Automate 2013, held in Chicago recently, was the largest solutions-based showcase of automation technologies in North America. As such, the exhibits which demonstrated a broad range of automation technologies attracted lots of attention.
But one of the main highlights for this select group was a presentation by the International Federation of Robotics. It was a review of the 2011 statistics and forecasts up to 2015, and it focused on the positive efforts of industrial robots on employment. Simply put, robots create jobs.
Because our record, the best year ever, and we reach more than 160,000 robots worldwide, more jobs gained in total than lost in manufacturing. And these new jobs have been in new industries, distribution, services, and new applications. The complete survey will be released in 2013. But one of the most telling statistics is that 1.9 to 3.5 million jobs will be created by robots in the next eight years.
Following the presentation, a CEO round table made up of robotic users and suppliers from the US and a robot researcher from Germany, continued the discussion about the impact of robotics on employment and also touched on other issues such as human-machine interaction, the need for a more educated workforce, and the breakthrough of service robots. The panelists responded to questions from the moderator, the media, and CEOs from around the world.
Automation has allowed us to compete on a global basis. It is absolutely created jobs. Our employees are so productive, and they're making such good quality parts that because of this robot technology, we can grow our sales and have 25% of the sales overseas. That's powering our growth, that's powering our hiring, and that's why robots are intrinsic to our health, and that's why robots should be embraced in America.
I think service robots will be around first of all in manufacturing again. So we will see robots on platforms driving around in in automotive manufacturing for example, earlier than we will see them at home. There's been a major shift in safety in automation due to the infusion of technologies to get rid of cages. And their vision technologies, there are various other types of technologies and there are some examples on the show floor of robots running at high speed without a cage, but if a human hand or any part enters, it will immediately slow down. And this is part of a big broad shift in safety and automation worldwide.
