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This article was originally published in InformationWeek.

Despite the fact that suppliers who are adopting automation technologies have the potential to reap substantial cost savings and increase profitability, some fear that the proliferation of robots in the workforce may cause a decline in the value of human workers, ultimately reducing the number of available logistics jobs.

This article was originally published in Entrepreneur.

A common thread in conversations about automation is the uncertainty people feel about their long-term job security. Despite (or perhaps because of) automation’s impressive ability to streamline operations and costs in certain industries, many people remain hesitant to double down on these technologies because of their fears about how automation could affect the future workforce.

This article was originally published in Business 2 Community.

The advent of automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning is perhaps one of the biggest disruptions that the manufacturing industry has encountered. These technologies could impact the global economy by $15 trillion by 2030, according to PwC. Automated machinery has the capacity to perform traditionally human-centric work faster and more cost effectively than ever before. As robot-centered logistics become the new normal in manufacturing, distribution, and e-commerce facilities around the world, companies must consider the role of humans in these new work environments.

This article was originally published in Business 2 Community.

Last month, an annual gathering of top manufacturing experts took place at MODEX, one of the world’s largest conferences for manufacturing and supply chain solutions. This year’s theme was “future-proofing your business,” and suppliers presented the next-generation of equipment and technology that will propel companies into the future of manufacturing.

For many companies, the costs associated with manual material handling can make a huge impact to the bottom line. In recent years, automation advancements have driven a change in the market, becoming a go to solution for companies looking to innovate their material flow processes.

Manufacturers across the U.S. are experiencing a damaging shortage of skilled labor — negatively impacting their ability to produce goods and their bottom lines. As companies search for automated solutions, Seegrid’s vision-powered AGVs are leading the market by solving the biggest challenges in manufacturing, distribution, e-commerce, and fulfillment. 

Myth: A myth is an "idea or story that is believed by many but is not true." So why is it, then, that we're quick to assume that ideas without any factual basis are, in fact, true?

In the final part of the two part blog series on forklift-free driving safety, we cover the consequential costs associated with forklift labor, and the benefits that result from implementing driverless automated tugger solutions safer alternative.

In part one of the two part series of this blog, we cover forklift dangers being inherently dangerous vehicles, as approximately every three days, someone in the U.S. is killed in a forklift related accident.  Even with safety regulations for the workplace, there is reason for companies to seek forklift-free environments. Forklift free requires using alternative solutions to move product from point A to point B without having forklift vehicles for transport.

Workplace automation can transform your business by reducing errors, increasing efficiency, and cutting costs. In fact, while the cost of manual labor has dramatically increased in recent years, automation equipment, including robotics, conveyors, palletizers, etc., has seen a relative decrease in costs, or at very worst has held steady when the cost of everything else from land to energy to labor has increased.