On the day that the Scientific Council for
Government Policy (WRR) published a report on robotisation, I heard a
a debate on this subject on Radio 1 whilst in the car. The discussion began with
an audio clip in which a man – presumably from a trade union – spoke
about the ‘robot voice’ that tells staff at Albert Heijn’s distribution centres
tells them what to do via headphones. In the same clip,
the man explained that staff feel under pressure because everyone is trying to
wants to meet the 100 per cent target. This prompted the presenter to link the robot voice
and the ‘pressure to meet targets’ and to talk about a robot
that is driving people on. Even before the debate had begun, I was already getting annoyed
by the tone of it.
First of all, it would of course be going too far to regard voice picking
as an offshoot of robotisation. Albert’s order pickers
Heijn have always received instructions on picking locations and quantities; it’s just that
they used to receive them on paper or via the screen of a handheld terminal.
Now that this is done via a headset, it suddenly sounds a lot scarier. Undoubtedly,
not everyone is keen on this technology, such as that one wholesaler who
opted out of voice picking so as not to deprive the temporary staff – mainly housewives – of the
chance to have a natter with one another. I am, however,
quite sure that large groups of people don’t mind at all having their
have their tasks whispered to them.
Another point not covered in the audio clip is
the additional benefits that voice picking brings to the order pickers themselves. Think
the improved ergonomics, as order pickers have their hands free and
don’t have to put their terminal or pick list down first to
. At Logistica, the concept was presented once again
where order pickers are given stacking instructions. Indeed, order pickers
have to think even less. But just look at how often they have to restack their pallets or
roll containers because otherwise not everything will fit on them or the stack
is in danger of toppling over. Is that something order pickers actually enjoy doing?
There are two things that bother me about the public debate on
automation and robotisation. The first is the narrowing of the discussion to
the perspective of the workforce. Will they still have a job once the
robots actually take over the workplace? Of course, that aspect deserves a great deal of
attention, but we mustn’t lose sight of the fact that automation and
robotisation also lead to greater efficiency, lower costs, fewer errors,
fewer physical ailments and, in many cases, lower energy consumption. Or to put it another way:
automation and robotisation offer opportunities to improve
sustainability at various levels.
The second point concerns the views of the
workers themselves. Do they mind that the nature of their work is changing
as a result of increasing automation or robotisation on the shop floor? Do they
annoying that they can get more work done because a software system has
calculated exactly how the work can be distributed most efficiently amongst everyone?
Do they resent it when the system flags up a mistake that they would otherwise have had to
more effort? Have they ever been asked? I can’t help but
think of the assembly line workers at the Audi car factory in Ingolstadt.
They now receive the parts in the correct order and at the right time
, so they no longer have to search for and lift them themselves. They
can now concentrate better on assembling those parts.
Whatever the radio presenter has made clear
is the widespread lack of awareness amongst many people regarding the unprecedented
technological possibilities that already exist. I therefore advocate a well-produced
TV series about the smart technologies that Dutch companies
are using. I’m thinking, for example, of a documentary about the ingenuity of the
hundreds of shuttles that enable Wehkamp’s orders to be ready
. Or about the smart algorithms used to distribute tasks in a warehouse as efficiently as
distribute tasks in a warehouse amongst the available staff.
A programme like this, which showcases the beauty of technology, is not
only good for the sector’s image but might also alleviate the fear of
automation and robotisation.
This already happens from time to time in England. The BBC
, for example, is broadcasting a documentary on Wednesday 23 December at 10.30 pm that
shows how the online and logistics departments of the John Lewis department store chain
are preparing for the busy December period. Make a note of it in
your diary.
Marcel te Lindert - journalist logistics and supply chain
