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The
alienate workers or unions.
Robot Revolution
Where robots have taken
over unpleasant work they
have been well received. But
Whom will machines replace liftieth of what it was before
even at 30 percent
when workers in Japanese
next?
the robots took over.
utilization. These plants are
industry are replaced by
Recently, the U.S.
So the robot revolution is
extremely resilient to
robots, there are efforts to
Secretary of Labor made a
under way. But the question
economic downturns. They
retrain the workers as
startling prediction. By 1990, is, what happens to blue-
can simply switch from a
"masters of robots,"
he said, hall of the workers
and white-collar workers in
two-shift to a one-shift
overseeing and maintaining
in U.S. factories will be
today's brave new world of
operation with few changes
them. Other workers are
specialists trained to service mechanical men?
in employment.
retrained in computer
and repair robots.
Some predict great
The third lesson is, robots programming or related
Industrial robots are now
threats to jobs,
reduce barriers to entry into
industrial lields. These
moving rapidly onto
massive upheavals in
high technology
workers take pride in the
assembly lines, replacing
business practices and more manufacture. What robots
"steel-collar workers"
blue-collar workers in such
serious trading
do is help smaller
working for them.
jobs as painting, welding,
competitiveness.
companies enter precision
But economic and social
grinding, assembly and
Others argue that by
machinery, fabrication and
altitudes in Japan are quite
heavy metal or equipment
holding down costs and
assembly industries from
different from many other
lifting.
making industry more
which they had been barred
nations. Japan has a
Japan is now the leader
competitive, robots can
for a lack of a large supply
homogenous, slowly growing
in the use of robots. But the
create as many or more
of skilled workers. With
and industrially oriented
United States and European
jobs than they eliminate.
robots, managers no longer
population. There is no large
nations are also moving
Lessons from the Robot
lace the constraint of lack
reservoir of hard-core
quickly to introduce
of skilled workers, or having
unemployed, no tide of
them.
Leader
to move where they are.
immigrants. Japanese
lt isn't hard to understand One thing is for sure, robots
Robots cannot only
workers don't see robots as
why the "iron-collar"
can be a blessing rather
replace simple manual
a threat because in return
workers are attractive to
!han a curse only if
workers, but experienced
for company loyalty most
industry. They don't give the management and labor are
and skilled workers.
are rewarded with lifetime
boss a hard time, or ask for already highly disciplined
Companies need only attract employment or economic
exorbitant pay increases or
and workers are willing and
first class management
security. No one is thrown
fringe benelits, or days off.
able to be retrained.
talen!. In Japan, by the end
on the scrap heap because
They don'! go on strike.
In a recent article in
The
of 1984, it is expected
of robots.
They never get pregnant.
Wa/1 Street Journal,
Kenichi
that smaller factories will
By contrast, a recent
They pay for themselves in
Ohmae, manager of a
account for as much as 40
study by Carnegie-Mellon
a few years' time.
consulting firm in Tokyo and
percent of total robot
University in the United
What is this new threat to Osaka, gavethese lessons
installation.
States concluded that
jobs? Or is it a threat?
about Japan's experience
The fourth lesson is,
existing state-of-the-art
Actually the industrial
with the revolutionary
robots greatly increase
robots could replace one
robot really looks more like
robots.
manufacturing flexibility.
million workers by 1990 in
a hydrant than the
Lesson number one is,
Robots allow profits on
the automotive and a
mechanical man of fiction.
robots will shake up the
lower-run productions. and
handful of other indus-
The lirst industrial robot was structure of an industry
the rapid introduction of
tries.
built in the United States in
where labor accounts for a
variations of new models.
lf robots grow more
1961, but the Japanese
significan! portion of
Robots can be designed
sophisticated, they could
have embraced them with a
manufacturing costs.
with short turn-around or
eliminate three million jobs.
zeal lar greater than any
Companies relying on labor
down time in stamping
Are employers worldwide
other nation.
will be extremely vulnerable
operations or in changing
willing to cope with this
One highly robotized plant to companies that have
specilications for new
problem as the Japanese
in Japan produces more
switched to robots.
models. And they can carry
have?
than 70 kinds of lathed and
Lesson number two is,
out new operations with
The robot revolution has
machined parts. Only six
robots provide recession
flawless and tireless
the potential of being a
people are required on each resistance. The Japanese
accuracy.
blessing in dangerous or
of two eight-hour shifts.
are striving to build
The lifth lesson from
boring manufacturing jobs.
Once it took 215 persons to operations that make money Japanese experience is,
But for millions whose jobs
man the plant in three
at anything over 70 percent
companies can benefit from
are threatened by workers in
shifts.
capacity.
robots only if they take
"steel collars," the robot
At a Panasonic television
However, some Japanese great care in their
revolution represents
plan!, the rate of detective
firms utilizing computerized
introduction. Managers must another challenge to a
parts is said to be only one
machines and robo.ts break
make sure robots don't
secure livelihood.
26
The
PLAIN TRUTH