Manufacturing Magazine February 2024 | Page 63

themselves in , whether production must be scaled up or down , or an expansion into new markets is required .”
If required , cobots can be easily reprogrammed to perform different tasks and can switch between these with ease . By eliminating potential pain points between different functions , cobots can slash factory downtime , improving productivity across the board .
“ With less human labour required to man machinery , the potential of lights-out 24 / 7 factories can be realised , boosting factory output like never seen before while providing a better work-life balance for employees .”
The manufacturing sector is facing a huge labour shortage , with

74,000 unfilled vacancies

Automation innovation can retain manufacturing workers The manufacturing sector is facing a huge labour shortage right now , with around 74,000 unfilled vacancies . Gray knows that creating a stable pipeline of new talent in the industry will be crucial to the future of many businesses . However , young people often turn away from manufacturing , due to the nature of the work being monotonous and unfulfilling . With cobots able to take over undesirable tasks , employees can focus on more valuable work , such as robotic engineering or coding .
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