Category Archives: Automation

Paul Roberts (Ernst & Young NZ)

Ernst & Young New Zealand has acquired the business of boutique Auckland technology consulting firm Q4 Associates, a specialist in intelligent automation and robotics process automation.

EY said the addition of the Q4 Associates team would enable it to better serve clients, particularly in the financial services sector, by strengthening its existing intelligent automation and robotics process automation capabilities and bolstering the firm's financial services technology consulting team.

A team of 12 consultants are joining the EY New Zealand's financial services technology consulting team, with Q4 Associates co-founders Samantha Osborne, Maurice Dubey and Shayde Boryer joining the NZ leadership team.

The team will be based out of the Auckland office and will service clients across New Zealand and Australia.

Q4 Associates had a strong brand in the New Zealand across broad industry verticals, working with some of the largest institutions.

As we continue to grow our recently formed New Zealand financial services practice, it made sense to bring on board a team of highly experienced IA and RPA professionals," saidPaul Roberts, financial services leader at EY New Zealand.

The addition of the Q4 Associates team to our existing New Zealand financial services practice, along with a number of other significant hires and promotions over the last six months, means we are rapidly expanding our presence in the market and continuing to bring our financial services clients the deep industry knowledge and experience they need to help them address some of their most complex challenges.

Q4 Associates' Osborne said EY was looking to grow its existing team by bringing in talent with deep data skills and local market experience. The deal would be a great fit and create a compelling service offering in local and regional market.

"This is another great example of our ongoing commitment to providing leading professional services and tailored support to the financial services sector,as we work with clients to create an even stronger, more trusted and sustainable New Zealand financial services ecosystem," said Grant Peters, EY financial services managing partner, Oceania.

EY had worked alongside Q4 Associates in the market for some time, said Brian Collins, EY financial services intelligent automation leader, Asia-Pacific.

This expansion will help us to meet the growing demand for digitisation and automation services in Oceania, as our clients seek to provide the best solutions to their customers," Collins said.

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Tags Ernst & YoungEYRPArobotics process automationQ4 Associates

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Ernst & Young New Zealand absorbs automation specialist Q4 Associates - Reseller News

If wide-scale automation is not in the cards for McDonald's, then the answer to the fastfood giant's labor shortage seems to be focusing on human employees.CNBC reported in November 2021 that while 78% of restaurant operators said recruiting and retaining employees was their biggest challenge in July of that year, Kempczinski called the situation "challenging" but "not unsolvable," noting that stores had resorted to raising pay and increasing manager training. "We've got to kind of get after this the old-fashioned way, which is making sure we're a great employer and offering our crew a great experience when they come into the restaurants," Kempczinski told QSR.

QSRreported that McDonald's raised wages across the board at its 660 company-owned stores in 2021, bringing the average hourly pay up to $13 per hour, with a plan to increase average pay to $15 per hour by 2024. The federal minimum wage in the U.S. is $7.25 per hour. QSRalso noted that McDonald's corporate-owned stores consistently outperform those owned by franchisees who may not have increased wages as much.

While Kempczinski acknowledged there have been other challenges, including inflation and reducing some store hours, overall the brand is performing well. According to QSR, the relatively low-priced menu has drawn back customers with U.S. store sales up 3.7% while international stores have seen 13% growth, a rebound which has helped absorb the damage done by the brand's decision to eliminate its estimated 800 Russian locations in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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Why McDonald's Doesn't Think Automation Will Fix Staffing Shortages - Tasting Table

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Mining Automation Market - Forecasts from 2022 to 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Mining automation technology is the application of automation and digitalization in the field of mining. Mining is a field, that includes a large amount of human labour and working hours. As technological developments and advancements are leaping ahead in the present condition, the mining market and industries are compelled to enhance the mining field with the application of automation and technology.

Modernizing industrial plants with the latest technology and automation can bring about drastic changes in the mining industry by reducing labour, working hours, and production. The high level of safety offered by automation and digitalization in mining is positively influencing the growth of the mining field. The growth of the market emphasizing digitalization, higher production rates, safety, fewer labour, and working hours is compelling the industrial giants to modernise the mining sector with automation. Their mining automation market is highly valued in the global market.

High production, higher safety, less production time, and reduced human resources are the major driving factors, which have a positive impact on the mining automation market. The outbreak of COVID-19 disease has sent shock waves through the mining industry. Covid-19 had a large-scale negative impact on the mining automation market. The COVID-19-related health issues had resulted in a shortage of human resources in the mining automation field.

The impact of a pandemic on commodity prices increased the price and demand for raw materials in the mining field, which had a negative impact on the sound economy of the mining field. The isolated and long-term lockdowns imposed by government and health organisations also resulted in a lack of skilled labourers and technicians in the automation field of the mining industry. With the help and advancements of automation technology and digitalisation, the mining industry is showing good progress in the global market after COVID put break.

Increased production with automation

The mining rate and production have tremendously increased with the introduction of automation and technology in the mining industry. The application of software and automation in the important areas of mining makes the process more precise and effective. Automation and technology also took over the role of workers, which in fact reduced workers' pressure and also resulted in a smaller number of workers in the mining field. Automation also made the mining process more effective, as the tools and instruments were controlled and carried out with automation and software. The increased production rate with the application of automation increased the market value for mining automation.

Increasing need for workers' safety

The safety of workers from life hazards is a major factor in the mining industry. The need for worker safety is increasing day by day in the industrial fields. Approval and licences for large-scale mining can only be =attained by maintaining proper worker safety and a working environment. The licencing of governments and health organisations is primarily focused on creating a healthier working environment and conditions in the mining industry.

Automated mining makes the process safer and provides better working conditions for the workers engaged in the mining process. Hazardous and high-risk machines can be operated with the use of computers and control panels, which increases the need for automation and technology in the mining field. Ensuring safety in the mining industry by associating with the automation system and technology has a positive impact and hiked the value of the mining automation market.

Cost-effectiveness associated with digitalization

Replacing human effort with technology and automation in the operation of equipment can achieve a major reduction in the cost of the mining process. The operation cost of large-scale devices and equipment engaged in the mining process is tremendously decreased by the application of automation in the mining industry. Cost-effectiveness in large-scale mining is a major milestone, which can be effectively achieved by relying on and modernising, automation. The market's growth in automation mining mainly depends on the cost-effectiveness offered by technology and digitalisation.

The Asia Pacific regions hold a significant market share

The Asia Pacific accounts for the largest market share in the mining automation market. The immense natural resources in the Asia Pacific region account for the lion's share of the market in mining automation. The Asia Pacific region is also projected to achieve immense CAGR growth in the upcoming years. The Asia Pacific region is estimated to be the largest market for mining equipment and the largest implementation of mining automation technology globally. North America and South America hold the second and third major market shares in automation mining, followed by Europe and the rest of the world.

Market Segmentation:

By Technique

By Work Flow

By Geography

Companies Mentioned

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/lmtwsk

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Global Mining Automation Market (2022 to 2027) - Featuring Caterpillar, Komatsu and Hexagon Among Others - ResearchAndMarkets.com - Business Wire

Omni wants to be the human resources platform to rule them all or at least all HR-related tasks. The software enables HR teams to digitize employee records, automate administrative tasks like employee onboarding and time-off management, and integrate employee data from different systems. Based in Singapore, it is currently active there and in Indonesia, and plans to roll out in other Southeast Asian markets after localizing for employment regulations.

The startup announced today it is coming out of stealth mode with $2.4 million in an oversubscribed pre-seed round co-led by Alpha JWC Ventures and Picus Capital, with participation from FEBE Ventures, Basis Set Ventures, Ratio Ventures and Frances Kang at Horizons Ventures. It also included investment from angel investors including former executives at U.S. HR software firms Namely and Ultimate Software.

Omni HR had its soft launch in March 2022 and is already used by several companies, including Indonesian investment app Ajaib. The funding will be used to add more features to Omni, including a recruitment module by the third quarter and a performance enhancement module by the end of the year.

The company was founded in 2021 by Brian Ip, a former Goldman Sachs executive, and data engineer YC Chan. Ip told TechCrunch that he had previously worked in software investment at Goldman Sachs Growth Fund and looked at many HR tech deals, which is how he and Chan first learned about the industry.

Through research and talking to end users, we realized that HR software is a category that requires as lot of localization and there isnt a winning product for Southeast Asia yet, Ip said, adding that most local solutions only address limited functions, like payroll.

But most HR teams Chan and Ip spoke to wanted an all-in-one solution. Many were still using spreadsheets or basic payroll software. Examples of work they were doing manually that can be automated by Omni include onboarding new hires, recruiting employees, performance reviews, collecting documentation like employee IDs and preparing HR reports for internal management.

From a strategic point of view, what we think makes this startup opportunity even more interesting is that, we do not see HR software as a silo-ed tool used only by the HR department, Chan said. Instead, we see it as a system of record of employee information.

Almost every app or business function within a company, including software, devices, office admin and finance, can be connected to Omni, turning it into a software infrastructure layer.

In terms of competition, Chan said he sees two categories: local payroll software and imported software from overseas. He added that this disadvantage of payroll software is that they only provide basic admin functions around payroll calculation, and are not scalable. They also dont have features for performance appraisals, recruitment, onboarding and employee document management.

Imported HR software, on the other hand, is not localized, which means they lack features like payroll modules for Southeast Asian countries, local customer support and sometimes even modules like time off tracking or attendance management that are not built flexible enough to accommodate policies in one market, said Ip.

He added that Rippling and other top U.S. HR platform like Gusto and Namely are currently not available outside the United States. We believe that, even if they do expand internationally at some point, localization requirements and the geo focus will allow us to build a strong moat.

Localizing for each market can be quite complicated. HR managers in different countries need to collect different employee information. For example, in Singapore, employees provide the birth certificates of their children so companies can use them to apply for government reimbursements when they take childcare leave. On the other hand, companies in Indonesia collect multiple forms of ID information, including KTD (residents card), KK (family card) and NPWP (tax ID).

Each country also has different workflows. In Singapore, Ip said, the probation period of permanent staff can be extended, but in Indonesia a maximum of only three months is allowed, and it cannot be extended or renewed.

Payroll calculations also differ from country to country, and include factors like tax, pension and other statutory withholdings. Time off rules also vary. For recruitment, Omni can localize by connecting with local job boards instead of US-centered ones.

Singapore and Indonesia were chosen as Omnis first markets because the startups initial customer segment are companies in tech and tech-adjacent verticals, in particular other VC-backed companies, Ip said. He added that Singapore is possible the most mature market in Southeast Asia Asia in terms of software/cloud adoption and willingness to spend. Indonesia is one of the biggest, and rapidly growing, market opportunities in Southeast Asia.

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HR automation platform Omni wants to be the Rippling of Southeast Asia - TechCrunch

IFTTT is a free platform that allows you to create automations across an incredible number of apps, websites and devices by using (or creating your own) Applets.

Read on to discover everything you need to know about IFTTT, including what it is, how it works and the main differences between a free account and a paid subscription.

IFTTT or If This Then That is a platform that allows you to integrate different apps, devices and services to create automated responses and routines and build upon your smart home.

One of the key aspects of IFTTT is that you dont need to know how to code to create automations (although you can do so with a Pro+ account).

The clue to how IFTTT works is actually in its name If This Then That though the process is broken down into Services, Applets, Triggers, Actions and Queries.

Services are the apps and devices that you connect using IFTTT, such as Twitter, Dropbox or your smartphone, while the word Applet describes how these Services will interact under automation.

Then there are Triggers, Actions and Queries.

Triggers are the This in any given Applet and usually begin with the word If, creating a condition for your automation. Queries are optional and exist alongside Triggers to provide more information.

Finally, Actions are the That in IFTTT. Actions describe the automation that will take place and often begin with Then or And.

Take the Applet If I add a new photo in Instagram, upload it to Dropbox, for example.

In this instance, posting a photo to Instagram is the Trigger and that image being uploaded to Dropbox is the Action. The Dropbox upload is an automatic response to you posting an image on Instagram.

You can create your own custom Applets or explore the huge library of Applets already available on IFTTT.

Yes and no.

There are three tiers to IFTTT: IFTTT Free, IFTTT Pro and IFTTT Pro+.

The free plan includes five Applets, standard Applet speeds, unlimited Applet runs, access to the mobile app and simple no-code integrations.

IFTTT Pro lets you keep 20 Applets, use the fastest Applet speeds, access multi-action Applets and contact customer support. It costs 2.10/month.

Then theres Pro+. This plan lets you access all of the above, use queries and filter code, access developer tools and connect multiple accounts. Pro+ users can also have unlimited Applets and get prioritised customer support when something goes awry. The most expensive plan is priced at 4.20/month.

Excerpt from:

What is IFTTT? All about the automation platform - TrustedReviews

Centralized, not decentralized; local servers, not hundreds of industrial PCs; software, not hardware: with the local server solution Edge Cloud 4 Production, Audi is initiating a paradigm shift in automation technology. After successful testing in the Audi Production Lab (P-Lab), three local servers will take over directing workers in the Bllinger Hfe. If the server infrastructure continues to operate reliably, Audi wants to roll out this automation technology the only one of its kind in the world for serial production throughout the entire Volkswagen Group.

Henning Lser, head of Audis Production Lab, pulls the plug on a server in Ingolstadts P-Lab. Simulated production in the Bllinger Hfe keeps going without interruption. Two other servers reliably continue controlling 36 cycles during the lab test in the P-Lab in Gaimersheim. Audi wants to be the first manufacturer in the world to turn to these kinds of centralized server solutions in cycle-dependent production. In the Bllinger Hfe near Neckarsulm, the Audie-tronGT quattro1and the R8 share an assembly line. The small-scale series e produced there are particularly well suited for testing projects from the P-Lab and trying things out for large-scale series.

With the Edge Cloud 4 Production, a few centralized and local servers will take on the work of countless expensive industrial PCs. The server solution makes it possible to level out spikes in demand over the total number of virtualized clients a far more efficient use of resources. Production will save time and effort, particularly where software rollouts, operating system changes, and IT-related expenses are concerned. What were doing here is a revolution, says Gerd Walker, Member of the Board of Management of AUDI AG Production and Logistics. We used to have to buy hardware when we wanted to introduce new functions. With Edge Cloud 4 Production, we only buy applications in the form of software. That is the crucial step toward IT-based production. For P-Lab boss Lser, the project is an operation at the heart of our automation technology and production management. Audi is the first manufacturer to put a centralized server solution into test operation in cycle-dependent production.

The crucial advantage of Edge Cloud 4 Production is that countless industrial PCs can be replaced along with their input and output devices and no longer need to be individually maintained. Process safety is also greatly improved. In the event of a disruption, the load can be shifted to other servers. In contrast, a broken industrial PC would have to be replaced. That takes time. On top of that, the solution reduces the workload for employees. In the future, thin clients capable of what is known as power-over-Ethernet will set the pace. These terminal devices get their electrical power via Ethernet cables and most of their computational power through local servers. They have USB ports for output devices. That enables managers directing workers to look at a monitor and see what needs to be mounted onto which vehicle. In the future, an oversized PC with processing and storage capacity will not be necessary for these tasks. Software-based infrastructures have proven themselves in data processing centers. Were convinced they will also work well in production, says Lser.

Together with the experts from the P-Lab, the IT managers around Christoph Hagmller, the Head of IT Services at Audi in Neckarsulm and co-manager for Production IT in the Bllinger Hfe, are rolling out the new solution. With its comparatively low unit and cycle numbers, the Bllinger Hfe is ideally suited to functioning as a real lab for testing the new concept in series production. Edge Cloud 4 Production has a hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI). This software-defined system combines all the elements of a small data processing center: storage, computing, networking, and management. The software defines functionalities like web servers, databases, and managing systems. The cloud solution can also be quickly scaled at will to adapt to changing production requirements. However, a public cloud link is out of the question due to productions stringent security requirements. Additionally, local servers make the necessary, very short latencies possible. These are the reasons why we install the servers near us. Thats also why we call the solution Edge Cloud: because its close to our shop floor environment, says P-Lab boss Lser.

The new IT concept also improves ease of maintenance and IT security. With industrial PCs, the patch cycles (the intervals between necessary updates) are usually longer. On top of that, updates can only be installed during pauses in production. With the cloud-based infrastructure, IT experts can roll out patches in all phases within a few minutes via the central servers. Moreover, IT colleagues install functionality updates in all virtual clients at the same time, such as a new operating system. Hagmller explains that the need for additional functionality will get increasingly elaborate and expensive in the future. He estimates that the cost of an update for instance, from Windows 10 to Windows 11 can be reduced by about one-third. Additionally, with the server solution, we arent dependent on loose timeframes in Production anymore. It gives ustremendous flexibility to ensure our software and operating systems are always completely up to date.

Both data processing centers in the Neckarsulm plant are slated for subsequent mass production. A fiber optic cable connects them with the Bllinger Hfe. According to Henning Lser, 5G will be relevant in the second stage. Thus far, a separate computer has been installed in every automated guided vehicle (AGV). Here too, experts must install costly security updates and new operating systems. It is conceivable that they could acquire new functionalities, but they are seldom transferable to their computers. We need a fast, high-availability network for that, says Lser. In our testing environment in the P-Lab, we have taken another step forward concerning 5G.

SOURCE: Audi

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Edge Cloud 4 Production: How Audi is revolutionizing factory automation - Automotive World

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Iguazio, the MLOps platform provider, and Sense, a market leader in artificial intelligence (AI) driven talent engagement for recruiting, today announced that the Iguazio MLOps platform has been selected to power a wide range of AI products aimed at increasing the efficiency and scalability of Senses AI operations. Sense is leveraging automation and AI to speed up the recruitment process, while delivering a hyper-personalized candidate experience.

Sense is a leader in talent engagement, with over 700 customers and an annual growth rate of over 100%. Sense provides the Sense AI Chatbot - an automated recruiting assistant that can engage with candidates 24/7, responding to their queries in real-time even when human recruiters are offline. It engages with candidates across SMS, mobile, and web, matches them to jobs, schedules interviews, and handles intelligent communications, including FAQs. The chatbot pairs conversational AI with automated communication and engagement workflows so organizations can engage with candidates at scale.

Sense has a large team of data scientists and machine learning (ML) engineers with deep expertise in conversational AI both voice and text. The teams challenge was building the complex natural language processing ( NLP) serving pipeline, with custom model ensembles, to track question-to-question context and enable sentiment tracking. Off the shelf chatbot solutions were not sufficient.

For this complex MLOps project, we needed that powerful mix of high-performance real-time serving graphs, NVIDIA accelerated computing, and the ability to scale up and down based on load, said Alex Rosen, Co-Founder and Head of Product at Sense. Iguazio was the best MLOps platform that provided all of these capabilities.

Sense chose Iguazio to build a robust, automated, real-time NLP pipeline. The solution leverages the connectivity of Iguazios MLOps platform and built-in feature store with the Snowflake Data Cloud to speed up feature engineering, deep integration on Amazon Web Services (AWS) to manage cloud consumption costs, and smart scheduling capabilities for NVIDIA accelerated computing to manage GPU usage in an efficient and scalable way. Iguazio, an NVIDIA AI Accelerated program member, also leverages NVIDIA AI software such as NVIDIA Triton Inference Server to deploy, run, and scale trained models from any framework on any GPU- or CPU-based infrastructure, and NVIDIA RAPIDS for accelerated data science.

Sense is one of the most innovative HR technology providers in the market today, commented Asaf Somekh, Co-Founder and CEO of Iguazio. The sophisticated way in which it is using NLP to automate recruitment is a game changer for its customers. We are proud to enable Sense to take its AI chatbot to the next level, with our partners AWS, Snowflake and NVIDIA.

Sense selected Iguazio through AWS Marketplace, which allowed all parties to accelerate and automate the procurement process. The Iguazio platform is deployed in AWS GovCloud, which gives government customers and their partners the flexibility to architect secure cloud solutions that comply with the FedRAMP High baseline; the DOJs Criminal Justice Information Systems (CJIS) Security Policy; and other compliance requirements. This procurement method paves the way for other enterprises to securely acquire and use the Iguazio platform in AWS Marketplace.

About IguazioThe Iguazio MLOps Platform enables enterprises to develop, deploy and manage AI applications in an efficient, scalable and repeatable way. Using Iguazio, enterprises can generate business value faster with AI, by accelerating the path to production and continuously rolling out new AI services in a fraction of the time and resources. Iguazio empowers organizations to run AI applications in real time, deploy them anywhere (multi-cloud, on-prem or edge), and bring to life their most ambitious AI-driven strategies. Enterprises spanning a wide range of verticals, including financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, smart mobility, telecoms and entertainment use Iguazio to solve the complexities of MLOps and create business impact through a multitude of use cases such as real-time fraud prediction, predictive maintenance and recommendation engines. Iguazio is backed by prominent investors such as Bosch, Samsung, Dell, Verizon Ventures, Pitango VC and INcapital Ventures. Iguazio brings data science to life. Find out more on http://www.iguazio.com.

About SenseSense delivers a leading AI-powered talent engagement platform that helps recruiting and talent teams to personalize their interactions with talent at every stage of the recruiting process. More than 700 organizations including Amazon, Dell, Kelly Services, Kindred Healthcare, and Sears rely on Sense to help accelerate hiring, strengthen their employment brand and exceed recruiting targets - all while delivering a personalized candidate experience. For more information, visit http://www.sensehq.com.

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Sense Selects Iguazio for AI Chatbot Automation with AWS, Snowflake and NVIDIA - Business Wire

Image source: Getty Images

Use these automation tips to grow your side hustle.

A side hustle is a great way to bring in extra money and diversify your income streams. By definition, a side hustle means you still have a main job and have to balance your responsibilities. The average side hustle earns an average of $686 per month, and those who spend 12 hours a week or more on their side hustle earn $1,122 per month.

The more time you invest in your business, the greater your potential to make more money with your side hustle. However, not everyone can find the time needed. Automating your side hustle can help you increase your income and save time without sacrificing the quality of your work. Here are three ways to automate and make the most of every minute.

Every business has standard workflows, processes, and repeatable tasks. Automating your workflows can help free up your time and attention. There are programs like Zapier and IFTTT that can automate repetitive tasks so they will run without your constant attention. These programs can connect with thousands of different applications to help streamline your business operations.

You can create multi-automated workflows that have up to 100 actions and automate an entire process. It can be something simple as sending new leads or customers a personalized handwritten note or a more complicated workflow, such as building your own custom customer-relationship manager (CRM) and sales processes.

According to a study from Zapier, those in marketing save the most time using automation tools. They save an average of 25 hours a week. IT professionals are close behind and save 20 hours a week. Here are other roles and how much time they save using automation:

If you have a side hustle, chances are you have to do all of these roles. The more you can automate, the more you can get done.

Social media is a great way to connect with customers and prospects. Automating your social media can help you optimize your social media. There are a number of automation tools such as Hootsuite, Bugger, and SocialPilot that can customize your social media campaigns. You can pre-write your tweets and posts and the programs will send them out during the most optimal times.

These tools can help maximize the amount of time you spend growing your accounts and engaging your audience. Automating your social media can also be useful for enhancing your brand and developing a content plan, and getting the maximum ROI from all social media efforts.

Email marketing is an effective way to market your business. For every $1 you spend on it, your average return on investment is $36. Programs such as ConstantContact, Aweber, and MailChimp can help create an automated email strategy. You can send an automatic welcome email when someone subscribes to your list. You can also send email reminders to finish shopping for shoppers who have abandoned their digital shopping carts.

Email automation software helps you segment build your email list and send timed emails to your subscribers. You can send out personalized messages on a schedule or when specific conditions are triggered. In fact, 30% of professionals state that the biggest benefit of marketing automation was the time it saves them.

Finding ways to automate your side gig can increase your efficiency, productivity, and reduce the number of mistakes you make. A whopping 2 out of 5 Americans (40%) currently have a side hustle. More people are starting side hustles, so it can help them become more financially independent. Following these tips can make yours even more successful.

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Automate Your Side Hustle and Save Up to 25 Hours a week - The Motley Fool

With the robots, one person can operate four robots and do more work in less time so a huge increase in productivity and lower operating costs. While food and beverage manufactures have utilized this automated robotic production processes for year now, they also have greeted technological advancement with some resistance. But the food and beverage industry in particular has a lot to gain by embracing automation and robotic technology.

Automationis not new to the food and beverage industry. A type of automation, known as process automation, is common in production facilitiesallover the world.These solutionsnormally come in the shape of advanced machinesthat haveanautomationaspect tothem. These machinesare typically manned by staff,who feed it withingredientsduring the inbound phase of production,which the machine then mixes, cuts or processes in a specific way.

Automation and robotic has the size and experience you need for large production lines. Whether you want to explore automation in material handling, assembly, or packaging, our engineers can build on our existing designs or create a custom solution. Our experience includes automating processes like flex feeding, sealing, case packing, palletizing, and more. We have the capacity and size to complete projects quickly. Were available for consulting, designing, and deploying automated solutions for big and small food and beverage applications.

Food and beverage automation and robotic is the strategic integration of technology across many processes. Food companies can streamline and optimize their processes using vision-guided robotic arms, automated guided vehicles, delta robots, and advanced inspection systems to guarantee rigorous food safety and quality standards, save labor costs and meet an ever-growing demand.

Todays modern food plants have a tough challenge. They need to produce high-quality products at high volume while containing costs. Thankfully, automation can help companies reach those goals and scale with companies as the industry grows. Food companies can integrate factory automation equipment for primary packaging, secondary packaging like case packers and tray packers, and material handling robotics for shipping. Now, almost every stage of food packaging can be improved with automation. When buying any product regularly, consumers want consistency. This is especially true when buying food. Flavor and texture are a big part of the experience and should be consistent each time someone consumes the same product. Automation can help with this by eliminating the chance of errors, so you get the same result every time. It also reduces the risk of product recalls.

Machine vision systemscan help with this. This technology relies on cameras and software to automatically check products for foreign material, read test strips identifying contaminated food or even identify contaminants that cant be seen with the naked eye, including cross contaminations that can affect those with allergies.

Automation means workers no longer have to perform repetitive, menial or dangerous tasks. For example, meat cutting is one of the most hazardous operations in food manufacturing. But, if automation is utilized, thisrisk is greatly reduced. Meat packing plants are now able to use robotic saws, which use computers to cut difficult pieces of meat while its still frozen. Using tools like this decreases the risk of injury while production is simultaneously accelerated. Automation also allows the workforce to focus on more critical and rewarding tasks that cannot be completed any other way.

Due to automation and robotic improving sanitation such as the more human contact with food products, the more the risk of contamination. Automated equipment limits the amount of human contact on food and beverages during packaging. Further, as technology advances to become more flexible and configurable, companies can improve logistics and quality.

The main benefits of automation and robotic in food and beverage industry is continue to transform food and beverage manufacturing companies throughout the supply chain and to their customers door. To fulfill their promises to customers, companies need to be agile, efficient, and safe. Integrating automated equipment in critical areas of production improves quality, efficiency, ergonomics, and sanitation. Consumer packaged goods companies need accurate and repeatable packaging processes. Individual packaging at high-cycle rates can be challenging, so companies that use robotics in their packaging lines can improve their throughput, efficiency, and quality. From raw product handling to primary packaging, secondary packaging, and palletizing, robotics has proven a high return on investment.

Companies have successfully deployed delta, or six-axis robots and advanced sensors to complete material handling, sealing, packaging, and palletizing in compact footprints. Vision-guided robotics are ideal for completing repetitive tasks such as bottle handling, bin picking, and tray loading quickly and efficiently. With the ecommerce boom, demand for varied pack counts and elaborate packaging is only increasing. Robotics are flexible, and planners can reconfigure the line at the computer to meet your goals. Opportunities for robotics in food packaging grow every year. The food industry has robust requirements for quality, speed, and profitability. Automation is not only an advantage anymore, its becoming a necessity.

Coming towards efficiency in terms of Staffing shortages have been common in many industries over the last two years. And while this is a big problem for most, food and beverage manufacturers are ripe for full automation systems. By utilizing robotics for food production, factories can be completely self-sufficient, not to mention work around the clock. Robots can also run self-diagnostics and collect performance data to help improve operations. All of this allows manufacturers to keep up with the ever-present demand for quality food and beverages, even with less staff. Food and beverage distributors on the other hand might not be able to implement full automation, but could utilise semi-automation. By using robotics for picking, moving and stacking products, fewer workers will be needed during loading, while still being more efficient than before.

Challenges for automation and robotic in food and beverages industry is that still a lot of questions for making sure machines are clean enough to handle food to potential cost and limitations as well as smart manufacturing to revolutionise the way food and beverage manufacturers operate, by providing accessibility to relevant, real-time information. Information-enabled manufacturing allows you to combat your biggest challenges like improve yield, drive productivity, mitigate security risks and optimise resource management.

Patil is assistant professor, Dairy Chemistry, Dairy Technology Department, Parul University of Technology, Vadodara; Saxena is a business analyst at Genpact, Bengaluru.

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Automation & robotics in food & beverage industry | FNB News - fnbnews.com

Luis Gonzalez, Chief Data Officer, AboitizPower & GM Data Innovations Power Industry, Aboitiz Data Innovation.The role of automation is pertinent to newly rising tech, especially in ever-growing and unpredictable industries such as power and energy. Delivering optimal results for the increased industrial demand of the energy sector requires the deployment of next-gen automation powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning. The novel entrance of robotics and automated solutions will help businesses in the power industry to inculcate growth and stabilise efficient consumption.

To learn more about the emerging technologies the power industry is adopting, the sectors challenges in meeting sustainability goals, and the role of automation in furthering its scalability, we interacted with Luis Gonzalez, Chief Data Officer, AboitizPower & GM Data Innovations Power Industry, Aboitiz Data Innovation.

Luis leads the experimentation and development of AI solutions in areas of key importance like power sustainability and positive societal impact. His expertise is backed by his extensive experience in digital transformation and machine learning adoption. He focuses on advisory and transformation on how to extract value from machine learning, ERP, analytics, IIoT, GIS, control systems, and other AI solutions for enterprise clients in Asia Pacific, North/South America, Europe and the Middle East.

Here are the most interesting excerpts from the interview:

In the various emerging subsets and derivatives of next-gen automation, what is the role of automation in the energy sector?The mandate to deliver power reliably, economically with low impact to the environment is an increasingly complex one that requires the orchestration of multiple partsfrom fuel futures, power and grid operations to consumption anticipation.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a powerful tool that is used to aid in the orchestration and forecast demand as well as manage the distribution of resources, to ensure that power is available at the time and place it's needed with minimal waste and impact to the environment. This is especially important in the renewable energy industry, where energy cannot be stored easily and optimising the power demand, time and location of where it is generated is particularly challenging. AI will also play an essential role in the worlds transition to clean energy by providing more accurate forecasting of supply and demand.

Maturing technologies such as cloud, also play a significant role in dismantling barriers to connectivity, scalability, and effective data management to provide seamless and instant connectivity and computing power that is scalable and at a lower cost.

Luis, your vast experience in deploying AI and automation in the power industry is commendable. Kindly elaborate your observations of the use cases of automation and the evolution of its developing technologies across the years in the power industry.For decades, we have implemented sensors and statistical approaches in control systems within the power industry. The real challenge, however, has been the inclusion of contextual responses and the interpretation of thousands of alarms. Most modern power plants are oversensored and lack real understanding of signal reach, which is a key aspect that maps decision making. The power equipment manufacturers, such as original equipment manufacturers (OEM) like Siemens or GE, have invested in the data collection and life prediction algorithms for the equipment they manufacture. However, the progression of AI in power requires that we build machine-led inferences and human-assisted monitoring and optimisation in a Transfer Learning approach where the AI models become more accurate as the human experts use them. It is early to say that full automation is possible, given that there is not enough understanding of the disruptors yet in our industry. The disciplines to make this possible already exist, yet only the academics who explore deep learning understand them well enough.

Currently, there is still a gap between the number of people who favour the acceleration of AI adoption and those who are operationalising solutions, over 80% of the region still in the early stage of AI adoption. My perspective is that, as the region accelerates its digital maturity and more AI engineering capabilities grow in startups, advisors, software solutions, operators and executives, we will begin to see a roadmap for true automation of power plants and grid operations in an orchestrated manner. As every grid is different and regulations governing the industry differ by country, it is very likely that each country will need to localise and develop solutions that work for their own market.

The energy sector, while undergoing rapid transformation, is navigating ways to combat the growing challenges of sustainability. How can automation ensure organisations meet their sustainability goals?Let's start by considering the current system of centralised power and multi parties grid operations, which produces inefficiencies in the distribution of megawatt hour (MWH) to where they are needed in time and demand. Furthermore, centralised power has significant benefits in generating at a lower cost, but the secret to begin reaching sustainability goals is conserving and delivering all generated power as best we can without losses. Schemes of power storage, efficient distribution optimisation, demand management, and distributed generation are all facilitated by data to define the where, when and how to best run said schemes with minimal CO2.

AI-supported automation can help organisations meet sustainability goals by providing ways to reduce emissions in power plants, enable carbon capture technologies, reduce outages and facilitate hybrid systems. Not only can AI predict potential volatility within the entire system, but it can also better identify efficiency gains through optimisation of generation, management of grids, placement of storage or sharing of power between generators or consumers.

We have seen how automation can help reduce carbon footprint through machine learning and predictive models. One of our successful use cases was the 28-Day Predictive Strength Model developed by ADI and Republic Cement. AI was used to predict cement quality, effectively optimising concentrations of raw materials, saving time and improving product quality through consistency of cement products. On the other hand, ADI and AboitizPowers machine learning model reduced the consumption of limestone and paved the way to explore new areas for operational excellence in one of its power plants.

How are renewable energy companies in APAC deploying intelligent automation and robotics? Give us a brief overview of what lies on the road ahead for automation in the energy sector.In the renewable space, weather prediction and early impact modelling is key not only to optimise potential power generation, but to also minimise expensive maintenance and maximise investment return. Robotics is not necessarily as present yet, however, we do have drone technologies aiding in the maintenance and inspection process of aeolic and photovoltaic fields. The real benefit for renewable companies from the adoption of learning algorithms, will be the facilitation of hybrid systems that can work with fuel based and renewable based generation as well as store power for grid resilience, peak load management and reduced CO2 and cost of operations.

Contrary to popular belief, the reality of our aggressive sustainability targets are not going to be achieved by finding a new energy intensive and zero carbon emissions fuel that can be adopted everywhere. This is wishful thinking as we are very dependent on our infrastructure to be able to sustain our demand for power and economic development. Rather, the way to achieve our goals is by designing and adopting hybrid systems across our grids and leveraging data to better understand, predict, simulate and prescribe these hybrid solutions, so as to incorporate the existing investments we have done in infrastructure, while replacing faster the more wasteful and inefficient parts of our grid.

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AI-supported automation can enable the use of carbon capture technologies: Luiz Gonzalez, AboitizPower - ETCIO South East Asia