Thanks to Chris Miller’s efforts and organization, Penn State professor Dr. Sean Brennan (“Dr. B”) enlightened the PLA on Sunday evening with a wealth of insights on robots. Although I do not come from the engineering or science background of Chris, Dr. B, or many of my peers, I found the talk to be just as interesting, and most certainly eye opening. Among the many fascinating insights shared, I was particularly amazed to learn that there is no human that can now outrun the fastest robot (at approximately 30 miles per hour). Illustrated through the example of a teddy bear, Dr. B suggested that although we may not realize it, robots have been around for quite some time, especially when we think of them as something that helps humans. At this point in the discussion, I was reminded that robots need not replace humans in order to prove useful, but rather can serve to enable, extend, or support them with everyday activities. Prosthetics are a great example of this, and a 2015 article in the New York Times shed light on an emerging capability whereby prosthetics can now be controlled by the mind.1 Wounded warriors and stroke survivors are just two of the target markets that show potential for this emerging technology. This, of course, assumes that costs can eventually be lowered for these Modular Prosthetic Limbs (M.P.L.s) that, at the time of the article, had a hefty $500K price point.1 Nevertheless, the capabilities are maturing, and the related advancements exhibit great potential.
Another reason I enjoyed Dr. Brennan’s talk is the emergence of robots within supply chain operations, my field of study. Coincidentally, just yesterday, two articles from the Supply Chain Management Review tied into this concept: “Higher Minimum Wages Will Have Impact on Supply Chain Management” and “Collaborative Robots Will Transform Logistics Says DHL Group.” The former emphasizes the significant cost implications that raising the minimum wage will have on “industrial-building operators”1 This is especially pronounced for companies with labor-intensive fulfillment processes such as those servicing ecommerce channels where “processing, sorting, and shipping” orders often requires twice as many employees as does traditional brick-and-mortar operations. Estimates in the article suggest that a $1 minimum wage increase could add $1 million of additional labor expense annually for a 500-person facility.1 Thus, it should come at no surprise that companies are looking to mitigate these costs through means such as relocation to lower minimum wage states or increasing their use of automation. Although 80 percent of logistics operations are still manual,2 robotic-type automatic is gaining traction. It is still uncertain as to what degree the robots will be utilized (collaboratively with humans, or as a direct replacement), I am lead to believe that in the near term, we will witness more of the former – collaborative assistance. This is largely due to the complexities of order fulfillment process (especially for e-commerce) and physically compact environment in a distribution center, as alluded to in the article.
In sum, the advancements in technology are happening faster than we may realize, posing many opportunities and challenges for companies to address. When it comes to robots, however, I am lead to believe that it is no longer a question of if, but simply a matter of when and to what degree.
2http://www.scmr.com/article/higher_minimum_wages_will_have_impact_on_supply_chain_management
Follow Us!