient AI communications will emphasize the importance of human decision-making \u201cbased on sets of criteria, tools and data,\u201d reports UTFPR. The comments apply \u201cnot only to the operator, but to technicians, managers and other employees at operational, tactical and strategic levels.\u201d So, both high and low-skilled workers.<\/p>\n

Not only can these technologies suit workers\u2019 skills, they must also win their buy-in to these new systems and processes. That\u2019s why companies that effectively improve their workers\u2019 skills are the ones that will get ahead. This is possible through the better use of data, data management and sharing and better reporting\u2014and therefore better communication\u2014in the plant.<\/p>\n

Finally, manufacturers must get beyond the misconception that Industry 4.0 requires significant capital investment from businesses. This needn\u2019t be the case and, instead, the key may lie in sourcing the right industrial automation parts, like sensors, and applying these as part of a low-cost digital retrofitting strategy.<\/p>\n

Whether or not a human mind can keep up with AI by 2035, as predicted by Scott, automated technologies will nevertheless open doors of opportunity for human workers.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The fear of machines taking away humans\u2019 jobs has always been prevalent. Automation will create as many opportunities for humans as it reduces. Here\u2019s how manufacturers can greatly enhance their processes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1080,"featured_media":18912,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[183],"tags":[97,92,534],"ppma_author":[3950],"class_list":["post-22676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ai-ml","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-machine-learning","tag-smart-manufacturing"],"authors":[{"term_id":3950,"user_id":1080,"is_guest":0,"slug":"claudia-jarrett","display_name":"Claudia Jarrett","avatar_url":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Claudia-Jarrett-150x150.jpeg","user_url":"https:\/\/www.euautomation.com\/","last_name":"Jarrett","first_name":"Claudia","job_title":"","description":"Claudia Jarrett is Head of Sales (The Americas) at EU Automation that stocks and sells new, used, refurbished and obsolete industrial automation spares."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1080"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22676"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22676\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31953,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22676\/revisions\/31953"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22676"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.experfy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=22676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}