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I definitely agree that growing manufacturing is a short-to-medium term solution to unemployment. However, I think it's only a partial-solution going forward i

by tkahn6 16y ago

I definitely agree that growing manufacturing is a short-to-medium term solution to unemployment. However, I think it's only a partial-solution going forward in that a) employers won't need to (and therefore won't) employ as many workers per plant and b) the skill-sets required for those positions will be more demanding[1] than those in the past. As for the long term, I think it's safe to say that robotics and automation will eventually remove entirely the need for human factory workers and (nearly) all manual labor. I'm intensely interested the type of society that this will give rise to and I don't know if it's possible (I suspect not) for this type of market to sustain our current population. [1. I could probably find you an article saying this, but I heard this on PBS Newshour about a week ago.]

nl 16y ago
As for the long term, I think it's safe to say that robotics and automation will eventually remove entirely the need for human factory workers and (nearly) all manual labor. Maybe. People are surprisingly cheap in some parts of the world, and robotics are pretty expensive. Even in the future, the raw materials in machinery won't magically get cheaper. For some industries the upfront costs associated with automation won't be worth it for a long, long time.
- tkahn6 16y ago
  Even in the future, the raw materials in machinery won't magically get cheaper. True, and raw materials will probably get more expensive. Another thing to consider, however, is that newer industrial techniques might not even be employable without the use of machines. For instance, humans can't make processors regardless of how cheaply their willing to be payed. For some industries the upfront costs associated with automation won't be worth it for a long, long time Right. It's always going to be a cost benefit analysis and I think that's a fair assessment.
- deleted 16y ago
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by tkahn6 16y ago

nl 16y ago

As for the long term, I think it's safe to say that robotics and automation will eventually remove entirely the need for human factory workers and (nearly) all manual labor. Maybe. People are surprisingly cheap in some parts of the world, and robotics are pretty expensive. Even in the future, the raw materials in machinery won't magically get cheaper. For some industries the upfront costs associated with automation won't be worth it for a long, long time.

tkahn6 16y ago
Even in the future, the raw materials in machinery won't magically get cheaper. True, and raw materials will probably get more expensive. Another thing to consider, however, is that newer industrial techniques might not even be employable without the use of machines. For instance, humans can't make processors regardless of how cheaply their willing to be payed. For some industries the upfront costs associated with automation won't be worth it for a long, long time Right. It's always going to be a cost benefit analysis and I think that's a fair assessment.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]