tag:theconversation.com,2011:/ca/topics/advanced-manufacturing-12891/articlesAdvanced manufacturing – The Conversation2023-01-04T13:27:10Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1944982023-01-04T13:27:10Z2023-01-04T13:27:10ZThese are not your mother’s machines - the next generation of American manufacturing is high-tech, and skilled workers are needed to operate these advanced tools<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500702/original/file-20221213-12651-5dike1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">More skilled workers are needed to operate high-tech tools in factories.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/process-audit-of-jig-and-fixture-for-assembly-line-royalty-free-image/1397903647?phrase=advanced%20manufacturing&adppopup=true">Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The U.S. Navy is beginning to <a href="https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2022/7/22/shipyards-building-two-submarine-classes-simultaneously">build 12 top-of-the-line nuclear submarines </a>, with the first one scheduled to be completed by 2027. But it is missing a critical ingredient: many of an estimated <a href="https://www.energy.gov/nnsa/missions/powering-navy">50,000 skilled workers</a> to get the job done. It also lacks a reliable supply chain and the infrastructure to build the massive vessels.</p>
<p>Across America, industries are facing enormous supply chain delays, worker shortages and places to build due to several decades of offshoring and deemphasizing manufacturing research, education and training in the U.S.</p>
<p>For example, the textile industry is <a href="https://www.designnews.com/automation/textile-companies-slammed-shortages-and-missing-labor">experiencing</a> a 20% worker shortage, and <a href="https://www.manufacturingtomorrow.com/story/2022/02/how-will-labor-shortages-impact-metal-fabrication-in-2022/18341/">the metal fabrication industry expects</a> a 400,000-worker shortage by 2024. The first decade of the 21st century alone saw <a href="https://www.oecd.org/unitedstates/us-manufacturing-decline-and-the-rise-of-new-production-innovation-paradigms.htm">U.S. manufacturing jobs decline</a> by one-third, falling from 17 million in 2000 to below 12 million in 2010. </p>
<p><a href="https://mtrc.utk.edu/tony-schmitz/">I am a manufacturing researcher</a> who works on ways to solve a key part of American manufacturing challenges: preparing workers to leverage today’s technology while advancing tomorrow’s technology. A new workforce skilled in the design and operation of new and existing machine tools is needed to ensure America has enough workers to fill jobs. </p>
<p>But these are not your mother’s machines. They are networked for improved reliability and data collection, programmable for automation, and can shape metal alloys and composite materials into critical products such as medical implants, turbines for airplane engines and molds for plastic bottles.</p>
<h2>From boom to bust</h2>
<p>Americans are used to having products and services one click away - a society often described as postindustrial and knowledge-based. But the supply chain issues of the pandemic revealed the dangers of U.S. reliance on foreign goods and materials – from <a href="https://news.wttw.com/2021/07/29/global-shortage-computer-chips-hits-us-manufacturing">computer chips</a> to <a href="https://www.autoserviceworld.com/the-great-supply-chain-transformation/">car parts</a>.</p>
<p>The U.S. once led the world in the production of machine tools, power-driven machines such as lathes, mills, and other equipment used for cutting, shaping and finishing. These form the basis for parts manufacturing to support the automotive, aerospace, defense, medical and consumer goods industries.</p>
<p>In 2021, however, China held a 31% market share of the production of machine tools, followed by Germany and Japan, both at 13%. <a href="https://vdw.de/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/pub_vdw-marktbericht_2021_2022-06-10_web.pdf">The U.S. was ranked fourth</a>, leading Italy by a narrow margin. Overall, Asian countries accounted for more than 50% of global machine tool production. <a href="https://www.mmsonline.com/articles/breaking-news-from-2021-world-machine-tool-survey">China’s production increased</a> by US$5 billion from 2020 to 2021, while the total U.S. production in 2021 was just $7.5 billion.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="a manufacturing tool cuts metal" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/500705/original/file-20221213-16085-u7oobq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Manufacturing tools are getting more sophisticated and require a greater educational emphasis.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/industrial-metalworking-cutting-process-by-milling-royalty-free-image/1198047147?phrase=advanced%20manufacturing&adppopup=true">Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>But the availability of equipment is only half of the equation. Workers need an education and to be trained in the latest manufacturing tools and technologies.</p>
<p>For example, machining is a process where a stationary powered tool is used to precisely cut, shape or remove material from an object. Because the cutting edge and part being cut are not rigid, the force can cause unwanted vibration. This requires an understanding of the relationship between the operating parameters for the machine and the vibration behavior of the cutting edge and part. </p>
<p>Effectively operating this sort of equipment <a href="https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-76084-1">requires knowledge</a> of topics such as math, geometry and physics. Educational opportunities for manufacturing careers are available at many community colleges, technical schools and universities. Once trained, skilled workers can get jobs as machine operators, programmers, data scientists, manufacturing engineers, machine designers and entrepreneurs. </p>
<p>To grow the skilled manufacturing force, the creation of a more <a href="https://www.industrialheating.com/articles/96633-skilled-workforce-the-top-priority-for-us-manufacturing">robust K-12 education system</a> that emphasizes STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and math – while simultaneously providing vocational programs and apprenticeships for all students is important. </p>
<p>But U.S. STEM education lags many other countries. Out of 37 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, <a href="https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsb20211/executive-summary">the U.S. ranks</a> seventh in science and 25th in mathematics literacy, falling behind countries such as Japan, South Korea, Estonia and the Netherlands. </p>
<h2>Training efforts underway</h2>
<p>Yet there are attempts to ready workers through several initiatives. Organizations such as <a href="https://www.asme.org/">The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)</a>, <a href="http://stemforallfoundation.com/">STEM For All Foundation</a> and <a href="https://nextwavestem.com/">Next Wave STEM </a> aim to provide equitable access to STEM education programs to students of all backgrounds in order to build a new generation of skilled workers. </p>
<p>I am involved with <a href="https://www.americascuttingedge.org/">America’s Cutting Edge</a>, a national initiative for machine tool technology development and advancement that is supported by the Department of Defense Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program from the Office of Industrial Policy. America’s Cutting Edge offers no-cost online and in-person training in machining and measurement. In the one-week machining boot camp, participants learn to program and operate computer-controlled machine tools while producing the components for an oscillating piston air engine, which mimics the operation of the combustion engine in cars.</p>
<p>Participants learn about how variation in the dimension of a part, known as tolerances, affect the assembly of parts into a system. They also learn about the relationship between machining vibrations and operating parameters. America’s Cutting Edge has provided online training to over 3,500 people in all 50 states and has expanded from Tennessee to Texas, North Carolina, West Virginia and Florida for the in-person machining boot camps with plans for a national presence. While the boot camp cannot replace a traditional apprenticeship or education program, it does provide participants with exposure to key machining concepts and empowers them to decide about the next step in their education and career journey.</p>
<p>To populate these and other programs, I believe recruiting efforts must extend from grade, middle, and high school students to parents to two- and four-year educational institutions. </p>
<p>The Navy, and manufacturing in general, is in a war for talent. It is necessary to fill the talent pipelines across this entire spectrum. If we do not act now, the U.S. national defense and economy will be compromised.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194498/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tony Schmitz receives funding from the US Department of Defense. </span></em></p>US workers are not skilled enough to meet the next generation of manufacturing. But some efforts are underway to train them.Tony Schmitz, Professor of Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1251892019-10-28T11:25:40Z2019-10-28T11:25:40ZMeet the cobots: the robots who will be your colleagues not your replacements<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298271/original/file-20191023-119449-pgym94.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Mann Hummel/Universal Robots</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The latest industrial robots look like petting zoo versions of the big machines found in many modern factories – small, cute and you can play with them. But don’t be deceived by their cuddly appearance. They have the potential to change the way humans work with machines and disrupt the existing market for industrial robots.</p>
<p>The big difference with this new generation of robots is that they don’t have to operate in closed-off areas. Instead they can safely operate alongside and even collaborate with human workers. For this reason, these machines are often called collaborative robots or “cobots”.</p>
<p>Fully automating a factory isn’t always <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-13/musk-tips-his-tesla-cap-to-humans-after-robots-undercut-model-3">desirable</a> because modern manufacturing companies need flexibility to quickly alter their processes for a variety of products and customisation. Instead, manufacturers in such contexts are increasingly looking for <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12008-019-00591-6">automation with a human touch</a>. </p>
<p>This is where cobots can come in. Even if full automation with larger, faster industrial robots is more efficient, cobots can allow factories to increase their output while retaining a degree of flexibility.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298273/original/file-20191023-119477-1ytdjgy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Cobots might look like toys but they’re powerful machines.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Universal Robots</span></span>
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<p>For now, cobots are used for specific tasks. For example, cobots take up the tedious and repetitive task of fastening each of the screws in a battery pack from the <a href="https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/IR-11-2018-0231">hands of their fellow humans</a>. Rather than replacing human jobs, cobots may create new jobs in applications, in which their strength, endurance and precision is combined with human dexterity, flexibility and problem solving.</p>
<p>A promising use is in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212827119304779">industrial assembly</a> where multiple parts are integrated in a final product. In this part of the manufacturing process, humans still carry out 90% of the tasks. In the future, cobots will pick, place and mount the components, and the human worker will finalise and check the output.</p>
<h2>Disruptive innovation</h2>
<p>For industrial robots, however, the risk of being replaced by cobots is much more real than for human workers. For now, sales of cobots form <a href="https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/robot-investment-reaches-record-16.5-billion-usd">less than 5% of the market for industrial robots</a>, in which a few large companies <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/03/03/the-shift-to-collaborative-robots-means-the-rise-of-robotics-as-a-service/">still dominate</a>. But we argue the robotics industry is ripe for <a href="https://hbr.org/2015/12/what-is-disruptive-innovation">disruptive innovation</a> by relatively small new entrants.</p>
<p>The incumbent companies tend to focus on conventional, heavy-load industrial robots for large volume manufacturing of cars, electronics or food products. But these robots also overshoot the needs of small and medium-sized firms that lack the funds or expertise <a href="https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/IR-11-2018-0231">to use such systems</a>.</p>
<p>Cobots, on the other hand, can do things that aren’t typically relevant for current customers of large-scale industrial robots, but which are very attractive to other users. For instance, they can be moved around the factory floor and easily be refitted with grippers for new applications. </p>
<p>Cobots are easy to setup and change, highly versatile, and can collaborate with humans. And these capabilities will be particularly relevant as more new customers adopt cobots and find new uses for them. Our research on drones has shown that the potential of new technologies is often beyond what even their manufacturers <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0007681317301210">can envision</a>.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298275/original/file-20191023-119438-mdzhc2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Working together.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Universal Robots</span></span>
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<p>As cobots’ speed, accuracy and ability to carry heavy loads <a href="https://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2018/11/06/analysis-universal-robots-continues-to-dominate-cobot-market-but-faces-many-challengers/19646/">continues to get better</a> in coming years, they will increasingly be able to compete with traditional industrial robots and so there’s a good chance that mainstream customers will also start to adopt them as well.</p>
<p>This poses a problem for the incumbent manufacturers. The likes of ABB, Kuka and Fanuc have a very <a href="https://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2018/11/06/analysis-universal-robots-continues-to-dominate-cobot-market-but-faces-many-challengers/19646/">small market share</a> in cobots in comparison to the new entrants, such as Denmark’s Universal Robots. This is because they are so used to catering to the needs of their existing customers and it is harder to understand the needs of cobot users in the emerging market.</p>
<p>But they could get around this problem by instead listening to their own employees who <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2018.08.018">already use cobots</a> to manufacture industrial robots. This would allow the incumbent firms to learn about emerging user needs and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2015.09.007">protect themselves</a> from the upcoming disruption.</p>
<p>While it is difficult to predict the future, it looks very plausible that the “social skills” of cobots will end up making them more popular than the industrial robots in the long term. Right now they might appear to be small ponies, but one day cobots could become the versatile and powerful work horses of the factory.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/125189/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ferran Giones receives funding from NESTA (UK). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Schweisfurth receives funding from NESTA (UK) and INPROREG INTERREG (EU). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ali Ahmad Malik does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A safer, more flexible type of industrial robot is disrupting manufacturing.Ali Ahmad Malik, PhD Research Fellow, Human-robot teams in manufacturing, University of Southern DenmarkFerran Giones, Assistant Professor in Technology Entrepreneurship, University of Southern DenmarkTim Schweisfurth, Associate Professor for Technology and Innovation Management, University of Southern DenmarkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1238532019-10-18T05:52:59Z2019-10-18T05:52:59ZOur ability to manufacture minerals could transform the gem market, medical industries and even help suck carbon from the air<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297110/original/file-20191015-98636-u508ph.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C5%2C3964%2C2988&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Pictured is a slag pile at Broken Hill in New South Wales. Slag is a man-made waste product created during smelting. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Anita Parbhakar-Fox</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Last month, scientists <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/this-meteorite-came-from-the-core-of-another-planet-inside-it-a-new-mineral-20190830-p52mhg.html">uncovered</a> a mineral called Edscottite. Minerals are solid, naturally occurring substances that are not living, such as quartz or haematite. This new mineral was discovered after an examination of the <a href="https://collections.museumvictoria.com.au/specimens/328">Wedderburn Meteorite</a>, a metallic-looking rock found in Central Victoria back in 1951. </p>
<p>Edscottite is made of iron and carbon, and was likely formed within the core of another planet. It’s a “true” mineral, meaning one which is naturally occurring and formed by geological processes either on Earth or in outer-space.</p>
<p>But while the Wedderburn Meteorite held the first-known discovery of Edscottite, other new mineral discoveries have been made on Earth, of substances formed as a result of human activities such as mining and mineral processing. These are called anthropogenic minerals.</p>
<p>While true minerals comprise the majority of the approximately 5,200 known minerals, there are about <a href="https://deepcarbon.net/feature/humanitys-minerals">208</a> human-made minerals which have been approved as minerals by the International Mineralogical Association. </p>
<p>Some are made on purpose and others are by-products. Either way, the ability to manufacture minerals has vast implications for the future of our rapidly growing population.</p>
<h2>Modern-day alchemy</h2>
<p>Climate change is one of the biggest challenges we face. While governments debate the future of coal-burning power stations, carbon dioxide continues to be released into the atmosphere. We need innovative strategies to capture it. </p>
<p>Actively manufacturing minerals such as <a href="http://www.webmineral.com/data/Nesquehonite.shtml#.XYL-sGkzaCg">nesquehonite</a> is one possible approach. It has applications in building and construction, and making it requires removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-explained-why-carbon-dioxide-has-such-outsized-influence-on-earths-climate-123064">Climate explained: why carbon dioxide has such outsized influence on Earth's climate</a>
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<p>Nesquehonite occurs naturally when magnesian rocks slowly break down. It has been identified at the <a href="https://www.mindat.org/loc-266123.html">Paddy’s River mine</a> in the Australian Capital Territory and locations <a href="https://rruff.info/doclib/MinMag/Volume_34/34-268-370.pdf">in New South Wales</a>.</p>
<p>But scientists discovered it can also be <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenrg.2016.00003/full">made</a> by passing carbon dioxide into an alkaline solution and having it react with magnesium chloride or sodium carbonate/bicarbonate. </p>
<p>This is a growing area of <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-163X/7/9/172/htm">research</a>. </p>
<p>Other synthetic minerals such as hydrotalcite are produced when asbestos tailings passively absorb atmospheric carbon dioxide, as discovered by scientists at the <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/12/181212134430.htm">Woodsreef asbestos mine in New South Wales</a>. </p>
<p>You could say this is a kind of “modern-day alchemy” which, if taken advantage of, could be an effective way to suck carbon dioxide from the air at a large scale.</p>
<h2>Meeting society’s metal demands</h2>
<p>Mining and mineral processing is designed to recover metals from ore, which is a natural occurrence of rock or sediment containing sufficient minerals with economically important elements. But through mining and mineral processing, new minerals can also be created. </p>
<p>Smelting is used to produce a range of commodities such as lead, zinc and copper, by heating ore to high temperatures to produce pure metals. </p>
<p>The process also produces a glass-like waste product called slag, which is deposited as molten liquid, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7kDNo3rIM4">resembling lava</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297051/original/file-20191015-98640-hlhncu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">This is a backscattered electron microscope image of historical slag collected from a Rio Tinto mine in Spain.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Image collected by Anita Parbhakar-Fox at the University of Tasmania (UTAS)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Once cooled, the textural and mineralogical similarities between lava and slag are crystal-clear. </p>
<p>Micro-scale inspection shows human-made minerals in slag have a unique ability to accommodate metals into their crystal lattice that would not be possible in nature.</p>
<p>This means metal recovery from mine waste (a potential secondary resource) could be an effective way to supplement society’s growing metal demands. The challenge lies in developing processes which are cost effective.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/wealth-in-waste-using-industrial-leftovers-to-offset-climate-emissions-49249">Wealth in waste? Using industrial leftovers to offset climate emissions</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Ethically-sourced jewellery</h2>
<p>Our increasing knowledge on how to manufacture minerals may also have a major impact on the growing synthetic <a href="https://lightboxjewelry.com/">gem manufacturing industry</a>.</p>
<p>In 2010, the world was awestruck by the engagement ring given to Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton, valued at about <a href="https://news.thediamondstore.co.uk/facts-kate-middletons-engagement-ring/">£300,000</a> (AUD$558,429).</p>
<p>The ring has a 12-carat blue sapphire, surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds, with a setting made from 18-carat white gold.</p>
<p>Replicas of it have been acquired by people across the globe, but for only a fraction of the price. How?</p>
<p>In 1837, Marc Antoine Gardin demonstrated that sapphires (mineralogically known as corundum or aluminium oxide) can be replicated by reacting metals with other substances such as chromium or boric acid. This produces a range of seemingly identical coloured stones. </p>
<p>On close examination, some properties may vary such as the presence of flaws and air bubbles and the stone’s hardness. But only a gemologist or gem enthusiast would likely notice this.</p>
<p>Diamonds can also be <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/29/business/synthetic-diamond-production.html">synthetically made</a>, through either a high pressure, high temperature, or chemical vapour deposition process.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297118/original/file-20191015-98648-x3d02t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=586&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Synthetic diamonds have essentially the same chemical composition, crystal structure and physical properties as natural diamonds.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Instytut Fizyki Uniwersytet Kazimierza Wielkiego</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Creating synthetic gems is increasingly important as natural stones are becoming more difficult and expensive to source. In some countries, the rights of miners are also violated and this poses <a href="https://www.hrw.org/report/2018/02/08/hidden-cost-jewelry/human-rights-supply-chains-and-responsibility-jewelry">ethical concerns</a>. </p>
<h2>Medical and industrial applications</h2>
<p>Synthetic gems have industrial applications too. They can be used in window manufacturing, semi-conducting circuits and cutting tools. </p>
<p>One example of an entirely manufactured mineral is something called yttrium aluminum garnet (or YAG) which can be used as a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/ndyag-laser">laser</a>.</p>
<p>In medicine, these lasers are used to correct glaucoma. In dental surgery, they allow soft gum and tissues to be cut away. </p>
<p>The move to develop new minerals will also support technologies enabling deep space exploration through the creation of <a href="https://narang.seas.harvard.edu/quantum-materials">‘quantum materials’</a>. </p>
<p>Quantum materials have unique properties and will help us create a new generation of electronic products, which could have a significant impact on space travel technologies. Maybe this will allow us to one day visit the birthplace of Edscottite?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-quantum-materials-may-soon-make-star-trek-technology-reality-86378">How quantum materials may soon make Star Trek technology reality</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In decades to come, the number of human-made minerals is <a href="http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2017/03/03/man-made-minerals-human-epoch/#.XaU045Mzai4">set to increase</a>. And as it does, so too does the opportunity to find new uses for them.</p>
<p>By expanding our ability to manufacture minerals, we could reduce pressure on existing resources and find new ways to tackle global challenges.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/123853/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Manufacturing minerals is an expanding field of study. Making more of them could help alleviate various pressures faced by our growing population. But how are they made, and where can they be used?Anita Parbhakar-Fox, Senior Research Fellow in Geometallurgy/Applied Geochemistry, The University of QueenslandPaul Gow, Principal Research Fellow, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1023992018-09-05T01:38:02Z2018-09-05T01:38:02ZThe synthetic biology revolution is now – here’s what that means<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234955/original/file-20180905-45178-1fhvz9p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Clinical trials using immune cells engineered through synthetic biology have been shown to push some patients into remission from blood cancer. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-iv-set-blurry-illness-asian-524079622?src=pZ7GG2cCzdmONExEPqTgPw-1-13">from www.shutterstock.com </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>We live in an era where biotechnology, information technology, manufacturing and automation all come together to form a capability called <a href="https://acola.org.au/wp/sbio/">synthetic biology</a>. </p>
<p>Technological revolutions are significant because they shape the future of social and cultural development – as is evident for the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution">industrial revolution</a>, the “<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3411969/">green revolution</a>”, and the <a href="https://ubiquity.acm.org/article.cfm?id=1399619">information technology revolution</a>. </p>
<p>Now synthetic biology is shaping up to be the dominant technology of this century, and Australia has made clear moves to be on board. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-grow-crops-on-mars-if-we-are-to-live-on-the-red-planet-99943">How to grow crops on Mars if we are to live on the red planet</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What is synthetic biology?</h2>
<p>Synthetic biology is the design and construction of new, standardised biological parts and devices, and getting them to do useful things. </p>
<p>Parts are encoded using DNA and assembled either in a test tube or in living cells – and then applied to deliver many different kinds of outcomes.</p>
<p>“Cell factories” for production of industrial chemicals is one way synthetic biology is applied. </p>
<p>The chemical butanediol is used to make 2.5 million tonnes of plastics and other polymers each year, including half a million tonnes of Spandex (Lycra). In 2011 all of this molecule came from petrochemicals. Biotech and chemical companies <a href="https://www.genomatica.com/">Genomatica</a> and <a href="https://www.basf.com/en.html">BASF</a> collaborated to engineer a commercially viable synthetic biology production route for butanediol – it went from lab to commercial scale in just <a href="https://www.genomatica.com/_uploads/pdfs/Genomatica,BASFScienceSymposium,June2015.pdf">five years</a>. </p>
<p>Many other global businesses are also investing heavily in the use of whole cells – so-called <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nchembio.484">chassis cells</a> – to produce useful chemicals. </p>
<h2>Medicine, the environment and agriculture</h2>
<p>Significant medical breakthroughs are happening via synthetic biology. </p>
<p>The antimalarial treatment <a href="https://amyris.com/products/malaria-treatment/">artimisinin</a> can now be <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature12051">produced by yeast</a>, avoiding the need to isolate it from <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/artemisia-annua">Chinese sweet wormwood plant</a>. This helps to stabilise global prices.</p>
<p>In 2016 a new immune cell engineering treatment resulted in a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/feb/15/cancer-extraordinary-results-t-cell-therapy-research-clinical-trials">50% complete remission rate in terminally ill blood cancer patients</a>, with a 36% remission rate achieved in <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/02/28/terminal-cancer-patients-complete-remission-one-gene-therapy/">a 2017 trial</a>. A similar approach has been used just recently to <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/breast-cancer-cure-tcell-immunotherapy-tumour-treatment-disease-world-first-a8382806.html">cure an advanced breast cancer</a>. </p>
<p>Biomonitoring is another exciting area for synthetic biology developments. Highly specific, tiny biosensors can be engineered to detect an <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/112/47/14429">enormous range of molecules</a> – such as hydrocarbon pollutants, sugars, heavy metals, and antibiotics. </p>
<p>These can be applied to measure aspects of health, and in environmental sensing systems to identify contaminants.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234808/original/file-20180904-45139-tnzxbv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Synthetic biology could lead to highly sensitive tests for contaminants in water.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/australian-pelican-pelecanus-conspicillatus-along-river-43653931?src=aR1gW57XmjOzrn7nwGNh2A-1-9">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Synthetic biology also has agricultural applications. It can provide more <a href="https://www.agrifutures.com.au/wp-content/uploads/publications/16-035.pdf">precision and sophistication</a> than earlier gene technologies to help increase crop and livestock yields, while reducing environmental impact by limiting the use of chemicals and fertilisers. More efficient plant use of water and nutrients, photosynthetic performance, nitrogen fixation and better resistance to pests and diseases <a href="http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/9/7/341/pdf">are all being developed using synthetic biology</a>.</p>
<p>Consumer benefits may include nutritional improvements, enhanced flavour and the <a href="https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/healthandlife/yourhealth/ucc-are-developing-foods-of-the-future-using-synthetic-biology-359367.html">removal of allergenic proteins</a> from milk, eggs and nuts. </p>
<p>Most of these synthetic biology applications rely on altering, adding or deleting gene functions by targeted genetic modifications. Based on <a href="https://theconversation.com/perceptions-of-genetically-modified-food-are-informed-by-more-than-just-science-72865">past consumer resistance </a>to genetically modified food products, progress in this area is more likely to be limited by the degree of public acceptance than it is by the technological possibilities. </p>
<p>Synthetic biology also provides the opportunity to use agricultural production systems for cheap, large-scale production of products such as drugs and antibodies for medical treatments. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/custom-built-dna-could-be-used-as-a-sensor-probe-95226">Custom-built DNA could be used as a sensor probe</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>On the up and up</h2>
<p>International growth in synthetic biology is remarkable. In 2015 the synthetic biology component market (DNA parts) was <a href="http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/synthetic-biology-market.html">worth $US5.5 billion</a> – by 2020, it will <a href="https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/synthetic-biology-1520-market">approach $US40 billion</a>. Those figures don’t count sales revenue from synthetic biology products. </p>
<p>Product markets are also growing dramatically. In 2008, bio-based chemicals were only 2% of the US$1.2 trillion dollar global chemical market. In 2025, that will <a href="https://www.usda.gov/oce/reports/energy/BiobasedReport2008.pdf">rise to 22%</a>, driven by development of synthetic microbial factories. </p>
<p>Government investment into synthetic biology has been very strong over recent years. Road-maps and associated development structures have been developed through public agencies in many advanced economies, including the <a href="https://www.nap.edu/catalog/19001/industrialization-of-biology-a-roadmap-to-accelerate-the-advanced-manufacturing">US</a>, <a href="https://connect.innovateuk.org/documents/2826135/3815409/Synthetic+Biology+Roadmap+-+Report.pdf/fa8a1e8e-cbf4-4464-87ce-b3b033f04eaa">UK</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2726001/">EU</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5625731/">China</a>, <a href="http://www.nrf.gov.sg/programmes/synthetic-biology-r-d-programme">Singapore</a> and <a href="https://www.vtt.fi/inf/julkaisut/muut/2017/syntheticbiologyroadmap_eng.pdf">Finland</a>. </p>
<p>Private investment in synthetic biology is also growing at a remarkable rate. According to the US-based synthetic biology advocacy organisation <a href="https://synbiobeta.com/these-33-synthetic-biology-companies-just-raised-925-million/">Synbiobeta</a>, American synbio companies raised around US$200 million in investment in 2009. In 2017 it rose to US$1.8 billion and as of July 2018 it was already US$1.5 billion, with a projected 2018 investment of just over US$3 billion.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/budget-2018-when-scientists-make-their-case-effectively-politicians-listen-96124">Budget 2018: when scientists make their case effectively, politicians listen</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>Australia is catching up</h2>
<p>In Australia, synthetic biology is less developed – but things are moving fast. </p>
<p>In 2014, the professional society <a href="https://synbioaustralasia.org/">Synthetic Biology Australasia</a> formed, and several specialist synthetic biology conferences and workshops have been held. </p>
<p>In 2016, CSIRO invested A$13 million into the <a href="https://research.csiro.au/synthetic-biology-fsp/">CSIRO Synthetic Biology Future Science Platform</a> (SynBioFSP). Internal reporting shows SynBioFSP is now a A$40 million research and development portfolio driven by a collaborative community of over 200 scientists from CSIRO and over 40 national and international partner organisations, contributing to 60 research projects.</p>
<p>Synthetic biology was recognised as a priority area in the <a href="https://www.chiefscientist.gov.au/2017/05/2016-national-research-infrastructure-roadmap-released/">2016 National Research Infrastructure Roadmap</a>. A special call for synthetic biology was made in 2017 and a steering committee to examine Australia’s synthetic biology infrastructure needs has recently been created. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-the-national-collaborative-research-infrastructure-strategy-ncris-38837">Explainer: the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS)</a>
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<p>This week the <a href="https://acola.org.au/wp/">Australian Council of Learned Academies</a> released <a href="https://acola.org.au/wp/sbio/">Synthetic Biology in Australia: An Outlook to 2030</a> as part of its <a href="https://acola.org.au/wp/hs-overview/">horizon scanning series</a>. We are two of the authors on this report, which examines the opportunities and challenges for getting the most out of synthetic biology in the Australian context.</p>
<p>Synthetic biology is an extremely fast-moving technology with extraordinarily diverse applications. It offers massive potential for Australia in terms of developing new markets, and in future proofing in the long term.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/102399/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Claudia Vickers receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Queensland Government, the Human Frontier Science Program, the European Union 7th Framework Programme, The University of Queensland, and CSIRO. She is Director of the CSIRO Synthetic Biology Future Science Platform and a Group Leader at the The University of Queensland's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. She was the founding President of Synthetic Biology Australasia and currently serves on the Executive as Immediate Past President. She is a co-author of the ACOLA report 'Synthetic Biology in Australia: An outlook to 2030'. She collaborates with, and provides consulting advice and fee-for-service research for, various industrial biotechnology companies.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Small receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the international agricultural co-operative group Limagrain. Ian is a Fellow of the Academy of Science and a co-author of the ACOLA report 'Synthetic Biology in Australia: An outlook to 2030'.</span></em></p>Right now, you’re living in a kind of industrial revolution – where biotechnology, information technology, manufacturing and automation all come together to form synthetic biology.Claudia Vickers, Director, Synthetic Biology Future Science Platform, CSIROIan Small, Professor in Molecular Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/978492018-06-24T19:51:12Z2018-06-24T19:51:12ZScience makes art. But could art save the Australian manufacturing industry?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/223693/original/file-20180619-38852-nfx15t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Architect Frank Gehry's computer-designed, hand made staircase at University of Technology Sydney. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Roger D'Souza </span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><em><strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/making-science-for-people-55106">Making science for people</a></strong> is a series that explores how humanities, arts and social sciences expertise works to create value with science and technology.</em> </p>
<p><em>Today’s article explores how technology is changing the face of art – a process that has broad implications for manufacturing and industry.</em> </p>
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<p>The “hand-made” nature of artistic works has been highly valued by humans over thousands of years. But digital capability is changing art – not just how art is designed; also how it is made.</p>
<p>Now we’re at the point where the art and design industry in Australia is demanding “mass customisation” of artworks. Some companies have started to address this using the latest generation of robotics technologies – but making the technology work in the right way needs input from creative expertise. </p>
<p>Done right, this mashup of creativity with technology could strengthen manufacturing capability in Australia. </p>
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<p>
<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/robot-sculpture-coming-to-a-gallery-near-you-80804">Robot sculpture, coming to a gallery near you</a>
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</p>
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<h2>Gap between design and production</h2>
<p>There is a tremendous gap between the ease of digital design and manufacture of bespoke objects. </p>
<p>When computer assisted design rapidly evolved in the late 1990s, it meant that previously impossible to conceive ideas could find a form on the computer screen. </p>
<p>But the act of actually <em>creating</em> computer-designed works can be more difficult – and costly. Architect firm Gehry Partners used <a href="https://vimeo.com/222604201">digital design software</a> to design a <a href="https://www.uapcompany.com/factory/stairway-uts-sydney">“crumpled mirrored” staircase</a> for the University of Technology Sydney. But when creative company <a href="https://www.uapcompany.com/">UAP</a> manufactured that staircase (shown in the photo above, and animation below), they had to employ a thousand year old technique of meticulously hand beating every surface until it matched the shape of the computer model. </p>
<figure>
<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/222604201" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The ‘crumpled mirrored staircase’.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Reproducing or re-sizing works of art can also present manufacturing challenges. Originally, artisans would carefully measure the original object and then hand craft the copies, sometimes adjusting the scale. Now, modern scanning technology can create highly accurate computer models of such objects – but the same problem of how to manufacture the new objects presents itself.</p>
<p>The technology to take a digital design into a mechanical fabrication process exists, but it is normally too costly for one-off pieces and is reserved for mass production.</p>
<p>This is where robots come into play. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/creating-research-value-needs-more-than-just-science-arts-humanities-social-sciences-can-help-97083">Creating research value needs more than just science – arts, humanities, social sciences can help</a>
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<h2>Robots that see</h2>
<p>For a robot to make something where the starting form and desired final shape are not fixed – that’s complex. </p>
<p>Traditionally, robots have been used for manufacturing tasks where the shape of the object being worked on is very well understood. For example, robots can be used to remove the excess metal (a process known as “fettling”) after metal casting of car engine blocks. A robot can be programmed to do this as the desired final shape of the engine block is known: without visual information, the robot can move the engine block over a grinder to remove any excess metal.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ammMc44oe_g?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Robotic fettling of a known object.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But many of the objects created by artists do not have a detailed computer model for the robot to work from. Also, works of art are typically not uniform or predictable in shape. So any robot working on a piece of art will first need to see it from all angles, and accurately discover its shape. </p>
<p>The technology to see, or scan objects exists now. In fact you may have it on the <a href="https://thenextweb.com/syndication/2018/01/28/possibilities-iphone-xs-camera-way-bigger-animoji/">smart phone you own right now</a>.</p>
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<iframe src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/242626624" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen="" mozallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">3D cameras that scan objects in detail are already on the latest smart phones.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But the next challenge is determining <em>how</em> to work on the object: could a robot transform an object it sees into one that is desired (a piece of art)? We’re <a href="https://theconversation.com/robot-sculpture-coming-to-a-gallery-near-you-80804">not too far off</a> this goal. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/robot-sculpture-coming-to-a-gallery-near-you-80804">Robot sculpture, coming to a gallery near you</a>
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</p>
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<h2>Robots might create jobs</h2>
<p>Many people <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-we-are-still-convinced-robots-will-take-our-jobs-despite-the-evidence-87188">fear job losses</a> associated with introducing robots into production facilities. However the number of jobs can actually increase when robots are used in mass customisation. </p>
<p>In our own discussions with <a href="https://www.uapcompany.com/">UAP</a> – the company that made the Gehry Partners staircase – they tell us that since adopting robotic technology, staff numbers have grown at a rate of six new appointments for every piece of new robotic machinery purchased. Existing staff are working in new technologies; for example, pattern-makers are using their expert sculpting skills in virtual reality and sending these digital works direct to robotic manufacture. </p>
<p>The products UAP are making with robots include artworks like <a href="https://www.uapcompany.com/studio/emilyfloyd-poll">Poll (by Emily Floyd)</a>, and architectural facades that will soon be installed on busy city streets in Australia.</p>
<p>This sort of mass customisation manufacturing may also be suited to products such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLaSCJsEsLc">customised stents for arteries</a>, or even production and preparation of better looking fruit and vegetables for <a href="http://www.farmfreshfinefoods.com/About/Company-Overview">niche food markets like airlines</a>. The workforce may grow as a result. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/an-exploding-creative-economy-shows-innovation-policy-shouldnt-focus-only-on-stem-93732">An exploding creative economy shows innovation policy shouldn't focus only on STEM</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Let’s invest in creative skills</h2>
<p>Design is a fundamental creative manufacturing capability. </p>
<p>Currently in Australia, government manufacturing policies and investment programs have a firm focus on supporting science and technology companies such as <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-26/australian-researchers-create-first-3d-jet-engine/6262462">aerospace companies printing jet engines</a>, or biomedical science entities growing <a href="https://www.qut.edu.au/research/partner-with-us/case-study-herston-biofabrication-institute">parts of the human anatomy</a>. And while the strategic importance of robotics to our manufacturing future is <a href="https://industry.gov.au/industry/Industry-4-0/Documents/Industry-4.0-Testlabs-Report.pdf">well established and funded</a>, this is not the case for design.</p>
<p>Creative capabilities in art and design firms should be more <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-can-rebalance-australias-economy-with-creative-industries-23458">strategically included in this investment</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-can-rebalance-australias-economy-with-creative-industries-23458">We can rebalance Australia's economy with creative industries</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/an-exploding-creative-economy-shows-innovation-policy-shouldnt-focus-only-on-stem-93732">Recent data</a> shows digital creative services are growing at nearly three times the rate of the overall workforce and attracting 30% above the average Australian wage. </p>
<p>Right now, Australian governments should be targeting the innovation capability of the creative industries, and expanding the value art and design already add to Australia’s manufacturing industry.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97849/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Cori Stewart facilitated investment from the Innovative Manufacturing CRC</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Roberts receives funding from the ARC, the Innovative Manufacturing CRC and is working with UAP. He is a Chief Investigator of the Australian Centre for Robotic Vision.</span></em></p>The art and design industry in Australia is demanding ‘mass customisation’ of works of art. Robots may be the answer – and they’re creating jobs already.Cori Stewart, Director, Business Development and Associate Professor Creative Industries, Queensland University of TechnologyJonathan Roberts, Professor in Robotics, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/813852017-10-11T23:16:44Z2017-10-11T23:16:44ZHow to ensure the fourth industrial revolution is ‘Made in the USA’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189654/original/file-20171010-19989-1rp0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Without investment, fewer products will bear this 'Made in the USA' logo in the future.
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/M. Spencer Green</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>President Donald Trump has long talked about reinvigorating American manufacturing, which has suffered heavy job losses as a result of automation, trade deals and other factors.</p>
<p>In July, the Trump administration even celebrated <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/07/18/537897405/white-house-highlights-made-in-america-products-from-each-state">“made in America” week</a> by showcasing things built in the U.S. and hosting dozens of manufacturers at the White House.</p>
<p>Some of the <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/07/18/537897405/white-house-highlights-made-in-america-products-from-each-state">highlighted products</a> included golf balls made in Arizona, helicopters built in Connecticut and New York Steinway pianos – one product from every state. </p>
<p>To me, an engineer who studies the future of manufacturing, this focus on what the U.S. made yesterday will only go so far in saving American manufacturing. The U.S. needs to figure out what the country should make tomorrow – and invest heavily in it. Whether we do depends on our willingness to embrace the <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/the-fourth-industrial-revolution-what-it-means-and-how-to-respond/">fourth industrial revolution</a>, a new era that is beginning and is destined to be just as pivotal as the previous three. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ERktsRtWd7w?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Something great from all 50 states.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Revolutions one and two</h2>
<p>So what is an industrial revolution and how can we take advantage of the current one?</p>
<p>Broadly speaking, we define something as an industrial revolution when great technological advancements are accompanied by significant socioeconomic and cultural changes. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution#toc3502">first one</a>, from the late 1700s to mid-1800s, marked the transition from making goods by hand to using machines. Begun in Great Britain and adopted in Belgium, France, the U.S. and elsewhere, it was made possible by harnessing water and <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/4750891/The-power-behind-the-Industrial-Revolution.html">steam power</a> and the development of machine tools and factories, leading to unprecedented change. </p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189639/original/file-20171010-17680-m9polg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=605&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">William Bell Scott’s painting from 1850-1860 depicts elements of the first industrial revolution,.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Industrial-Revolution#ref131874">second industrial revolution</a> began in the late 1800s largely as a result of the invention of electricity and ushered in an era of mass production and assembly lines. Widespread <a href="http://ushistoryscene.com/article/second-industrial-revolution/">adoption of technology</a> – the telegraph, railroads, gas and water supplies, among others – not only enabled the movement of people and information like never before, it also led to the production of goods such as cars, fertilizer and petroleum.</p>
<p>Both revolutions had great <a href="http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/History_of_the_Industrial_Revolution#Social_Effects">socioeconomic</a> and cultural impacts, some good, some bad. Basic necessities, such as food and clothing, became more available. Trade increased. Populations soared as people moved from rural areas to cities. At the same time, <a href="http://www.history.com/topics/water-and-air-pollution">far more pollution</a> led to serious health consequences, and unsafe labor conditions resulted in <a href="https://faculty.ithaca.edu/mismith/docs/USsince1865/secondindustrial.pdf">worker unrest</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189641/original/file-20171010-17667-1rhmhjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=462&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Workers assemble cars at a Ford Motor plant in 1930. The second industrial revolution ushered in the era of assembly lines after the invention of electricity.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Countries that spearheaded the first revolution dominated the second as well, but Germany, Japan and other nations also embraced the latter’s changes. The strong American role helped the U.S. become a global leader in manufacturing, which made the <a href="http://online.wsj.com/ww1/rise-of-the-us">U.S. the world’s largest economy</a> by 1913.</p>
<h2>A third revolution and China’s rise</h2>
<p>The <a href="http://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/computers/">introduction of computers</a> and other digital electronics launched the third revolution in the 1950s, and there’s debate about whether we’re still in it. Among the key changes was automation, which led to China’s rise.</p>
<p>Repetitive and low-skill tasks once performed by people, especially on assembly lines, were handed over to machines, which became ubiquitous in auto plants and made <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1996/06/04/us/once-a-friendly-fixture-a-telephone-operator-finds-herself-obsolete.html">switchboard operators</a> obsolete. From a consumer and cultural standpoint, this era is often identified with the profound changes resulting from the introduction of television and personal computers.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189643/original/file-20171010-17676-11uxo9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Computers prompted the third revolution, which fueled automation and, ultimately, China’s rise.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>During the third revolution, the U.S. began to cede its lead manufacturer role to China as the latter <a href="https://www.imf.org/EXTERNAL/PUBS/FT/ISSUES8/INDEX.HTM">invested in industrial production and education</a> and eased restrictive trade policies. For the U.S., that meant textile mills and steel plants closed, <a href="https://beta.bls.gov/dataViewer/view/timeseries/CES3000000001;jsessionid=EA8686923C8897C34548282F054DE906.tc_instance6">leading to the loss</a> of more than four million manufacturing jobs.</p>
<p>Yet manufacturing remains an integral part of the U.S. economy, employing almost 13 million people <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-manufacturing-dead-output-has-doubled-in-three-decades-2016-03-28">in the production</a> of electronics, automobiles, airplanes, refined oil, plastics, pharmaceuticals and more.</p>
<p>Today China and the U.S. both jockey for the lead as the <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/in/en/pages/manufacturing/articles/global-manufacturing-competitiveness-index.html">world’s most dominant manufacturing nation</a>.</p>
<p>That makes it all the more pivotal which countries dominate the next industrial revolution, whether it’s already happening (as I believe), or if we’re on the brink of it. </p>
<h2>Industry 4.0</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2016/06/20/what-everyone-must-know-about-industry-4-0/#f80937795f7f">fourth industrial revolution</a> focuses on artificial intelligence, big data, the internet of things and other emerging technologies that fuse the physical, digital and biological worlds.</p>
<p>How impactful it will be compared with previous revolutions is open to speculation. But we’ve already seen a glimpse of a world in which self-driving cars, personalized medicine and humans working alongside robots are likely to be the norm.</p>
<p>While some of these technological advancements may be rejected – <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/05/style/why-google-glass-broke.html">Google Glass</a> anyone? – there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the future. Our ability to detect and treat serious diseases will improve. Autonomous vehicles could make our roads safer while reducing congestion and pollution. More robots mean fewer humans performing dull, dangerous and dirty jobs.</p>
<p>Like previous industrial revolutions, these changes will cause socioeconomic and cultural shifts. Some argue <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/book/megachange-economic-disruption-political-upheaval-and-social-strife-in-the-21st-century/">the pace of these shifts will increase</a> compared with previous revolutions. Others worry the less fortunate will be left behind and are making plans, such as <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/30/universal-basic-income-may-be-humane-or-a-3-trillion-dollar-black-hole.html">universal basic income</a>, to ameliorate negative consequences. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189646/original/file-20171010-17676-1fjfpfz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Smart robots like these at a BMW plant in Leipzig, Germany, and other autonomous systems are part of the fourth revolution.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Global leadership up for grabs</h2>
<p>So who will lead fourth industrial revolution?</p>
<p>In 2011, the president’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology sensed the U.S. risked economic, social and political security if it was not at the forefront and recommended the government create a series of public-private partnerships to <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130616130347/http:/www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/pcast-advanced-manufacturing-june2011.pdf">support advanced manufacturing initiatives</a>. Known today as “Manufacturing USA,” <a href="https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/microsites/ostp/nstc_nnmi_prelim_design_final.pdf">these initiatives</a> created a number of national institutes each with a particular emphasis including 3D printing, digital manufacturing and flexible electronics. </p>
<p>By bringing together industry, academia and government, these partnerships began the process of training the workforce for new and emerging careers, facilitating the transfer of technology from the lab to the market, and increasing our nation’s overall competitiveness.</p>
<p>These investments, as well as <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2017/07/14/trump-administration-brings-a-different-approach-to-manufacturing/">additional efforts</a> by the Trump administration, can help the U.S. maintain and build its manufacturing sector. </p>
<p>However, given how rapidly technology is evolving, the nation faces significant challenges. <a href="http://www.wired.co.uk/article/factory-of-the-future">Germany</a> and <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jboyd/2016/07/24/japan-looks-to-fourth-industrial-revolution-to-help-reach-impossible-gdp-target/#2240289d39ef">Japan</a> are developing formidable strategies to lead globally in the fourth industrial revolution. <a href="http://www.oecd.org/eco/outlook/mexico-economic-forecast-summary.htm">Mexico</a> and <a href="https://www.forbes.com/places/south-korea/">South Korea</a> stand ready to claim their share of the opportunities as well. And despite the slowdown of China’s economic growth, it remains an <a href="http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/china/overview">economic powerhouse</a>.</p>
<p>In short, global leadership is up for grabs. </p>
<p>The U.S. may never surpass <a href="http://www.industryweek.com/expansion-management/singapores-secret-attracting-biotech-companies">Singapore’s</a> capabilities in biotech fabrication, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/russellflannery/2016/07/06/taiwan-tech-industry-faces-greatest-challenge-as-rival-china-backs-natl-champions/#4da9d9102433">Taiwan’s</a> capacity in optoelectronics manufacturing or <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2016/07/06/south-korea-biotech/">South Korea</a>’s prominence in biopharma production. </p>
<p>But significant opportunities exist in emerging industries such as autonomous systems, defense technologies and energy harnessing and storage. And of course, someone needs to produce the digitally enabled machines and robotic systems that actually fabricate these systems – this could end up being a data-driven reboot of the machinery industry. The U.S. could end up being the leader in any or all of these depending upon the steps it soon takes. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/189653/original/file-20171010-17691-198ekhr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">President Trump gestures to some of the items manufactured in the U.S. during ‘Made in America’ week in July.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Alex Brandon</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How to move forward</h2>
<p>Besides trying to lead the revolution, another concern Americans need to address is how to ensure today’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/robots-wont-steal-our-jobs-if-we-put-workers-at-center-of-ai-revolution-82474">U.S. manufacturing base is not left behind</a>.</p>
<p>The University at Buffalo, for example, my school, has partnered with the Digital Design and Manufacturing Innovation Institute – part of Manufacturing USA – and education technology company Coursera to develop a <a href="https://www.coursera.org/specializations/digital-manufacturing-design-technology">massive open online course</a> that addresses the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in the fourth revolution.</p>
<p>We’re not alone. Universities in Louisiana have created a <a href="http://www.lsu.edu/mediacenter/news/2015/08/03CIMM.eb.php">consortium</a> to support advanced manufacturing and education. Meanwhile the <a href="https://innovation.mit.edu/research-policy/advanced-manufacturing/">Massachusetts Institute of Technology</a> has developed a number of programs to bolster next generation manufacturing. There are numerous other programs nationwide many with a regional focus, but all aimed at empowering the nation’s collective capabilities. </p>
<p>Members of the current and emerging workforce will need to adapt to the significant changes on their way because they’re unlikely to be stopped.</p>
<p>Fortunately, just as old jobs will be lost, new manufacturing jobs will emerge. And those displaced workers who are willing will be able to find new opportunities. Several groups are <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzhlnwBS6tKSUGU0U2Y0dEdTd3M/view?_lrsc=335b8d68-ad8c-49d8-bab2-a80e5ea203f8,%20http://www.uilabs.org/taxonomy/">identifying what they will look like</a>.</p>
<p>As we move towards a manufacturing resurgence, there are significant opportunities across our academic institutions, research laboratories and production floors that require innovative science, technology, practice and education.</p>
<p>However, without continued significant private and public investment, the U.S. may find itself being late to the party already commencing in advanced manufacturing.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81385/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kemper E. Lewis receives funding from the National Science Foundation and the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute.</span></em></p>If President Trump really wants to restore America’s manufacturing might he should invest heavily in AI, the internet of things and other emerging technologies that are changing the world.Kemper E. Lewis, Professor and Chair of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University at BuffaloLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/741172017-04-19T01:09:51Z2017-04-19T01:09:51ZIntroducing ‘Operator 4.0,’ a tech-augmented human worker<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165633/original/image-20170418-32716-1kvwum2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technology can help workers in many ways.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.researchgate.net/project/The-Operator-40-Towards-Socially-Sustainable-Factories-of-the-Future">Romero, Stahre, Wuest, et al.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.rolandberger.com/publications/publication_pdf/roland_berger_industry_40_20160609.pdf">Fourth Industrial Revolution</a> has arrived. The first was the steam engine-driven Industrial Revolution; the second involved the innovations from Henry Ford’s assembly line. Third, microelectronics and computer power appeared on factory floors. Now, manufacturing businesses are beginning to <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312069858_Industrie_40_and_Smart_Manufacturing_-_A_Review_of_Research_Issues_and_Application_Examples">integrate robotics, automation and other data-driven technologies</a> into their workflows.</p>
<p>Robots have taken over <a href="http://www.webdesignschoolsguide.com/library/10-things-we-couldnt-do-without-robots.html">difficult, dangerous and repetitive physical tasks</a>, improving factory safety, worker comfort and product quality. The next phase of labor innovation will do the same thing for cognitive work, removing mentally stressful and repetitive tasks from people’s daily routines.</p>
<p>Human work will become more versatile and creative. Robots and people will work more closely together than ever before. <a href="https://humans-machines-progress.com/reportage/work-4-0-humans-at-its-heart/">People will use their unique abilities</a> to innovate, collaborate and adapt to new situations. They will handle challenging tasks with knowledge-based reasoning. Machines enabled by the technologies that are now becoming commonplace – virtual assistants like <a href="https://www.apple.com/ios/siri/">Siri</a> and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_10?_encoding=UTF8&node=16067214011&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-leftnav&pf_rd_r=2RKBP0D6YK40CPK201WF&pf_rd_r=2RKBP0D6YK40CPK201WF&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=a26577b0-449b-401f-a482-44c5e9674e47&pf_rd_p=a26577b0-449b-401f-a482-44c5e9674e47&pf_rd_i=9818047011">Alexa</a>, wearable sensors like <a href="https://www.fitbit.com/home">FitBits</a> and smart watches – will take care of tedious work details.</p>
<p>People will still be essential on the factory floors, even as robots become more common. Future operators will have technical support and be super-strong, super-informed, super-safe and constantly connected.</p>
<p>We call this new generation of tech-augmented human workers, both on factory floors and in offices, “<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/project/The-Operator-40-Towards-Socially-Sustainable-Factories-of-the-Future">Operator 4.0</a>.” There are several types of enhancements available, which can be used individually or in combination to put humans at the heart of this technological revolution.</p>
<h2>Super strong</h2>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165679/original/image-20170418-32713-d4i79m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This Hyundai wearable robot can help a human worker lift very heavy items.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.hmgjournal.com/Group-Story/Co-efficient/Hyundai-Wearable-Robot.blg">Hyundai</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One straightforward enhancement would let workers wear robotic exoskeletons to enhance their strength. A “super-strength operator” could let a human truly control the physical power of a large robot. In today’s warehouses and construction sites, workers risk injury and exhaustion by handling heavy objects themselves. Or they are forced to compromise, using a more powerful tool with less adaptability, like a forklift.</p>
<p>The benefits go well beyond the workplace. Of course, a worker in a powered robotic suit could easily handle extremely heavy objects without losing the flexibility of natural human movements. The worker would also be far less likely to suffer severe injuries from accidents or overwork. And at the end of a day, a super-strength worker could take off the exoskeleton and still have energy to play with the kids or spend time with friends. </p>
<h2>Super informed</h2>
<p>Fighter pilots use heads-up displays, which provide them with crucial information right on the cockpit windshield and directly in their line of sight. This is “augmented reality,” because it displays information within a live view of the world. It used to be very specialized and expensive technology. Now, <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/microsoft-hololens/en-us">Microsoft’s HoloLens</a> makes it available for consumers.</p>
<p>An “augmented operator” can get directions or assistance without interrupting the task he or she is working on. Often, when new equipment or processes are developed, trainers need to travel long distances to factories, staying for weeks to teach workers what to do. Designers do the same, getting feedback for refinements and improvements. All that travel takes up a huge amount of time and is extremely expensive. With augmented reality available, it is often unnecessary.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8OWhGiyR4Ns?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Augmented reality on the job.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A worker <a href="http://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/consumer-electronics/gadgets/ces-2015-industrial-augmented-reality-takes-center-stage">wearing a set of smart glasses</a> can receive individualized, step-by-step instructions displayed right in front of his or her eyes, no matter where he or she is looking. With earbuds and a microphone, she or he could talk directly to trainers in real time.</p>
<h2>Super safe</h2>
<p>Many manufacturing environments are hazardous, involving heavy equipment, caustic chemicals and other dangers that can maim and kill human workers. A “healthy operator” may be equipped with wearable sensors tracking pulse rate, body temperature, chemical exposure or other factors that indicate risks of injury.</p>
<p>This type of system is already available: Truck drivers can wear the <a href="http://mavenmachines.com/co-pilot/">Maven Co-Pilot</a>, a hands-free headset that detects fatigue symptoms, like head-bobbing movements. It can also ensure drivers check their rear-view mirrors regularly to stay aware of nearby traffic. It can even provide reminders to take scheduled breaks. This helps keep the truck’s driver safe and improves everyone else’s road safety.</p>
<h2>And beyond…</h2>
<p>Possibilities are limitless. An “analytical operator” would wear a monitor showing real-time data and analytics, such as information on chemicals in a sewage treatment plant or pollutants at an incinerator. A “collaborative operator” may be linked to collaborative robots, or co-bots, like the assembly assistant <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AitCwCF5VM">YuMi</a>. A “smarter operator” could be equipped with an intelligent virtual personal assistant, like an advanced Siri or Alexa.</p>
<p>There does not have to be conflict between robots and humans, with machines taking people’s jobs and leaving them unemployed. <a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_White_Paper_Technology_Innovation_Future_of_Production_2017.pdf">Technology should be designed with collaboration in mind</a>. That way, companies and workers alike will be able to capitalize on the respective strengths of both human and machine. What’s more, the inherent flexibility of “Operator 4.0” workers will also help to ensure workplaces of the future that can change and adapt. That means getting ever more efficient and safer, as new technologies emerge.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/74117/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Johan Stahre receives funding from the National Swedish Innovation Agency, Vinnova.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Romero and Thorsten Wuest do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>People will still be needed on factory floors, even as robots become more common. Future operators will have technical support and be super-strong, super-smart and constantly connected.Thorsten Wuest, Assistant Professor & J. Wayne and Kathy Richards Faculty Fellow in Engineering, West Virginia UniversityDavid Romero, Professor of Advanced Manufacturing, Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de MonterreyJohan Stahre, Professor of Production Systems, Chalmers University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/711252017-03-30T02:15:59Z2017-03-30T02:15:59ZTo really help US workers, we should invest in robots<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/155745/original/image-20170206-27204-1haiu34.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">University students experiment with human-robot interaction and autonomous manipulation, two elements of manufacturing's future.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nikolaus Correll</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>America’s manufacturing heyday is gone, and so are millions of jobs, lost to modernization. Despite what <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/03/mnuchin-ai/520791/">Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin might think</a>, the <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w23285">National Bureau of Economic Research</a> and <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/03/silicon-valley-slams-white-house-for-ignoring-ai-threat">Silicon Valley executives</a>, among <a href="https://www.wired.com/2017/03/hate-break-steve-mnuchin-ais-already-taking-jobs/">many others</a>, know it’s <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/s/604005/actually-steve-mnuchin-robots-have-already-affected-the-us-labor-market/">already happening</a>. And a new report from PwC estimates that <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/24/technology/robots-jobs-us-workers-uk/index.html">38 percent of American jobs</a> are at “high risk” of being replaced by technology within the next 15 years. </p>
<p>But how soon automation will replace workers is not the real problem. The real threat to American jobs will come if China does it first.</p>
<p>Since the year 2000, the U.S. has <a href="https://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag31-33.htm#about">lost five million manufacturing jobs</a>. An estimated 2.4 million jobs <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/special-report/21707834-truth-and-myth-about-effects-openness-trade-coming-and-going">went to low-wage workers in China and elsewhere</a> between 1999 and 2011. The remainder fell victim to gains in efficiency of production and automation, making many traditional manufacturing jobs obsolete.</p>
<p>Though more than a million jobs have returned since the 2008 recession, the net loss has <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/special-report/21700758-will-smarter-machines-cause-mass-unemployment-automation-and-anxiety">devastated the lives</a> of millions of people and their families. Some blame robotics, others globalization. It turns out that those forces work together, and have been equally hurtful to manufacturing jobs. The car industry, for example, <a href="http://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/2017/01/29/auto-parts-suppliers-may-take-nafta-hit/97043034/">imports more and more parts from abroad</a>, while <a href="http://www.mmh.com/article/manufacturers_ramp_up_automation_investments_to_keep_pace_with_industry_gro">automating their assembly</a> in the U.S.</p>
<p>As a robotics researcher and educator, I strongly advocate that the best way to get those jobs back is to build on our existing strengths, remaining a leader in manufacturing efficiency and doing the hard work to further improve our educational and social systems to cope with a changing workforce. Particularly when looking at what’s happening in China, it’s clear we need to maintain <a href="https://hbr.org/2009/07/restoring-american-competitiveness">America’s international competitiveness</a>, as we have done since the beginning of industrialization.</p>
<h2>Chinese competition</h2>
<p>In 2014, China <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2016/04/26/china-exports-may-be-declining-but-still-clobber-u-s-and-european-trade/">exported more, and more valuable, products</a> than the U.S. for the first time. Many of these were made by the <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21646180-rising-chinese-wages-will-only-strengthen-asias-hold-manufacturing-tightening-grip">low-wage laborers</a> China has become famous for.</p>
<p>Yet China <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-is-largest-fastest-growing-market-world-wide-for-industrial-robots-1463584169">has also emerged as the largest growth market for robotics</a>. <a href="https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/world-record">Chinese companies bought more than twice</a> as many industrial robots (68,000) in 2015 than American companies did (27,000). China’s Midea – an appliance manufacturer – <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-07-03/voith-sells-kuka-stake-to-china-s-midea-for-about-1-3-billion">just purchased the German robotic powerhouse Kuka</a>. </p>
<p>China has understood that its competitive advantage of cheap labor will not last forever. Instead, labor costs will rise as its economy develops. Look at FoxConn, for example, the Taiwanese manufacturing contractor of the iPhone <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/business-30532463">known for the high-pressure work environment at its plants in China</a>. The company already <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/clsa-wef-and-citi-on-the-future-of-robots-and-ai-in-the-workforce-2016-6">uses more than 60,000 robots</a>, and has said it wants to <a href="http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-07/30/c_131018764.htm">use as many as a million robots by 2020</a>.</p>
<p>That’s a bold goal, especially given the current state of robotics. At present, robots are good only at highly repetitive tasks in structured environments. They are still <a href="https://arxiv.org/abs/1601.05484">far inferior to humans in simple tasks like picking items from a shelf</a>. But FoxConn’s goal of transforming its streamlined manufacturing line is definitely achievable. Many of the tasks now done by humans thousands of times a day can be easily automated – such as applying a puddle of glue, placing double-sided tape, positioning a piece of plastic, tightening screws or loading products onto a pallet. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Taking apart and reassembling an iPhone.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The lesson here is simple: Some occupations will simply disappear, like those of weavers in the textile industry <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2014/01/25/what-the-humble-loom-can-teach-us-about-robots-and-automation/">displaced by the power loom</a>. We need to embrace this disruption if we want to avoid being taken out of the game altogether. Imagine if China is able to replace our low-wage jobs with its workers, and then can automate those jobs: Work Americans now do will be done here, or anywhere – but not by humans. FoxConn is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/22/business/foxconn-might-build-plant-in-us.html">planning its first plant in the U.S.</a>; soon, Chinese robots will be working in America.</p>
<h2>Seeing opportunity, not loss</h2>
<p>The good news is that while many types of jobs will cease to exist, robots will create other jobs – and not only in the industry of designing new robots. </p>
<p>This is already beginning to happen. In 2014, there were <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/big-growth-in-tiny-businesses-1482953786">more than 350,000 manufacturing companies with only one employee</a>, up 17 percent from 2004. These companies combine globalization and automation, embracing outsourcing and technological tools to make craft foods, artisanal goods and even high-tech engineered products. </p>
<p>Many American entrepreneurs use digitally equipped manufacturing equipment like 3-D printers, laser cutters and computer-controlled CNC mills, combined with market places to outsource small manufacturing jobs like <a href="http://mfg.com">mfg.com</a> to run small businesses. I’m one of them, manufacturing custom <a href="http://www.roboticmaterials.com">robotic grippers</a> from my basement. Automation enables these sole proprietors to create and innovate in small batches, without large costs.</p>
<h2>Returning to manufacturing dominance</h2>
<p>This sort of solo entrepreneurship is just getting going. Were robots more available and cheaper, people would make jewelry and leather goods at home, and even create custom-made items like clothing or sneakers, directly competing with mass-produced items from China. As with the iPhone, even seemingly complex manufacturing tasks can be automated significantly; it’s not even necessary to incorporate artificial intelligence into the process.</p>
<p>Three trends are emerging that, with industry buy-in and careful government support, could help revitalize the U.S. manufacturing sector.</p>
<p>First, robots are getting cheaper. Today’s US$100,000 industrial robotic arms are not what the future needs. Automating iPhone assembly lines will require cheap robotic arms, simple conveyor belts, 3-D-printed fixtures and software to manage the entire process. As <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rakeshsharma/2013/09/24/stratasys-bold-moves-a-conversation-with-company-chairman-scott-crump/">we saw in the 3-D printing industry</a>, the maker movement is setting the pace, creating <a href="http://makerarm.com">low-cost fabrication robots</a>. The government is involved, too: The Pentagon’s research arm, DARPA, has backed the <a href="https://othermachine.co/">OtherMill</a>, a low-cost computer-controlled mill. </p>
<p>In addition, more people are programming robots. Getting a robot to accomplish repetitive tasks in industry – for example, using <a href="http://www.zacobria.com/universal-robots-zacobria-forum-hints-tips-how-to/gui-programming-universal-robots/">Universal Robot’s interface</a> – is as simple as programming <a href="https://www.lego.com/en-us/mindstorms">LEGO Mindstorms</a>. Many people think it’s much harder than that, confusing robotic automation with artificial intelligence systems <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-computer-beat-the-go-master/">playing chess or Go</a>. In fact, building and programming robots is very similar both physically and intellectually to doing your own plumbing, electrical wiring and car maintenance, which many Americans enjoy and are capable of learning. “Maker spaces” for learning and practicing these skills and using the necessary equipment are <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/04/makerspaces-are-remaking-local-economies/390807/">sprouting across the country</a>. It is these spaces that might develop the skill sets that enable Americans to take automation into their own hands at their workplaces.</p>
<p>Lastly, cutting-edge research is improving the hardware needed to grasp and manipulate manufacturing components, and the software to sense and plan movements for assembling complex items. Industrial robot technology is upgradeable and new robots <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/meet-the-new-generation-of-robots-for-manufacturing-1433300884">are designed to complement human workers</a>, allowing industry to make gradual changes, rather than complete factory retooling.</p>
<h2>A path forward</h2>
<p>To fully take advantage of these trends and other developments, we need to improve connections between researchers and businesses. Government effort, in the form of the Defense Department’s new <a href="http://www.arminstitute.org/">Advanced Robotics Manufacturing Institute</a>, is already working toward this goal. <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Releases/News-Release-View/Article/1049127/dod-announces-award-of-new-advanced-robotics-manufacturing-arm-innovation-hub-i">Funded by US$80 million in federal dollars</a>, the institute has drawn an additional $173 million in cash, personnel, equipment and facilities from the academic and private sectors, aiming to create half a million manufacturing jobs in the next 10 years.</p>
<p>Those numbers might sound high, but China is way ahead: Just two provinces, Guangdong and Zhejiang, plan to spend <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-impending-robot-revolution-1470241843">a combined $270 billion</a> over the next five years to equip factories with industrial robots.</p>
<p>The stakes are high: If the U.S. government ignores or avoids globalization and automation, it will stifle innovation. Americans can figure out how to strengthen society while integrating robotics into the workforce, or we can leave the job to China. Should it come to that, Chinese companies will be able to export their highly efficient manufacturing and logistics operations back to the U.S., putting America’s manufacturing workforce out of business forever.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71125/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nikolaus Correll is an Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, publishes an open-source robotic textbook, and is a co-founder of Robotic Materials Inc. He receives funding from the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the National Science Foundation. </span></em></p>Today, the U.S. is leading the robotics revolution. But without timely investment, China will overtake us, and could permanently put Americans out of work.Nikolaus Correll, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/533282016-01-18T16:46:03Z2016-01-18T16:46:03ZUltrasound could transform 3D printing for a future of smart materials<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108448/original/image-20160118-31828-1f02jzh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tom Llewellyn-Jones, Bruce Drinkwater and Richard Trask</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The advent of 3D printers supposedly means we can manufacture anything in our homes. <a href="https://theconversation.com/3d-printing-possibilities-are-beautiful-but-not-limitless-25890">But in reality</a> most existing home 3D printers can only make things out of certain plastics, although there are industrial systems that can print certain metals.</p>
<p>What has so far been out of reach is a way to 3D print <a href="https://theconversation.com/lets-stick-together-composite-materials-aeroplanes-and-you-7207">high-tech composite materials</a> such as the carbon fibre composites that are used to build lightweight but extremely strong versions of things including tennis racquets, aerodynamic bikes and even aircraft parts. But researchers from my lab at Bristol University have now developed a way to transform existing 3D printers so they can also print composite materials.</p>
<p>When designed properly, composites have just about the best strength for their weight of any common material, making them perfect for applications that need to be very strong but light, such as aeroplanes. Composites are usually made from very long glass or carbon fibres set in a plastic matrix. It’s the presence of the fibres, and the fact that they are all carefully arranged, that makes these materials so impressively strong yet lightweight.</p>
<h2>Simple solution</h2>
<p>At present, composite products are made by forming the fibres into sheets that look a bit like stiff cloth. These are then cut to shape and assembled by hand, layer-by-layer, to create the final product. As a result, composites are expensive and not easily replicated with 3D printers.</p>
<p>However, <a href="http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0964-1726/25/2/02LT01">my colleagues and I</a> have found a way to print composite material by making a relatively simple addition to a cheap, off-the-shelf 3D printer. The breakthrough was based on the simple idea of printing using a liquid polymer mixed with millions of tiny fibres. This makes a readily printable material that can, for example, be pushed through a tiny nozzle into the desired location. The final object can then be printed layer by layer, as with many other 3D printing processes. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/108450/original/image-20160118-31834-1sjadzu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Anyone for laser tennis?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tom Llewellyn-Jones, Bruce Drinkwater and Richard Trask</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The big challenge was working out how to reassemble the tiny fibres into the carefully arranged patterns needed to generate the superior strength we expect from composites. The innovation we developed was to use ultrasonic waves to form the fibres into patterns within the polymer while it’s still in its liquid state.</p>
<p>The ultrasound effectively creates a patterned force field in the liquid plastic and the fibres move to and align with low pressure regions in the field called nodes. The fibres are then fixed in place using a tightly focused laser beam that cures (sets) the polymer.</p>
<h2>Smart materials</h2>
<p>The patterned fibres can be thought of as a reinforcement network, just like the <a href="http://www.crsi.org/index.cfm/steel/about">steel reinforcing bars</a> that are routinely placed in concrete structures such as foundations or bridges. Our study used short glass fibres in liquid epoxy polymer that are formed into longer lines of fibres and can recreate the structure of a traditional composite.</p>
<p>But the process has huge flexibility and can also create patterns not possible with traditional methods. By adjusting the ultrasonic wave pattern we can steer the fibres as the print progresses, producing a complex 3D architecture of fibres rather than layers of 2D structures.</p>
<p>One of the particularly useful features of the ultrasonic alignment process is that almost any type, size or shape of fibre can be used. This will give product designers some completely new possibilities and allow the printing of <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-synthetic-materials-with-the-power-to-change-the-world-37131">smart materials</a> that can repair themselves or harvest electricity from the environment. For example <a href="http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0964-1726/15/3/005/meta;jsessionid=B6C8BE723EA80DB5209180A4BAA53D4D.c1.iopscience.cld.iop.org">researchers are working</a> on embedding networks of hollow tubes filled with uncured polymer into composites. If the material is damaged and the tubes are broken open they will “bleed” polymer that will then set and “heal” the product. These tubes could be positioned in the liquid plastic with our ultrasonic printing system.</p>
<p>The ultrasonic technology is still in its early stages, so don’t expect to be able to buy these printers next week. But 3D printing is a very fast moving field so these ideas could well hit the market in the next few years.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/53328/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bruce Drinkwater receives funding from the UK Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC). </span></em></p>Researchers have found a way to turn cheap 3D printers into a simple method for making super-strong but light composite materials for things like aircraft.Bruce Drinkwater, Professor of Ultrasonics, University of BristolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/436452015-07-05T20:16:42Z2015-07-05T20:16:42ZThe future of manufacturing in Australia is smart, agile and green<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/86956/original/image-20150701-25062-1c8l32m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=687%2C84%2C3309%2C3099&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technologies like 3d printing and robotics will be crucial aspects of Australia's manufacturing future.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Oak Ridge National Laboratory</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This article is part of our series on the <a href="http://www.science.gov.au/scienceGov/news/Pages/PrioritisingAustraliasFuture.aspx">Science and Research Priorities</a> recently announced by the Federal Government. You can read the introduction to the series by Australia’s Chief Scientist, Ian Chubb, <a href="http://theconversation.com/australias-chief-scientist-on-getting-our-research-priorities-right-43833">here</a>.</em></p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Alan Finkel</strong><br>
<em>Chancellor of Monash University, and Fellow and President of the Australian Academy of Technological Science and Engineering (ATSE)</em></p>
<p>In a rapidly changing world, attempts to preserve the past will doom the future. The <a href="http://www.science.gov.au/scienceGov/ScienceAndResearchPriorities/Pages/ThePriorities.aspx">research priorities</a> seek to avoid that trap by identifying the need for our industries to be agile and transformative, to provide high value-add and to recognise their place in a complex global supply chain.</p>
<p>The research priorities also note the importance of seeking to dominate in selected niche product categories where we already have some wins, such as high-performance materials, composites, alloys and polymers.</p>
<p>Not explicitly stated in the priorities, though, is the reality that the efficiency of tomorrow’s industries will be driven by automation and artificial intelligence. More will be achieved with fewer workers. </p>
<p>We must accept that revenue growth in manufacturing will not routinely be accompanied by jobs growth in the manufacturing industry itself. That is not necessarily a bad thing, because as new wealth is created it will be invested in services, health and other industries, with net creation of jobs.</p>
<p>If we are smart about aligning our research to our priorities, there will be ample opportunity for us to develop advanced manufacturing techniques to create, or in some cases, bring back added-value manufacturing in food and resources, and expand our achievements in medical devices. </p>
<p>We will be able to improve quality and productivity, improve scheduling and logistics, and in many cases produce products in Australia more cheaply than we could import products of equivalent quality.</p>
<p>But measuring our success in manufacturing will be confounded by its changing nature. For example, printing and distributing text books is clearly a manufacturing industry. In the future, when textbooks fully transition to online delivery, will that mean that the manufacturing jobs in that sector have been wiped out? </p>
<p>Or should we think of the engineers who develop and maintain the cloud-based delivery systems as the manufacturing workers of the future? We must learn to value our successes in the context of a changing definition of what we are measuring.</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Cathy Foley</strong><br>
<em>Deputy Director and Science Director of the Manufacturing Flagship at CSIRO and former President of Science and Technology Australia</em></p>
<p>The fourth industrial revolution has started! Known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industry_4.0">Industry 4.0</a>, in 15 years time <a href="http://theconversation.com/australia-must-prepare-for-massive-job-losses-due-to-automation-43321">40% of the jobs we know today will not exist</a>, and the way we manufacture products and get them to the consumer will be radically different. </p>
<p>Just-in-time, personalised, agile and adaptive “creator robots and machines” will build a world that is a little like the Jetsons cartoon from my childhood. But this means that, as a country, we have to change our approach to manufacturing too.</p>
<p>Having standalone industrial companies and innovation organisations doing their own thing, competing against one another, simply will not work.</p>
<p>We need to reset our thinking to compete globally and collaborate locally. Australia’s success in Industry 4.0 will pivot on our willingness to shift our currently poor ability to collaborate across sectors – such as from research to industry – and within sectors – industry to industry, and research organisation to research organisation – so that we can move rapidly up the ranks and be a world leader in collaboration. </p>
<p>We currently rank <a href="http://www.globalinnovationindex.org/">81 out of the 143 OECD economies</a> for innovation efficiency. We have all the components we need to do this: top-class research; great design; well-educated citizens; a strong small-to-medium enterprise community; and a terrific services industry. </p>
<p>We are poised to make that transition. But our focus can’t remain on competing among ourselves, whether it is between academic institutions, states or within local industry sectors.</p>
<p>Can we be a “big” enough country to rise above the local and think global? I think we can.</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Veena Sahajwalla</strong><br>
<em>Scientia Professor, and Laureate Fellow and Director, SMaRT Centre, UNSW Australia</em></p>
<p>Last year, I wrote about the ability of <a href="https://theconversation.com/building-the-nation-will-be-impossible-without-engineers-23191">engineers to build Australia into the future</a> by fostering invention and innovation. I still believe it will be engineers who can deliver previously unimaginable solutions, like green manufacturing, which is an area that will transform the manufacturing industry.</p>
<p>Australian industries need the flexibility, insight and foresight that comes from thinking creatively, asking critical questions, forming and testing hypotheses and reasoning quantitatively. They also need access to the research and technologies that will add value to manufactured products.</p>
<p>At the Sustainable Materials Research and Technology Centre (<a href="http://smart.unsw.edu.au/">SMaRT</a>) at UNSW, we are working on green manufacturing in collaboration with industry, using waste and end‐of‐life products as raw materials.</p>
<p>We are rethinking the way we have traditionally done manufacturing and looking at creating new resources from waste. But it is fundamental and applied research that have created the foundations of where we are today.</p>
<p>The ability to produce ferrous alloys from auto waste and copper-based alloys from e-waste is also forcing us to rethink mining, which has traditionally been about extracting raw materials and sending them long distances, with one large processing plant transforming them into usable material. </p>
<p>Not only are natural resources being depleted at an unsustainable rate, industries are beginning to recognise the cost-effectiveness of reusing materials, and the importance of high value-add, small, agile and localised processing facilities.</p>
<p>Silicon from silica in glass, or copper from e-waste, are extremely valuable, so we need to look past the fact that initially they present as waste. This is where science and innovation come in. It’s looking for the beauty within. The future manufacturing scientists and engineers will be creating high-value materials by discovering novel green manufacturing solutions.</p>
<p>I see a huge opportunity for green manufacturing in micro-factories across regional Australia, and new jobs for regional communities that offer economic opportunities in tomorrow’s industries. We believe these new industries can happen on a small scale quite effectively based on new scientific discoveries.</p>
<p>In Australia, where our population is small and the tyranny of distance presents its own challenges, doing it cleaner and smarter, and developing innovations that are good for the environment and sustainable on every level, offers huge economic benefits and a brand new manufacturing sector built around transforming waste into resources.</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Read more in our Science and Research Priorities series</strong></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/on-the-road-research-can-improve-transport-across-australia-43643">On the road: research can improve transport across Australia</a></p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/research-priority-make-australias-health-system-efficient-equitable-and-integrated-43547">Research priority: make Australia’s health system efficient, equitable and integrated</a></p>
<p><a href="http://theconversation.com/australia-could-become-a-leader-in-cybersecurity-research-43716">Australia could become a leader in cybersecurity research</a></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/43645/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Veena Sahajwalla has collaborated with OneSteel through the ARC Linkage grants scheme. The PIT technology – “Green Steel” – has been licensed to OneSteel for commercialisation. Current grants and previously received grants are ARC grant schemes (ARC Linkage, Discovery, ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub), Australian Laureate Fellowship, Australia India Strategy Research Funding, CRC Low Carbon Living, and industries including: Arrium Mining and Materials, Hyundai Steel, Brickworks Building Products, Jaylon Industries, Tersum Energy, TES-AMM Australia and LKAB. She is a member of a range of professional associations: EA, AIST, ACS, ASM International, AusIMM, ATSE, Climate Council and NSW Australia Day Council Board member.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alan Finkel and Cathy Foley do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia has a bright future in advanced manufacturing, but it will be a turbulent transition that we need to manage carefully.Alan Finkel, Chancellor, Monash UniversityCathy Foley, Deputy Director and Science Director Manfacturing Flagship CSIRO, CSIROVeena Sahajwalla, Professor and Director of the Centre for Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT), UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/393592015-03-30T05:54:56Z2015-03-30T05:54:56ZAmerica’s innovation ecosystem may get bipartisan budget boost<p>Many pundits give President Obama’s budget proposal little chance of passing in the Republican-controlled Congress. In fact, the House and Senate budget blueprints have set the stage for a likely veto struggle. Dysfunctional, hyper-partisanship may continue to rule Washington, but at least one very important part of the budget is cause for hope: federal investments in science and technology innovation.</p>
<p>There are encouraging signs that America’s innovation ecosystem will get a bipartisan boost this year.</p>
<h2>On the cutting edge</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/budget/fy2016/assets/fact_sheets/investing-in-american-innovation.pdf">president’s budget </a>calls for US$2.25 billion to fund 36 advanced manufacturing institutes. These would be in addition to nine such centers already funded for this year, each of which is bringing together businesses and universities to develop cutting-edge manufacturing technologies that US-based companies can adopt. </p>
<p>The first of these centers, in Youngstown, Ohio, focuses on the emerging field of 3D printing and in three years has trained more than 7,000 workers in the fundamentals of this game-changing technology.</p>
<p>These are critical investments. They are needed to accelerate and sustain America’s economic growth in research, education, training and infrastructure. They are needed to ignite innovation and strengthen the US advanced manufacturing base to create good-paying jobs. </p>
<p>Republicans in the Senate and House passed <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/03/27/senate-up-next-after-house-passes-bold-conservative-budget/">their own budget plans</a> last week. Though they both focus on trimming the deficit, we’re confident they will also build on past bipartisanship in fostering innovation and include funding for some version of the advanced manufacturing institutes in the final budget to be agreed upon later in the year. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/2996">Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act</a>, which passed Congress late last year on a voice vote signifying strong bipartisan support, authorized funding for advanced manufacturing institutes to the tune of $300 million over ten years. So there’s good reason to think Congress and the president will be able to agree on this portion of the budget.</p>
<p>There’s more like that in the president’s plan. </p>
<p>As part of an overall 5.5% increase in federal R&D spending, to $146 billion, Obama calls for $30 million to speed the commercialization of university research through the “<a href="http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/i-corps/">Innovation Corps</a>.” This program improves National Science Foundation-funded and other researchers’ access to resources that can help bridge the gap to bring discoveries to market.</p>
<h2>Closing the innovation gap</h2>
<p>This “Innovation Gap” is a major problem for our country, and a coordinated effort between government, universities and business is needed to close it.</p>
<p>In recent decades, US innovation capabilities have stagnated, while those of other nations have advanced. </p>
<p>Since 2008, the number of <a href="http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/taf/us_stat.htm">foreign-origin patents</a> that the US Patent and Trademark Office has granted annually has surpassed the number of domestic-origin patents. From 1999 to 2009, the US share of global research and development spending dropped, while Asia’s share as a whole rose and surpassed the US share in 2009.</p>
<p>In effect, America’s <a href="http://gsm.ucdavis.edu/organized-innovation">innovation ecosystem</a> has deteriorated during recent decades into a disorganized approach to technology commercialization. </p>
<p>The innovation gap emerged in the 1970s and 1980s as US corporations retreated from basic research and concentrated on incremental product development. Research universities stepped in, but academic research often remains walled off within disciplines, with little concern for solving societal problems. Too often research does not make the leap from the lab to the real world. </p>
<p>The problem of unorganized innovation in the US is made worse by extremism on both sides of the political aisle. </p>
<p>On the political right, laissez faire beliefs fuel a tradition of
opposition to government coordination of any commercial activity,
including research and development. On the political left, many oppose
what they consider contamination of pure academic research by industry
involvement. Both extremes reflect an oversimplification of the
complexity of moving science to societal benefit. Moreover, the extremes
impede government actions that promote the government-university-industry
collaboration that America needs to retain its lead in innovation.</p>
<p>Fortunately, this is beginning to change as new bipartisan government programs have quietly begun making their mark to organize innovation and bolster the key roles of entrepreneurs and businesses in the economy. </p>
<h2>Linking science to the real world</h2>
<p>During the past decade, we studied a pioneering federal initiative, the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5502&org=EEC">National Science Foundation’s Engineering Research Centers</a> (ERCs). Based in universities, these centers require researchers to link basic science to social and market dilemmas. The ERC program also demands interdisciplinary and industry-academic collaboration and encourages the creation of proofs-of-concept to demonstrate that a lab-based technology has commercial potential.</p>
<p>From 1985 to 2009, about $1 billion in federal funding was invested in the centers. They have returned more than ten times that amount in a wide variety of technology innovations. <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048733311001053">Our study</a> of the centers led us to a blueprint for better coordinating the major institutions in the US innovation ecosystem: universities, businesses and government. </p>
<p>Based on coordination among those institutions, our blueprint recommends
specific managerial actions that university, business and governmental
leaders can take to harvest basic science, create tangible
proof-of-concepts (that is, commercial prototypes) and diffuse new products
and services into the commercial marketplace to the benefit of society.
The blueprint is unique in its emphasis on how leaders can create the
organizational architecture of innovation.</p>
<p>President Obama’s budget and The Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act can do much to help America get its act together when it comes to technology development and commercialization. These proposals signal that Democrats and Republicans alike seem to agree we need a more organized approach to innovation. Let’s hope our political leaders will put differences aside and act to renew our prosperity.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This piece was co-authored by Ed Frauenheim, director of global research and content at the Great Place to Work Institute. They are co-authors of “Organized Innovation: A Blueprint for Renewing America’s Prosperity,” published by Oxford University Press.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/39359/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steven C Currall has received funding from the National Science Foundation's Engineering Research Center program.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emily Hunter and Sara Perry do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Despite the hyper-partisanship in Washington, there appears to be agreement that the government should do more to invest in science and technology innovation.Steven C Currall, Chancellor’s Senior Advisor for Strategic Projects and Initiatives, University of California, DavisEmily Hunter, Associate Professor of Management, Baylor UniversitySara Perry, Assistant Professor of Management, Baylor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/329552014-10-14T05:48:02Z2014-10-14T05:48:02ZCompetitiveness agenda lays path for industry-led innovation: experts react<p>The federal government has released its <a href="http://industry.gov.au/industry/Pages/Industry-Growth-Centres.aspx#content">National Industry Investment and Competitiveness Agenda</a>, committing around A$400 million towards “industry growth centres”, new tax incentives for employee share schemes, and a push for science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education.</p>
<p>The government has chosen to focus on five sectors for its growth centres: oil and gas, mining technology, medical technology and pharmaceuticals, food and agribusiness and advanced manufacturing, where it says Australia has a “natural advantage” it can build on.</p>
<p>Each of the five industry-led centres will receive funding of up to A$3.5 million per year, and be required to establish a plan to become self-sustaining after four years. Grants of up to A$1 million will also be on offer for the commercialisation of ideas.</p>
<p>The government said it would also reform the tax treatment of employee share schemes to support start-up companies, beginning with reversing the changes made in 2009 to the taxing point for options. There will also be new concessional tax treatment of options or shares issued by unlisted start-ups with turnover of $50 million or less.</p>
<p>The 457 visa program will also be reformed, with the process of sponsorship, nomination and visa applications for “low risk” applicants streamlined, English language requirements made more flexible, and the sponsorship approval period increased from 12 to 18 months for start-up businesses.</p>
<p>As part of its ongoing deregulatory agenda, the government will adopt a new principle that if a system, service or product has been approved under a trusted international standard or risk assessment, then Australian regulators would not impose any additional requirements for approval.</p>
<p>The government will also introduce a new “Premium Investor Visa” offering a faster 12 month pathway to permanent residency, for those meeting a A$15 million investment threshold.</p>
<p>A symbolic A$12 million of funding will be provided for programs designed to improve the focus on STEM subjects in primary and secondary schools. </p>
<p>The government will also establish a “Commonwealth Science Council”, chaired by the prime minister, to advise the government on areas of national strength, current and future capability and on ways to improve connections between government, research organisations, universities and business.</p>
<p>The government will host a series of roundtable sessions in coming months to consult with business and the research sector on the policy.</p>
<p>A panel of experts responds below.</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Joanna Howe, Lecturer in Law at University of Adelaide</strong></p>
<p>Today’s announcement by the government of a number of changes to the subclass 457 visa program represents a missed opportunity to properly reform Australia’s approach to temporary skilled migration. There is genuine public concern that temporary migrant workers are being used in areas where no skill shortage exists, thereby displacing job opportunities for Australian workers. This point was recognised by the recent independent review into the subclass 457 visa program, with the final report identifying that two core questions of the program, namely “proving that the position cannot be filled by a local worker and determining the skilled occupations that are used for the programme” are “not well served by the current policy approaches and can be improved by adopting a more robust evidence- based approach”. Yet, the government has sidestepped both these issues in the reform package announced today and ignored the report’s recommendations for a ministerial advisory council to provide expert advice on the composition of the occupational shortage list used by employers to access temporary migrant labour.</p>
<p>The decision to streamline the application process for low risk applicants is a positive one, as is the proposal to increase the sponsorship approval period for start up companies. Yet, ironically, a reform that would offer far more efficiency gains and was recommended by the independent review, but has not been adopted by the government, is the abolition of employer-conducted labour market testing. This would greatly aid employers and the Department of Immigration but the government seems unwilling to tackle this reform because it would be difficult to get through the Senate. Yet, the weight of scholarly evidence and indeed, the OECD’s recommendations on this point, suggest that independent labour market testing is a far better alternative.</p>
<p>A concerning development is the government’s proposal to weaken the English language requirement. This is currently a minimum of five across the four competencies (reading, writing, speaking and listening). The main function of the English language proficiency requirement is to ensure a 457 visa holder will not be exploited. If temporary migrant workers have lesser language skills, this could leave them <a href="https://theconversation.com/457-visa-reformers-should-remember-our-shady-skilled-migration-history-27717">vulnerable to potential health and safety risks</a> in the workplace. </p>
<p>Another concerning reform is the proposal to freeze the Temporary Skill Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) at its current level and to review the role of the TSMIT in two year’s time. Like a strong English language requirement, the TSMIT has a key role in protecting the integrity of the program overall. It was introduced following the Deegan Review into the 457 visa to act as a salary floor ensuring a visa holder’s wage was sufficient to maintain a reasonable standard of living given the lack of access to welfare and tax benefits available to local workers.</p>
<hr>
<p>*<em>Ian Maxwell, Adjunct Professor at RMIT
*</em></p>
<p>The concept of promoting STEM skills in schools addresses the continuing slide in the quality of high school graduates in these areas – as I have heard anecdotally from friends that teach these subjects at university. In fact, in Australia we have far too many university graduates in science and engineering and the result is that (a) there is downwards pressure on graduate salaries (further reducing the quality of people entering these degrees) and (b) there is an increase in the number of people that have science and engineering degrees that go onto to work in unrelated areas. My personal preference would be to promote special purpose high schools with a focus on science and engineering where we can put our limited resources into a fewer number of highly skilled and motivated students.</p>
<p>The idea that we in Australia accept international standards and risk assessments for certain product approvals is a great one. For too long, especially in the more mature industries, we have seen oligarchies in Australia exploit standards organisations in order to keep out foreign competition. This has had two unwanted consequences; firstly, it has put upward pressure on relative prices for Australia customers (due to less competition), and, secondly, it has acted as a disincentive for Australian producers to expand their focus overseas. The question is whether this new principal only for newly emerging standards, or if this brush will also be run over existing standards.</p>
<p>The government says it will provide A$188.5 million to fund “Industry Growth Centres” in five key sectors. There are very few details so it is hard to comment on this one other than to say that this represents a (mean) expenditure of $37 million for each of the so-called growth sectors and it would be pretty silly to expect any significant national economic outcomes from such low levels of expenditure. </p>
<hr>
<p>*<em>Jim Minifie, Productivity Growth Program Director at Grattan Institute
*</em></p>
<p>For a refreshing change, the Industry and Competitiveness Agenda is a readable document that clearly sets out what the government has done and aims to do in pursuit of four goals (business environment, labour force, infrastructure, industry policy).</p>
<p>While the “have done” list includes some questionable calls like ending carbon pricing and the “will do” list includes some questionable commitments like the paid parental leave scheme, the concrete new initiatives announced in the Agenda look broadly sensible and do not cost much. Three of the initiatives could turn out to be big contributors to startups, gains from trade, and skilled migration. The program offers substantial spending on apprenticeships, and several smaller funded programs. </p>
<p>Reforms to the Employee Share Scheme (ESS) taxation arrangements are overdue. Paying employees partly in shares or share options can be a great way for cash-strapped start-ups to reward employees while burning through a minimum of cash, but since 2009, Australian start-up employees could have to pay tax at issuance. Start-up employees have been in the absurd position of having to pay tax well before their shares can be sold for cash. While some start-ups have found ways around the restrictions, many say the rules sorely limited the value of share schemes in Australia. Shifting the point of taxation back will make make it much easier for start-ups to make attractive offers to their employees. </p>
<p>A tougher test on the creation of Australian standards is also welcome and overdue. Before a new Australia-specific standard can be set, regulators will need to show that there is a good reason to introduce one. Government will also apply the new test to existing Australian standards, not only new ones. Standards can be a two-edged sword: they can reduce the costs to buyers of assessing quality; but they can also be used to benefit firms whose products meet the standards by restricting competition. The reforms should also help Australian exporters achieve production scale by using a single certification for domestic and international markets.</p>
<p>Reforms for skilled migration are sensible as well, if relatively minor. Research overseas has shown that skilled migrants do not take jobs away from locals, but instead can boost their incomes. Skilled migrants can make locals more productive, start businesses that employ locals, or help local firms plug into international networks. Anecdotally, technology firms in some cases have had difficulty attracting top international talent. It’s less clear whether clearing the way for so-called significant and premium investors will add much value; in principle, reducing the barriers to equity capital inflow could be useful as investors can start new businesses where they live. Australia’s dividend imputation rules do probably bias foreign investment towards debt rather than equity, so there may be a broader case for to attract foreign equity including through investor visas. </p>
<p>STEM education in Australian schools has lagged, with enrolments falling in the 2000s, and many schools saying they are short of teachers with strong mathematics and science qualifications. While questions can be raised about whether the demand is there for tertiary STEM graduates, it’s much easier to make the case for stronger secondary STEM education, which creates options for students and builds foundation skills. </p>
<p>Finally, five Industry Growth Centres will get seed grants and will be able to apply for further funding. The model brings to mind the Innovation Precincts of the previous government. The focus areas (food/agribusiness; mining technology and services; oil, gas and energy; medical technology; and advanced manufacturing) are not a million miles from those suggested by the Business Council of Australia’s work with McKinsey. The logic for a subsidy is that firms can be reluctant to innovate where they expect others will capture benefits. </p>
<p>Australian universities do not score well on “translation” to industry. The logic for the sectors chosen seems to be that the payoff may be biggest in large or rapidly developing sectors. While a case can be made for action, the evidence base for the value of such programs is relatively weak. As long as the programs are built from the beginning with evaluation built in (and funded), they have some chance of paying off and will at least teach us about what doesn’t work. </p>
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<p><strong>John Rice, Associate Professor in Strategic Management at Griffith University</strong></p>
<p>The promise of $185 million to establish five new “Industry Growth Centres” (in the areas of food and agribusiness, mining equipment, technology and services, oil, gas and energy resources, medical technologies and pharmaceuticals; and advanced manufacturing sectors) can be seen as a re-packaging of funds that have previously supported the eleven “Industry Skills Councils”, albeit with a focus on innovation rather than skills and training quality. Handily, the acronym doesn’t change!</p>
<p>Notable sectoral absences among the newly established centres are the service industries in Australia – clearly not a good omen for those industries that have not been favoured by inclusion in the narrow mandates of the new centres. In terms of governance arrangements, the new centres are clearly industry driven, while the sidelined skills councils were, to a greater or less degree, tripartite in nature with a clear role for unions.</p>
<p>What is lacking is a clear policy framework for industry development that encompasses skills, investment and innovation. The previous Labor government created a bricolage of bodies in the skills and innovation area with overlapping responsibilities (that even insiders struggled to understand), extraordinary bureaucratic waste and scams that siphoned State VET funding.The current government has rationalised many of these bodies, but today’s announcements in VET and innovation replace the bricolage with an equally unacceptable patchwork.</p>
<p>The Minister also announced half a million dollars in funding to assess the development of P-TECH-like programs in Australia. These have been developed in the US and link private employers, educational providers and (generally) low socio-economic students. In Australia, private firms have accessed public funds previously to train their employees – and generally this has not gone well. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/scrap-employer-incentives-new-report/story-e6frgcjx-1226111222799">Anecdotes of burger flippers being surreptitiously enrolled</a> in VET programs as a means of siphoning public funds haunted the sector a few years ago. It is important that P-TECH does not emerge as a similar scam.</p>
<p>Suspending my natural cynicism, however, linking employers and trainees is a good thing if it is accompanied by a sense of mutual obligation. It would be tragedy to invest heavily in narrow skills sets that become worthless if a multinational employer opts to leave Australia. As such, skills should be relevant and generic, and not focused too narrowly on the processes and systems used in specific firms.</p>
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<p>*<em>Rachel Wilson, Senior Lecturer at University of Sydney
*</em></p>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02188791.2014.924387">Research</a> has shown that educational attainment (reading, science and numeracy on PISA) and IMF measures of competitiveness are highly correlated. In Australia, however, we have <a href="http://eprints.qut.edu.au/73153/1/Continuing_decline_of_science_proof.pdf">declining participation</a> and <a href="http://www.acer.edu.au/documents/PISA-2012-Report.pdf">levels of attainment</a> in STEM education that threaten future economic competitiveness. Contrast this with the massive investment, strong participation and high levels attainment in STEM among our competing and neighbourhood economies, like <a href="http://www.acola.org.au/PDF/SAF02Consultants/Consultant%20Report%20-%20China.pdf">China</a>, or <a href="http://www.acola.org.au/PDF/SAF02Consultants/SAF02_STEM_%20FINAL.pdf">with others</a>, and the picture looks grim – we risk being left behind. Therefore this policy attention is very welcome and needed.</p>
<p>My concern is that it is still a very modest investment and is not targeted for the best bang for our buck. Provision of teaching resources is important but not as important as teacher professional development programs – particularly those focusing on teacher pedagogical content knowledge in STEM. There is evidence that those entering the teaching profession also have declining participation and attainment in science, math and technology; and current efforts to lift teacher quality are not focused on these areas. There is no requirement for teachers to have completed intermediate level maths or any science for HSC – and many do not.</p>
<p>The focus on a pilot program and Summer schools for students too, while admirable, will not have wide reach. Indeed there have been many such programs promoting students interest in STEM and innovation in schools over the past two decades, yet concurrently many students have dropped study in these fields and our attainment levels among 15-year olds are <a href="http://www.acer.edu.au/documents/PISA-2012-Report.pdf">declining</a>. More attention needs to be paid to teacher knowledge and pedagogy in STEM, in early childhood through to university, and on structural policy issues relating to how STEM is valued, or not, within educational curricula. In NSW the requirement for either maths or science at HSC was dropped in 2001 and <a href="http://www.afr.com/p/national/education/australia_maths_crisis_I3P1MZ7bcKJKqiyOSnGDVM">since then numbers have been in decline</a>. We cannot hope that programs to lift interest among students, so proliferate among education systems worldwide, will alone make a difference to our current position. Braver reform is needed.</p>
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The federal government has released its National Industry Investment and Competitiveness Agenda, committing around A$400 million towards “industry growth centres”, new tax incentives for employee share…Charis Palmer, Deputy Editor/Chief of StaffAlexandra Hansen, Deputy Editor and Chief of Staff, The Conversation AUNZLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.