Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Automation industry poised for growth

Outlook calls for double-digit growth in automation investment in 2021, survey shows.

Automation industry poised for growth

Automation investments are expected to increase 26% this year as more companies seek to add robotics and other technologies to streamline operations.

That’s according to a survey from Interact Analysis and the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), released this week. The groups surveyed more than 200 professionals at automation-related companies and found that most expect double-digit growth across the industry this year. They also said they expect automotive industry customers to lead that investment growth, followed closely by food and beverage companies. Respondents said they expect revenue growth of 24% and headcount growth of 20% at their own firms.


Survey respondents also weighed in on how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected their business. More than 31% said travel restrictions and the inability to see customers are the biggest challenges they currently face. Other challenges include meeting customer demand: 20% said they are unable to meet increasing demand while 19% said weak demand is their greatest problem. On the plus side, two-thirds of respondents said they believe that Covid-19 will no longer affect their business within the next 12 months.

The survey was conducted in February and March and was released in conjunction with the Automate Forward virtual trade show and conference, being held this week.

The Latest

More Stories

drawing of warehouse AMR bot with IOT data

North American manufacturers embrace “factory of the future”

Manufacturing enterprises in North America are breaking with tradition to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) as they seek to compete amid new technologies, consumer demands, and economic shifts, according to a report from the research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG).

That changing landscape is forcing companies to adapt or replace their traditional approaches to product design and production. Specifically, many are changing the way they run factories by optimizing supply chains, increasing sustainability, and integrating after-sales services into their business models.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

chart of women's portion of transport and storage jobs

Women hold only 12% of transportation and storage jobs worldwide

Women are significantly underrepresented in the global transport sector workforce, comprising only 12% of transportation and storage workers worldwide as they face hurdles such as unfavorable workplace policies and significant gender gaps in operational, technical and leadership roles, a study from the World Bank Group shows.

This underrepresentation limits diverse perspectives in service design and decision-making, negatively affects businesses and undermines economic growth, according to the report, “Addressing Barriers to Women’s Participation in Transport.” The paper—which covers global trends and provides in-depth analysis of the women’s role in the transport sector in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) and Middle East and North Africa (MENA)—was prepared jointly by the World Bank Group, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the International Transport Forum (ITF).

Keep ReadingShow less

How clever is that chatbot?

Oh, you work in logistics, too? Then you’ve probably met my friends Truedi, Lumi, and Roger.

No, you haven’t swapped business cards with those guys or eaten appetizers together at a trade-show social hour. But the chances are good that you’ve had conversations with them. That’s because they’re the online chatbots “employed” by three companies operating in the supply chain arena—TrueCommerce, Blue Yonder, and Truckstop. And there’s more where they came from. A number of other logistics-focused companies—like ChargePoint, Packsize, FedEx, and Inspectorio—have also jumped in the game.

Keep ReadingShow less
White House in washington DC

Experts: U.S. companies need strategies to pay costs of Trump tariffs

With the hourglass dwindling before steep tariffs threatened by the new Trump Administration will impose new taxes on U.S. companies importing goods from abroad, organizations need to deploy strategies to handle those spiraling costs.

American companies with far-flung supply chains have been hanging for weeks in a “wait-and-see” situation to learn if they will have to pay increased fees to U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement agents for every container they import from certain nations. After paying those levies, companies face the stark choice of either cutting their own profit margins or passing the increased cost on to U.S. consumers in the form of higher prices.

Keep ReadingShow less
phone screen of online grocery order

Houchens Food Group taps eGrowcery for e-com grocery tech

Grocery shoppers at select IGA, Price Less, and Food Giant stores will soon be able to use an upgraded in-store digital commerce experience, since store chain operator Houchens Food Group said it would deploy technology from eGrowcery, provider of a retail food industry white-label digital commerce platform.

Kentucky-based Houchens Food Group, which owns and operates more than 400 grocery, convenience, hardware/DIY, and foodservice locations in 15 states, said the move would empower retailers to rethink how and when to engage their shoppers best.

Keep ReadingShow less