Category Archives: Automation

The rise of big data and the Internet of Things (IoT) come with huge potential for forward-thinking organizations. But they also pave the way for greater security challenges since both political entities and for-profit cybercriminals look to compromise IT defenses and gain complete access to network services or data.

ABI Research noted that security automation may offer the fastest route from existing security structures to adaptive solutions based on artificial intelligence (AI) frameworks. But this road isnt easy how do companies overcome new challenges on the way to emergent security AI?

Computer Business Review explained automated security processes are an essential part of empowering skilled security staff. Using current methods, many breach discovery efforts take 200 days or more, which gives attackers plenty of time to break down defenses, grab what they came for and disappear.

Huntsman Security CEO Peter Woollacott argued in Computer Business Review that the problem stems from dependence on manual processes to sort data and reach conclusions. While all of the information is coming in at machine speed, they are always underwater, making it impossible to gain ground, he said. Automation could help alleviate this issue by giving security specialists the time and space they need to identify key threat vectors and shore up infrastructure weakness.

Woollacott also emphasized specificity, noting that analysts come on board to solve problems, [like] the surgeon comes on board to cut, not to push the patient from the ward into the theater and wash them down. By relying on security professionals end to end, emerging threats and potential fixes may go unnoticed. Automating parts of the process, such as data collection and baseline analytics, allows companies to both save time and develop better security strategies.

But giving human analysts room to run is only the first step. Ideally, automation can help drive another key area of security advancement: emergent AI. Its no easy task, since designing truly emergent AI solutions which can intelligently respond to real-time security events rather than simply as their programming dictates requires machines with both the speed to access big data in real time and the ability to learn independently.

As noted by the ABI Research study, automation here can be a double-edged sword if not handled properly. Giving AI too much responsibility too soon could open up organizations to serious data breaches or record-keeping compromises.

Its no surprise, then, that many companies prefer human-AI partnerships that allow experts to leverage the broad knowledge of intelligent machines while retaining control over eventual outcomes. Increasing automation of threat analysis, historic data comparison and information gathering should further enhance these partnerships, ideally making it harder to identify where human expertise ends and machine capability begins.

Automation is a critical facet of the evolving cybersecurity market. While its immediate value stems from the ability to reduce manual process volume, this is just the beginning. Human-machine pairings, combined with improved data collection, continual learning and complete network access, should help pave the way for emergent security AI that is able to automatically and assertively defend corporate interests.

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Automation Advancement: The Road to Emergent Security AI? - Security Intelligence (blog)

Joe Ferri

Our reliance on automation creeps into every area of business, not only into communications. You must keep in mind, however, that current technology cannot replace leadership (and probably wont either, at least for the near future). We humans can and should augment our abilities with the latest available tech, making use of its time-saving and productivity components. Similarly, we must update our own skillsets regularly, if only to just keep pace with the advances ofthe automation in foodservice.

Robots, artificial intelligence (A.I.), and the internet of things (IOT) are all coming to a foodservice operation near you. Being a master of, and not a slave to, these initiatives ought to be the goal of everyone, especially managers and would-be managers. Automation in our industry will be redefining all our roles from here on out.

Presently, we cant rely upon any of these tools for all but the most rote tasks, although there are plenty of those that can be disrupted, thus driving out inefficiencies.

So, what is it that we humans will be doing? Overseeing burger-flipping droids? Scheduling fry-bots? Programming autonomous delivery vehicles? Cleaning up the mess when one of these goes astray? Yes, absolutely, sure and you-betcha!

Were already doing some of this right now.Much of our world has defaulted to the self-service mode, due in part to the constant barrage of apps being introduced. Integrating people with systems represents the biggest challenge to our industry.

Forces at play, including the rising minimum wage, health insurance uncertainties, and a plethora of unfunded government mandates have conspired to make the foodservice industry ripe for automation. Add to these, our reliance on mobile devices, a shrinking pool of willing available talent, and shifting traffic patterns, and you have the perfect storm for disruption.

Managing all of it will fall upon those who have mastered the latest techniques, intuitively knowing which buttons to push, and which tasks to delegate.The alternative to getting ahead of the changes lying ahead: Will there be a robot managing you?

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Management By George (Jetson): Automation In Foodservice - Total Food Service (registration)

Via iGeneration,it seems that the Workflow app is in maintenance mode and unlikely to gain any new features in the foreseeable future. According to an email reply a userreceived from Workflow support, there are no further updates planned for the automation appalthough theywill continue to maintainits existing functionality presumably with occasional bug fix releases.

When Apple acquiredWorkflow in March, it remainedavailable on the App Store,manyfans of the app saw this as a signal it was not going to be abandoned. This does not seem to be the case however.

When the Workflow acquisition was announced, the app was made free. Apple has since refunded some of the user base who paid for the app previously.

In the email reply iGeneration shared with 9to5Mac, the Workflow representativeleft little room for ambiguity.No new features are coming to the app (including no new updates to the gallery of pre-builtworkflows to choose from). Heres the text of the email:

We are no longer provide the ability to submit workflows to the Gallery, as we have no further planned updates for Workflow.Overall, we are continuing to support Workflows current functionality and have no plans to end support.

Apples plans for the Workflow team are unclearalthough the most obvious inference is that the company wants to build more advanced automationfeatures into iOS itself. The Workflow appshould probablybe seen as a stop-gap offering until somethingis included in the operating system natively.

As a third-party app, Workflow always faced limitations on what it could do. It would be logical to expect an Apple approach to iOS automation to be much more streamlined and morecapable.

Perhaps iOS 11 will give more visibility on Apples wider plans for professional iPhone and iPad users.Theres also the possibility that the Workflow team is now working on something completely different inside Apple and that the buyout was more of a talent acquihire.

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Workflow automation app has no 'further updates planned' following Apple acquisition - 9 to 5 Mac

By the early 1990s, automation technology, often referred to at the time as computer integrated manufacturing (CIM), existed for lights-out productionthe ability to make a product without direct human manipulation. However given the large production runs required to justify the costs, the economics of swapping labor (OpEx) for machines/robots (CapEx) were rarely positive, resulting in patchy adoption. Yet the future may have been foreseen.

Further challenging the return on investment (ROI) from automation at the time, and for the subsequent decades, was the offshoring of work to low-cost countries. Why build a relatively inflexible automated facility locally when competitive advantage can be maintained with a flexible manufacturing capability in a developing country?

In the last few years, however, automation made significant stridesnot just in what the technology can do, but also in the ease and speed of setup. This enabled batch sizes to shrink, driving a flexibility that, to many, could be described as agile manufacturing. Technologies such as computerized knitting, 3D printing and robotic cutting are transforming manufacturing. In addition, robotic process automation (RPA) and cognitive technologies, like natural language processing and speech recognition, are redefining what is considered routine in processes and, therefore, subject to potential automation.

With these advances in process and production automation, and the associated transference of operational to capital expense, what is the potential impact to the economics of offshoring? If an Adidas Speedfactory foretells the future, if we havent seen peak offshoring yet, we could be close to it.

The Speedfactory, while only representing a small fraction of Adidas total production output, is based near the end consumer, with initial facilities in Bavaria, Germany and Atlanta. Each factory will employ 160 people to do the work of over 1,000 in their more traditional Asia-based plants. It is not a truly lights-out facility, but is full-stream manufacturing, starting at raw materials and culminating in finished product. Rather than just a postponed customization, final assembly and inspection facility, it is a pilot for expansion at scale.

Adidas emphasized the agility of its Speedfactories, citing the need to react quickly to fickle consumer tastes and the associated dynamic demand patterns. However, it is interesting to look at the ratio of less than one job in Bavaria for every 5-plus jobs in Asia.

There is a commonly held understanding among economistsalthough subject to challenge by politiciansthat of those jobs that were lost from offshored industries, more than 80 percent were lost to automation and less than 20 perent of the jobs were actually physically relocated. Critically, though, it still made economic and strategic sense to leverage the available automation technologies in-situ offshore and realize a labor-cost arbitrage advantage.

It is quite possible, with the latest technologies constantly redefining what is considered routine and subject to automation, that we may see another 80 percent reduction in traditional roles. RPA can effectively automate the routine elements of a process, while still effectively integrating the non-routine elements that benefit from value-add human intervention. A 2013 study published by Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne examined the probability of computerization across occupations and found that 47 percent of workers in America had jobs at high risk of automation. In the traditional outsourced and offshored industries, the percentage is higher.

So, what could this mean for the future of offshoring?

Over the years, there were many reasons to offshore. The lower cost of labor was always a particularly compelling argument, along with innovation partnerships and proximity to raw materials. The latter reasons will likely be less impacted by technology developments. Automation, and the associated shift in demand to differentiated creative skills to deal with the non-routine circumstances, however, is shaping the workforce of the future, and will directly affect the shape and value of offshore operations.

We have to expect that the offshore providers will continue to adapt, as they have been doing already with the adoption of automation technologies in their facilities and the creation of non-routine services. However, as automation homogenizes production and services around the globe, and consumers expect faster, more intuitive and personalized experiences, the pendulum may swing back towards providing facilities that are geographically local to the customer.

Illustrative of this is a USA-based outsourcing company that claims that it can reduce clients costs by up to 70 percent through a combination of automation software with U.S.-based employees, but only between 20 and 40 percent by shifting IT work to a developing economy.

We know that the offshore providers will not stand idly by and watch their business erode. However, with many facilities at least partially owned by multinationals, the chance that we will see more onshoring similar to the Speedfactory is very high. So, with production automation technologies driving us to an inflection point, the percentage of production capacity offshored may now be at or near peak.

From a process automation perspective, it is less clear given that the technologies are relatively less mature. However, the timeline to largely negate the labor cost advantages of process offshoring is going to be shorter. In production and process automation, the maturity of todays technology is such that the business case to offshore or remain offshore is likely to need compelling strategic reasons, as the economics and ROI of offshoring erode.

Peter Cook is the vice president of procurement and supply chain at The Smart Cube. The Smart Cube is a global analytics firm that delivers analytics and research services to Fortune 1000 businesses, financial services institutions and management consulting firms. The Smart Cube has conducted more than 28,000 studies to date across virtually every major industry, function and region through its global team of more than 600 analysts.

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Did We Reach Peak Offshoring? How Automation Could Impact the Workforce of the Future - Supply & Demand Chain Executive

SUDBURY, MA U.S.A. (April 13, 2017) On May 9 -11 2017, at the RAPID + tct Show Methods Machine Tools Inc., a leading supplier of precision machine tools, 3D printing technology and automation, will be showcasing a revolutionary cell solution designed to make quantum leap production increases in 3D manufacturing throughput. The first-of-its-kind automation cell, to be displayed in booth # 2637, combines additive manufacturing with robotics and subtractive processes, providing fast, highly efficient finished 3D part production.

Were really excited about this full production cell which addresses how manufacturers can successfully integrate necessary post-process machining operations in a high productivity, end-to-end solution, said Methods 3D Inc. General Manager Benjamin Fisk.

The 20-foot Methods cell includes a 3D-printed product in-feeding station which shuttles 3D parts on build plates into a FANUC C600 EDM machine that makes a cut between the parts and build plates. In the next station a FANUC robot snaps the plates from the printed parts and transfers the parts to a FANUC RoboDrill for a final machining operation.

This automated lights-out manufacturing cell was designed to drastically reduce the total time to complete parts from 3D printing to final post-processing, added John Lucier, National Automation Manager at Methods Machine Tools, Inc. It can easily quadruple total part throughput while eliminating manual labor.

The cell demonstrates Methods strength in designing innovative automation solutions for both additive and traditional manufacturing. Methods automation builds flexible automation systems for customers throughout North America, utilizing robotics and a full range of precision machine tools. Methods 3D partner 3D Systems Corporation, the originator of 3D printing and a pioneer of future 3D solutions, will be exhibiting 3D printers and production applications in booth # 911, and in # 2525 which is adjacent to Methods booth.

The RAPID + tct Show, billed as North Americas foremost event for discovery, innovation and networking in 3D manufacturing, is being held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburg, PA. The event runs from May 8-11. Exhibits are open May 9 -11.

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Methods to Show Automation Cell - Advanced Manufacturing

Armagh Observatory eyes automation move - BBC News BBC News The end may be in sight for one of the world's longest-running series of manual weather observations. After more than 200 years of tradition, Armagh ... and more »

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Armagh Observatory eyes automation move - BBC News - BBC News

If automation has played its part in rising structural employment and, for that matter, rising underemployment too (it may be a subjective test, but it says something that, according to a 2016 PayScale survey nearly a half of American workers consider themselves underemployed), it is logical to assume that it will have had an effect on pay as well.

Enter the IMF (Bloomberg reports):

The advance of technology is the biggest reason workers are earning a shrinking slice of the income pie, according to a new study by the International Monetary Fund. Labors share of national income declined in 29 of the worlds 50 biggest economies between 1991 and 2014, the IMF said in a study released Monday.

Analysis suggests technology is the largest contributor to the change in labor shares in the large majority of countries, it said.

The IMFs finding is significant because economists have been debating whats to blame for decades of sluggish wage growth. President Donald Trump has blamed trade with countries such as China and Mexico for hurting American workers and hollowing out the nations manufacturing sector. The IMF study suggests technology is a bigger driver.

About half the decline in national labor shares can be traced to the impact of technology, according to the study, which is part of the World Economic Outlook. The full outlook, including the funds forecasts for global growth, will be released April 18 in Washington.

Predictions of the futureand the IMFs are no exceptionare notoriously fallible, but this report (at least as described) concerns what has already taken place. It is not too much of a stretch to think that the trends it highlights will continue.But it is a considerable stretch to work out what to do about them.

On a brighter note (until you stop to think about the implications, which are, incidentally, far worse for China than for the U.S.), click on this link to see an army of robots working in a Chinese warehouse. Its a remarkable, if somewhat disturbing, sight.

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Robbie the Robber: Automation and Pay - National Review

Robots: Love them or hate them, there's no denying employees in certain industries are going to lose jobs to them.

Many manufacturing jobs have been replaced by automation and offshoring, with 13 to 25 percent of specific machine-working jobs estimated to be lost over the next decade.

A 2013 study found up to 47 percent of American workers have jobs that have the potential to be replaced by automation.

But are these rather alarming statistics really giving us the full picture? Even with automation, its hard to believe there wont be any use for qualified workers.

Automation is not as new of a concept as you might think.

Technology has always advanced to the point that it can replace tasks commonly performed by humans. Look no further than the advent of the ATM and self-checkout.

But automating the tasks of bank tellers and cashiers didnt make people disappear from those industries. In fact, the number of workers in these occupations grew just like industrial robots have created upward of 5 million new jobs.

Marketing is another industry in which automation is breeding efficiency and innovation.

On average, 49 percent of businesses use marketing automation software, and its driving a 14.5 percent boost in sales productivity and a 12.2 percent drop in marketing overhead.

And rather than destroy the marketing industry, the trend created new executive roles such as the chief marketing technologist, as well as lower-level positions such as automation specialist, data scientist, and content curator.

While brick-and-mortar jobs may diminish with automation, back-end operations (including customer service, IT, human resources, logistics, management, etc.) are quickly ramping up to not only create more jobs, but also rescope current positions.

In customer service, for example, AI bots can be programmed to greet guests and answer simple, common questions, freeing up human employees' time to handle more complex or sensitive customer service situations.

Even with machines taking over, theres always going to be a need for human labor and expertise to run, troubleshoot, and fix them.

Technology doesnt displace jobs it creates new departments, companies, and even industries.

Ive seen it happen personally.

Back in the late '90s, there was a team on the Microsoft campus looking to disrupt the travel industry by allowing customers to search for flights and other travel-related information using a young invention called the internet. When Expedia was spun out of Microsoft, it changed the way people book flights, hotels, and car rentals.

And were just one of the many examples of machine automation enhancing the travel industry.

Passports are being automated in different ways around the world. The U.S. uses an Automated Passport Control program to help citizens arriving home from vacation bypass long, sluggish customs lines.

Three major airports in New York City have an airport virtual assistant (or AVA, though you can also call her Avatar) that works around the clock answering travelers' questions.

These technologies arent killing the travel industry nearly 1 million people were hired in the hospitality industry in October 2016 alone, and the air travel industry employs more than 470,000 people.

We didnt kill our industry with technology; we enhanced it.

You already know why automated data collection is a boon to marketers. That you even have that data available is a marvel of modern technology. So, instead of spreading unfounded fears about how machines and automation are destroying jobs, we need to focus on the jobs created by advancing technology.

The only way well stay competitive in this world is by harnessing the power of machines and automation.

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Automation won't destroy every marketing job - Marketing Tech

In a recent report, Forrester projected that 24.7 million jobs will be lost to automation by 2027. The research firm updated its future of jobs research to take into account how robots, automation, and artificial intelligence will impact the workforce over the next decade. While the findings indicate a job loss of 17% between 2017 and 2027, Forrester estimated that new technology will also create 14.9 million new jobs in the next decade -- equivalent to 10% of the workforce through 2027.

That data point of almost 25 million jobs lost is a bit disturbing. And while most readers of this column are in the digital marketing, media, and advertising worlds where automation tends to mean automated media buying, i.e., programmatic media, as well as software, algorithms, and the like, the trend is unfurling across all consumer and B2B sectors.

Its happening within the auto industry, booking and reservations, shipping and receiving, travel, and consumer goods. Have you ever seen robots make pizzas? Theyre doing that now, so even the men and women who work the lines in quick service restaurants may not be making them for much longer.

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What are the implications of this automation nation? Where is the work for human eyes, ears, hands, and judgement? In digital advertising, at least, theres a bit of recalibration underway, as real human beings are reviewing ad content, manually, to determine whether its appropriate or not. This, after an outcry by marketers whose ads were showing up on YouTube next to offensive content. This human touch is important, though it wont stop the race to automation. You cant put the genie back in the bottle.

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Nearly 25M Jobs Will Be Lost To Automation By 2027 - MediaPost Communications

Forbes

Automation And Machine Learning: An Opportunity To Upskill Support Staff Forbes There are approximately 1.3 million lawyers in America. A law firm is also made up of support staff such as paralegals, legal assistants and legal secretaries. In total, are approximately 271,000 paralegals and 202,000 legal secretaries in the United ...

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Automation And Machine Learning: An Opportunity To Upskill Support Staff - Forbes