Currently, Some companies in Bolivia use a robot to place goods on a pallet, Also known is the name under which the support or platform formed by tables, where this cargo handled by the industry is stacked. Industrial robotics specialists have pointed out that one of the goals of these modern technological tools is to improve the productivity of companies.
Pablo Guzmán, head of industrial robotics at Industrial Design in Automatic Process Control (Dicap), said that although he does not have official data on the number of Bolivian companies working with industrial robotics, several of them have been using this technology for 12 years, the first one also dates from 14 years ago.
“Since the pandemic, many plants have realized that this is necessary implementation of industrial robots, and it is not about removing the worker from the plant or his work space, but about taking care of him, because many processes are physically and mentally exhausting. So “By having jobs that don’t require breaks, robots increase productivity and accuracy,” Guzmán described, adding that it has improved globally over the past 30 years.
The expert insisted that companies in Bolivia can increase their productivity with these technological tools “and it’s not that people’s work is kept or canceled”, but rather new sources of employment are created because even this type of machine requires specialists.
Fernando Vargas Fernández, General Manager of Megatron, said It is important to raise awareness among companies and industries that this type of application helps the worker and he gave as an example robotic palletizing that makes it easier for two people to do the same task manually for 8 hours in a row.
“(These two people who have been working between 10 and 12 years have health problems and we have to avoid that. So The robot will handle the job and accommodate these two people in other, more productive locations. from the factory without taking away their jobs. You can even train them to program the robot,” he elaborated.
Vargas said that although there are not enough robots for the industry in Bolivia, there are a number of them, and the palletized robot is one of them. The other two are welding robot and pick and place robot.
“A pick and place robot takes an object to repeatedly move it from one point to another, it’s very similar to palletizing, but with the difference that it will work according to a matrix order, so the position of the bags that will” on the other hand, palletizing, picking and a location has a start point and an end point that repeats.”
On the other hand, he explained it The welding robot also performs any type of oxygen cutting. “This type of application requires a tool called a torch to start a flame to make a cut or to make a weld.”
In Bolivia, these three types of robots are used in companies in the manufacturing, assembly, metalworking and textile industries.
Guzmán, in turn, saw the application of this technology in companies associated with the production of ceramics, bricks, food, beverages and pharmaceuticals.
“One of the most important things when it comes to the use of industrial robotics in Bolivia is related to welding, which has been widely implemented in both small and large plants, so they are doing quite well,” he said.
He regretted it Bolivia still cannot mass produce many products because it is a small country with few consumers. So the way out would be to look for countries for export.
“As it increases, so will exports. So the bigger the production, the bigger the number of customers who will need certain devices. Therefore, Welding robots are found in several industrial plants in the country, but mainly from the main axis (Santa Cruz, La Paz and Cochabamba).”
Guzmán added that universities in Bolivia need to adjust the way they teach industrial robotics to their students.
“Many taught using development platforms, cards and small robots, even toys with small motors. This does not come close to what industrial robotics actually is. So ask universities not to mislead their students by purchasing and displaying this equipment as if they are the ones you will see in the industry or in real professional life. We have seen that education in Bolivia is deplorable because students do not know what they are really facing.”
Last year, the national government trained more than 200 teachers in the field of industrial robotics, artificial intelligence and Industry 4.0 so that they could project their educational experience into designing new academic offers and developing innovative academic programs, leaving the traditional offer aside and responding to the economic policies proposed by the state .
For national authorities, Industry 4.0 enables organizations, companies and industries to have real-time access to data and information about their business, through identifying technologies that best suit their needs and improving operations, product transformation, supply chain and more.
On the other hand, Pablo Camacho, president of the National Chamber of Industry (CNI), emphasized that Bolivian industry is constantly experiencing technological innovation, In addition, CNI itself supports TeCNIas, which are meetings of industry and technology representatives to promote innovation and sustainability in national industries.
“TeCNIa is based on a different principle, which is to show the development of professionals, startups and fintech to the Bolivian industry. For example, we had TeCNIas for the green economy. We can now say with great satisfaction that several of our business sectors have a high level of technology.”
He added that robotics is important for many industrial processes and the use of technology, in addition to artificial intelligence, is adapting to different industries.
“There are several processes that help increase productivity. Today, Bolivia needs to improve its productivity. We have the fourth highest minimum living wage in the region (Latin America), but we are second to last in productivity. Therefore, all these (technological) elements improve our productivity. Now Bolivia needs to improve its productivity, training and education, among other things.”
He finally said it Robotics is part of industrial renewal and the innovation that has been used as it is used in different stages of the production chain. He added that there is no way to know the percentage of companies that have implemented robotics because there are no details on how much innovation is being done in Bolivia.
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