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Packaging: Will automation take over jobs?
A
ccording to a recent report by
Deloitte, the African continent will
become a high growth region for
the packaging industry. What does this
mean for marking, coding, and labelling in
terms of automation?
This predicted high growth could
be attributed to the increase in local
markets for the consumer, burgeoning
incomes, and an expanding youth
market. Speaking at the Packaging and
Beyond Africa Innovation Conference in
Johannesburg last year, Roy Campbell,
partner and manufacturing industry:
Forestry, Paper and Packaging sector
leader at Deloitte, said that International
Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts predict
growth of 6.5% per annum over the next
five years in East and West Africa. This
would put the two regions on par with the
fastest growing regions of mainland China
and emerging Asia.
Although risks are still attached to
investment in Africa, the IMF expects 15
African countries to grow faster than China.
Two of the primary factors behind this high
growth rate are that this is generally off a
relatively small GDP base, and Africa has
youth on its side. Already, 25% of the world’s
under 18s are found in Africa.
“Contrary to some commonly held
perceptions, African growth will not be
primarily driven by commodities,” says
Campbell. “Eight of the 12 fastest growing
economies in Africa do not rely on natural
resources for their prosperity.”
This figure, anticipated to grow to 50%
by 2100, guarantees growing consumer
markets a demand for products, and
therefore increased opportunities for
the packaging industry that serves the
manufacturing and consumer sectors.
“I believe that automation may well
make certain jobs redundant, but in
turn creates new opportunities for skills
in automation and robotics instead,”
says Gary Chilton, managing director of
TracePack. “People will always adapt
to these changes and re-skill or upskill
themselves into these newly created jobs.”
Would the demand for automation,
labelling, marking, and coding products
drive job losses in our industry? According
to an article written by Rachel Nuwer for
the BBC, examining these questions begins
with the realisation that technology,
innovation, and shifting cultural norms
have always fuelled a turnover in
workforce composition. Machines have
been taking over jobs for centuries.
Although automation may make certain jobs redundant, it will create opportunities for
different skills within robotics and electronics.
“Market economies are never sitting
still; industries rise and fall; products and
services change — and that’s been going
on for a very long time,” explains David
Autor, a professor