Image Source: REUTERS
The Singaporean government has taken a new approach to help their businesses by introducing robot workers. These machines will take over tasks that human beings have previously done.
The restrictions on human employees have made it difficult for businesses to find people who can work. This is where robots came into play.
Between December 2019 and September 2021, the number of foreign workers declined by 235,700 – a labor industry that the city-state greatly depends on. The manpower ministry said that this development aid in the speed-up of the “pace of technology adoption and automation” by companies.
The four-legged robot named Spot works at a construction site for Gammon and sends data to their company control room regarding work progress on mud and gravel.
According to the General Manager of Gammon, Michael O’Connell, “Replacing the need for manpower on-site with autonomous solutions is gaining real traction.” He told the media that ‘Spot’ is a way for the company to cut costs as the employment halved the required manpower for the job.
O’Connell believes that many companies ought to follow suit as it will become a trend, and it is ‘there to stay.’
The Singaporean National Library is also taking advantage of the benefits of two shelf-reading robots that can scan up to 100,000 books.
“Staff need not read the call numbers one by one on the shelf, and this reduces the routine, and labor-intensive aspects,” the assistant director of the National Library Board said.
Robots have also already made their way into a number of different jobs that directly interact with consumers. Over 30 metro stations plan on using them in daily operations soon.
Chief Executive of Town Digital, Keith Tan, said that the rise of robot workers would automate business systems. According to Tan, it solved the “biggest pain point” in food and beverage, which is finding staff.
“We always want to have some kind of human touch,” one commuter said. These comments also echo among consumers who feel that human interactions are better and more effective.
