Robots Aren’t Taking Jobs:Uncovering the Real Crisis in Manufacturing

January 2020

Association for Advancing Automation

900 Victors Way, Suite 140Ann Arbor, MI 48108www.a3automate.org

Image courtesy of IAM Robotics

IntroductionAutomation is a new concept for a vast majority of the working population, especially in the manufacturing industry. Someone unfamiliar with the process or uneducated on the benefits of automation might mistakenly fear for their job. As robot installations become more common on the production floor, more plant workers worry about their job security. However, with the proper training and education, these workers could learn new skills and move on to a more advanced position within the company, rather than being outright displaced. This paper will discuss how automation creates jobs, and bust the myths on the use of robots in manufacturing.

02Image courtesy of KUKA Robotics

Table ofContents

04 The Labor Crisis in the Manufacturing Industry

060810111314

Automation: Keeping the USManufacturing Industry Competitive

Robots: Creating Jobs and Saving Lives

How Robots and Automation Help theManufacturing Industry Succeed

The Future of Automation

Conclusion

References

03Image courtesy of 3M

This Association of Advancing Automation whitepaper was edited by Clarissa Carvalho, the association’s marketing specialist, with contributions from some of A3’s member companies. Copyright 2020. This whitepaper represents only the views of the Association for Advancing Automation and does not represent the particular viewpoints of any company.

The Labor Crisis in the Manufacturing IndustryOn June 5, 2018, the United States Department of Labor announced there were more jobs available than people looking for work. Industries across the United States experienced a decrease in performance and profits as an effect of this gap.1 Moreover, a 2018 study conducted by Deloitte on the skills gap in manufacturing revealed the skills gap may leave an estimated 2.4 million positions unfilled between 2018 and 2028, with a potential economic impact of $2.5 trillion. The study showed the positions relating to digital talent, skilled production, and operational managers may be three times as difficult to fill in the next three years.2 There are only so many positions

robots can fill. The positions humans are direly needed for are much more advanced than robots could be programmed to perform. Humans will always be needed for robot programming, technical care and updates, and human interaction positions, such as human resources, marketing, negotiations, sales, to name a few.

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) reported there were 488,000 unfilled manufacturing jobs at the end of Q4 2018.3 Across the country, 69.9% of manufacturers reported the inability to find and retain skilled workers as the top challenge in the industry.4

With more jobs available than job seekers and increased difficulty in finding qualified employees, it is no wonder why robots are being utilized more in the manufacturing industry as a solution to the job gap.

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2.4M OPEN JOBS BETWEEN 2018-2028

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Manufacturing Institute, Deloitte

Infographic courtesy of Universal Robots

The skills gap may leave an estimated 2.4 million positions unfilled between 2018 and 2028

manufacturing jobsto fill from 2018 to 2082

4.6M

1.69M

2.69M jobs open fromretirements

new jobs due to natural growth

only

(53 out of 100) open positions lie vacant due to skills shortage in the U.S. manufacturing industry

jobs are likely to be filled

2.2M

2.4M

A major factor in the increased gap in manufacturing is due to the baby boomer generation retiring at a fast rate, and the newer generations not replacing their positions equally as fast. A Robotic Industries Association webinar on the labor crisis in manufacturing presented by Universal Robots shared baby boomers over 55 years old represent 27% of the manufacturing workforce across the United States, and millennials and Generation X-ers are not interested in filling the available positions.5 To support this statement, Universal Robots mentioned a Deloitte study finding 83% of the United States population stating that manufacturing jobs are important to the economy, but less than 33% would encourage children to pursue jobs in the industry.6

A second major factor in the increased gap in manufacturing is due to the skills gap in the industry. Going hand-in-hand with a lack of interest from the younger generation, job seekers interested in the open positions may not have the proper education or training to operate the machinery or conduct their expected job duties.

The above infographic predicts 53 of 100 open positions will be left unfilled due to a skills gap across the manufacturing industry. With a continual increasing demand of faster delivery of products to consumers with improved quality, how can the American manufacturing industry satisfy their customers?

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Automation:Keeping the US Manufacturing Industry CompetitiveThe International Society of Automation defines automation as “the creation and application of technology to monitor and control the production and delivery of products and services.7 The first major use of automation was in Detroit, Michigan, by Ford Motor Company. “In 1913, Ford Motor Company introduced a car production assembly line which is considered one of the pioneer types of automation in the manufacturing industry. Before then, a car was built by a team of skilled and unskilled workers. Automation improved Ford’s production rates and increased profits. The assembly line and mass car production were the first of their kind globally. It reduced assembly time from 12 hours per car to about one and a half hours per car”.8 Automation has been used more and more across manufacturing to increase the safety of the workers, rate of production and decrease down time and errors.

More than simply quickly increasing revenue, a bigger benefit of automation is being able to satisfy the increasing demand from customers: faster delivery for better and more customized products. “Businesses must use automation to lower costs and increase productivity to survive competition,” said Robert Huschka, Director of Education Strategies at the Association for Advancing Automation.9

Amazon’s Prime offerings are a great example: two-day free shipping, sometimes even next-day shipping, and partnerships with almost all brands around the globe. With this ease of ordering and convenient delivery services, other manufacturers must be able to keep up to remain relevant and competitive, or at least able to meet customer demand if partnering with Amazon. It is companies like Amazon that continue to push the manufacturing industry forward, encouraging growth, differentiation, and unique product ideas to distinguish them from the competition.

Look at Amazon. The e-commerce powerhouse has aggressively implemented 200,000 robots in its distribution centers while adding more than 300,000 jobs, doubling its workforce.”- Robert Huschka, Director of Education Strategies at the Association for Advancing Automation

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In a testimonial video from the “Why I Automate” series, hosted by the Association for Advancing Automation, Widmer Brothers Brewing attests to how automation has benefited them, “...all of a sudden, you can’t make enough beer. So, you increase your fermentation capacity, then you have to increase your cellar capacity… but you can’t package it fast enough,” said Ben Dobler, Brewing Innovation Manager at Widmer Brothers Brewing.10 Especially in small to mid-size businesses, there just are not enough hands to complete all the work to meet customer demand. Lack of laborers lead to increased fatigue and increased risk of injury on the job. Additionally, in small to mid-size businesses, if demand spikes, the business must adapt fast enough to keep up with orders while producing the same, if not improved, quality of product.

As technology develops, customer demands change. The convenience of same day and next day shipping has shifted delivery time expectations of customers. Global competition of fast and cheaper labor overseas has proved challenging for North American companies to keep ahead of their competitors. How can manufacturers use automation to satisfy this increased rate of demand?

Image courtesy of KUKA Robotics

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Robots: Creating Jobs and Saving Lives

In 2017, the International Federation of Robotics published a positioning paper on the impact of robots on employment, “Automation has led overall to an increase in labor demand and positive impact on wages. Whilst middle-income / middle-skilled jobs have reduced as a proportion of overall contribution to employment and earnings – leading to fears of increasing income inequality – the skills range within the middle-income bracket is large. Robots are driving an increase in demand for workers at the higher-skilled end of the spectrum, with a positive impact on wages. The issue is how to enable middle-income earners in the lower-income range to upskill or retrain.”11

By taking the repetitive and dangerous jobs, robots have allowed workers to advance into more skilled roles. While these laborers may require additional training, companies often provide it because they value and want to keep their employees. Floor production workers are often the ones closest to the product development, and its successes and challenges. Robots give laborers the opportunity to learn more advanced skills to move up in pay-grade and quality of work-life. Several new jobs have been created because of robots12, and will continue to be created, such as a robotics engineer, robot technician, data analyst, and an artificial intelligence business development manager.13

By taking the repetitive and dangerous jobs, robots have allowed workers to advance into more skilled roles.

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Moreover, robots don’t have any emotional connection or creative skills, so humans would still be needed and valued for their abilities to connect with other human beings. In the supply chain, robots would not be able to negotiate for raw materials, or ask for a delivery date extension, among many other nuanced roles best suited for humans. If a customer needed some sort of variation on a product, the robot would need to be programmed to create the customized product. If the internet went down, or the power went out, the whole plant would fail miserably if it only functioned with robots.

Additionally, robots keep laborers safer on the manufacturing floor. A Robotiq 2016 blog post on how robots decrease workplace injury states, “Musculoskeletal disorders (or MSDs) refer to a set of injuries which affect the muscles, joints, tendons, nerves and ligaments… basically your whole physical body. They are caused by repetitive physical stresses on the human body, so some industries are more affected by them than others. Manufacturing and food processing, for example, are classed as high-risk [industries]. Some jobs are prone to specific injuries due to the type of work involved, such as industrial inspection and packaging jobs which are prone to upper extremity MSDs. In 2012, the manufacturing industry had the fourth highest number of MSDs, with 37.4 incidents per 10,000 workers.”14 Injuries on the production floor are a major hindrance on the company, because they lose a skilled laborer, and production is slowed, increasing the time it takes to make and deliver a product to the customer.15

Image courtesy of Fetch Robotics

Image courtesy of MiR

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How Robots and Automation Helpthe Manufacturing Industry Succeed

By this point, it has been mentioned multiple times that robots and automation will help the manufacturing industry succeed, but by how much? A 2018 Forbes article discussing automation, productivity, and an increase in jobs highlighted two companies’ success with implementing automation: “Crown Equipment increased its workforce from 200 to 335 workers. At Wing Enterprises, productivity rose 30 percent, leading the company to build a new facility and expand from 20 employees to 400.” 17 These are just two examples from two companies out of many in the manufacturing industry that have increased their productivity and available jobs.

“We are seeing concrete shifts in the factors that resulted in cuts to the U.S. manufacturing work force over the past few decades,” said Jeff Burnstein, President of the Association for Advancing Automation. “Manufacturing automation increasingly provides the flexibility in the variety of tasks robots perform to drive improvements in overall product quality and time to market.” Burnstein concluded, “One of the biggest challenges we now face is closing the skills gap to fill jobs. Robots are optimizing production more than ever, increasing global competitiveness, and performing dull, dirty and dangerous tasks that enable companies to create higher-skilled, better-paying, and safer jobs where people use their brains, not their brawn.”18 The effect of an increased use of robots industry-wide will lead to a lift in the U.S. economy.

Robots are optimizing production more than ever, increasing global competitiveness, and performing dull, dirty and dangerous tasks that enable companies to create higher-skilled, better-paying, and safer jobs where people use their brains, not their brawn.”- Jeff Burnstein, President of the Association for Advancing Automation

The Future of Automation The outlook on automation in the manufacturing industry is bright. “As US factories adopt advanced manufacturing technologies, demand will surge for higher-skilled, white-collar workers who can quickly adapt to new technologies and processes, and demand will lessen for blue-collar workers who are trained in specific skills. To meet manufacturers’ needs, the US must educate workers more broadly. Building this adaptive, higher-skilled workforce will require not only expanding programs in community colleges and vocational schools but also adopting a new mentality and new tools in the US education system”.19

The education on automation doesn’t start on the production floor, or anywhere within a company, but rather with the incoming generations while still in high school or earlier. The main influencers in a student’s life, such as parents and teachers, will have the biggest impact on their career path. By the time students get to college, they have already chosen a career, and have invested time and money. However, if a student is exposed to the countless possibilities within the manufacturing industry early on, and truly grasp the understanding of how robots and automation will help propel the manufacturing industry globally, then their outlook on a manufacturing career path may change.

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Operators don’t necessarily need a four-year engineering or programming degree. Instead, high-school graduates with a two-year degree and/or an apprenticeship can work with robotic technology and prove to be valuable employees.”- Bob Doyle,Vice President of Marketing, Communications & Advocacy at the Association for Advancing Automation

When asked about this topic, Bob Doyle, A3 Vice President of Marketing, Communications & Advocacy, responded with, “Operators don’t necessarily need a four-year engineering or programming degree. Instead, high school graduates with a two-year degree and/or an apprenticeship can work with robotic technology and prove to be valuable employees.” 16 “Robots complement and augment labor: The future will be robots and humans working together. Robots substitute labor activities but do not replace jobs. Less than 10% of jobs are fully automatable. Increasingly, robots are used to complement and augment labor activities; the net impact on jobs and the quality of work is positive. Automation provides the opportunity for humans to focus on higher-skilled, higher-quality and higher-paid tasks.” 11 This concept might be the least well-known aspect of implementing robots in the manufacturing industry.

There are still plenty of other challenges ahead, such as robot taxes, political debates, misconceptions spread across media, and lack of education on the subject. However, once properly instated, the United States will be well ahead of its global competitors, who lack either the laborers or resources that hinder their progress to advance in the industry.

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ConclusionThe real crisis in manufacturing is the stagnant level of laborer training coupled with the lack of education on the benefits of automation. The skills gap is leading to slower production and increasing errors, which is problematic and challenging as customer demand increases. Robots create jobs by taking over the dull, dirty, and dangerous parts of manufacturing, opening up opportunities for laborers to advance their skills and require more people to operate the machinery and program the robots.

The solution to this crisis is education, starting from secondary education or earlier. Working with robots does not require extensive education, but rather, the proper training and exposure. Once one understands the capabilities of an industrial robot, programming it to complete any necessary tasks, not just a singular one, would increase production and sales for the company and the wage and skillset for the employee. This creates a domino effect of inspiring creativity in programming and expansion of job roles, both of which a robot could not do.

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Read more documents supporting the stance of robots saving jobs:

Robots and the Future of Production and Work

Why Robots May Not Want to Steal Your Job

References1 U.S. Department of Labor Data Shows That American Job Openings Exceed Job Seekers for First Time on Record. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osec/osec20180605.

2 Pajula, S. (2018, December 1). 2018 Manufacturing Skills Gap Study. Retrieved July 27, 2019, from https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/manufacturing/articles/future-of-manufacturing-skills-gap-study.html

3 Manufacturing Industry Faces Unprecedented Employment Shortfall: 2.4 Million Skilled Jobs Projected to Go Unfilled According to Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.themanufacturinginstitute.org/News-Articles/2018/11/14-Skills-Gap-Report.aspx.

4 2019 3rd Quarter Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nam.org/2019-3rd-quarter-manufacturers-outlook-survey/.

5 Robotic Industries Association. (2019, June 27). Resolving the Labor Crisis in Manufacturing. Retrieved July 27, 2019, from https://www.robotics.org/webinar-detail.cfm/webinars/resolving-the-labor-crisis-in-manufacturing/id/71

6 Giffi, C. et al. (2018, November 14). The Jobs are Here, but Where are the People? Retrieved July 27, 2019, from https://www2.deloitte.com/insights/us/en/industry/manufacturing/manufacturing-skills-gap-study.html

7 What Is Automation? (n.d.). Retrieved July 27, 2019, from https://www.isa.org/about-isa/what-is-automation/

8 Boisset, F. (2018, May 25). The History of Industrial Automation in Manufacturing. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.motioncontrolonline.org/content-detail.cfm/Motion-Control-Tech-Papers/The-History-of-Industrial-Automation-in-Manufacturing/content_id/2570

9 Huschka, R. (2019, June 24). How Robot Taxes Will Hurt Innovation - And Workers. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.a3automate.org/how-robot-taxes-will-hurt-innovation-and-workers/

10 Widmer Brothers Brewing. (2015, May 19). Why I Automate - Widmer Brothers. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.a3automate.org/videos/why-i-automate-widmer-brothers/

11 International Federation of Robotics. (2017, April). Robots Create Jobs! Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.ifr.org/robots-create-jobs

12 Quillin, J. (2019, July 31). 7 of the New Job Opportunities Because of Robots. Retrieved from https://interestingengineering.com/7-of-the-new-job-opportunities-because-of-robots

13 Stillman, J. (2017, December 6). 21 Future Jobs the Robots Are Actually Creating. Retrieved from https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/21-future-jobs-robots-are-actually-creating.html

14 Owen-Hill, A. (2016, May 26). Robots Can Help Reduce 35% of Work Days Lost to Injury. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://blog.robotiq.com/robots-can-help-reduce-35-of-work-days-lost-to-injury

15 Why I Automate. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.a3automate.org/videos/why-i-automate/

16 Doyle, R. (2019, July 17). Personal Interview

17 Ellingrud, K. (2018, October 23). The Upside Of Automation: New Jobs, Increased Productivity And Changing Roles For Workers. Retrieved July 31, 2019, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/kweilinellingrud/2018/10/23/the-upside-of-automation-new-jobs-increased-productivity-and-changing-roles-for-workers/#1d62b87f7df0

18 Robotic Industries Association. (2015, October 2). Association for Advancing Automation White Paper Links Increasing Robotics Shipments to U.S. Job Growth. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.robotics.org/content-detail.cfm?content_id=5716

19 Sirkin, H., Rose, J., & Choraria, R. (2017, January 11). Honing US Manufacturing’s Competitive Edge. Retrieved July 28, 2019, from https://www.bcg.com/publications/2017/lean-manufacturing-operations-honing-us-manufacturings-competitive-edge.aspx

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Association for Advancing Automation

900 Victors Way, Suite 140Ann Arbor, MI 48108

www.a3automate.org(734) 994-6088

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