Technology

xUT

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Dec 28, 2009
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Let's take a break from politics and discuss technology and how it's going to affect us.

I just watched 'How it's Made' and technology in dairy farming and how automation pretty much does everything.


The 'teat' washers and sensors just blew me away.
My Uncle had an egg farm I worked in the summers and it was pretty much all physical.
His neighbor had a dairy farm and it was employee intensive as they milked by hand.

With company's continuously searching for increased productivity to increase profits, automation is having a great impact on employment.

Soon we will have taxis without a human drivers, airplanes without a human pilots,etc...

Sure, we can do things like going to the grocery store and refuse to scan and pack our own stuff, but that really doesn't do much.

When everything is automated, what will our jobs be?

Just thinking....
 
Having spent 20+ years in the Information Technology field, I hate to sound like a Luddite. However, I'm not ready to get on an airplane with no pilot--neither as a passenger nor a worker. As long as TV and other video systems have been around and we still can't even get an IFE system that works consistently on the airplane, I'm not quite ready to go without a pilot.

There's a joke (not very funny) that's over 40 years old on this subject. Passengers board the first airplane without a pilot. As they plane takes off, an automated voice comes on saying, "Welcome aboard the first pilot-free flight from New York to Los Angeles. This flight is fully automated and everything has been programmed and tested many times. We assure you that nothing can go wrong...go wrong...go wrong."
 
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Amazing xUT! I had no idea that is how it is done now.
IMO when computers became commonplace is when technology just took off.
It's nice to have those memories of simpler times and all of the ongoing changes since then.
I can't even imagine what it will be like in the future when everything is automated. You're right,
what will all of our jobs be? Who knows maybe it will be time for us to retire and enjoy.;)

:)
 
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You my see a day when aircraft fly passengers without a pilot. but you'll never see a day that they will not need mechanics! There is a time old rivalry between Pilots and Mechanics.I would only ask, "how often does a Pilot use the Auto Pilot these days?" ......... The answer to that is almost every flight. " And who's flying the Aircraft when that happens?".......The answer to that is Maintenance!
 
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You my see a day when aircraft fly passengers without a pilot. but you'll never see a day that they will not need mechanics! There is a time old rivalry between Pilots and Mechanics.I would only ask, "how often does a Pilot use the Auto Pilot these days?" ......... The answer to that is almost every flight. " And who's flying the Aircraft when that happens?".......The answer to that is Maintenance!

My friend is a brick layer who claims there will never be a machine to replace him.

 
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Point taken. But, who do they call when the machine breaks down?

Don't delude yourself.

Engineering and preventative maintenance reduces the need for emergency (line maintenance) repair more and more with each aircraft evolution.
Redundancy and 'self healing' components (which amounts to about everything now) quickly reduces the need for 'qualified' maintenance technicians.

With modularization, a tech only needs to change a module and IMHO, a semi-skilled tech can do it.

The MTBF and MTBR is pretty phenomenal now and will only increase in the future.

Take Care,
xUT
 
My friend is a brick layer who claims there will never be a machine to replace him.

Someone has to feed that thing quality (no cracks or breaks) bricks and someone that knows what they are doing needs to do quality checks. At 1000 bricks per hour materials management would also need to be implemented on a per job basis.
 
Someone has to feed that thing quality (no cracks or breaks) bricks and someone that knows what they are doing needs to do quality checks. At 1000 bricks per hour materials management would also need to be implemented on a per job basis.
What is your point?
Automation can do just about everything and 'to be sure' that is the goal.
 
Don't delude yourself.

Engineering and preventative maintenance reduces the need for emergency (line maintenance) repair more and more with each aircraft evolution.
Redundancy and 'self healing' components (which amounts to about everything now) quickly reduces the need for 'qualified' maintenance technicians.

With modularization, a tech only needs to change a module and IMHO, a semi-skilled tech can do it.

The MTBF and MTBR is pretty phenomenal now and will only increase in the future.

Take Care,
xUT

You are correct, of course. I have seen the move to RCM and run to fail. I have been a study of this for years. It was part of my thesis research. As airline maintenance professionals, most have seen the move from regular checks, to more of a reliability centered maintenance profile. Unfortunately for the average A&P, the data supports this, and the FAA will support this based on extensive research.

The smart A&P/FCC technicians are moving away from their tool boxes and learning how to troubleshoot system level issues rather than component level and parts changing. Those parts changing and component level employees will be non-certificated workers in the future.

In my view, within the next 10 years, I see far fewer A&P's being hired and more engineers being the front line maintenance employees.
 
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What is your point?
Automation can do just about everything and 'to be sure' that is the goal.
I have not seen an automated system yet that did not need a "baby sitter".

Automation works very well in a static environment. Sometimes it even works well in a dynamic environment that is very well regulated. However those controlled conditions are not always possible.

Every time someone brings up automation the conversation inevitably moves to job loss. I can tell you that is not always so. My father worked in a fully automated factory before he retired. I can tell you that automation certainly increased their product output but job loss never came. Jobs just changed. The increase in production actually added jobs. Not just for the factory employees but for those companies that provide support services for the factory as well.
 
I have not seen an automated system yet that did not need a "baby sitter".

Automation works very well in a static environment. Sometimes it even works well in a dynamic environment that is very well regulated. However those controlled conditions are not always possible.

Every time someone brings up automation the conversation inevitably moves to job loss. I can tell you that is not always so. My father worked in a fully automated factory before he retired. I can tell you that automation certainly increased their product output but job loss never came. Jobs just changed. The increase in production actually added jobs. Not just for the factory employees but for those companies that provide support services for the factory as well.

OK, if you say so.
IMHO, this is a pretty rare case.
There are a lot of jobs that can not be automated, like a TV repairman.