German carmaker BMW has announced that it will soon integrate two humanoid robots into its production lines. The robots, developed by Hexagon Robotics, will be deployed in the vehicle manufacturing sector, in a move the company sees as part of the future of the automotive industry. Michael Nikolaides, head of process management and digitalization at BMW, told the BBC that the use of these robots will transform the way vehicles are manufactured.
“This will be the future of automotive manufacturing,” he declared. According to Nikolaides, one of the main advantages of humanoid robots is the fact that they have similar dimensions and capabilities to those of humans, which allows them to easily fit into existing workplaces.
“If the robot has a humanoid shape, it can be placed in almost any workplace where a person works today, because it has the same size and skills,” he explained. BMW believes that the new technology can help cope with the labor shortage expected to appear in the coming years. “When we automated car production in the 70s, many people thought that this would lead to massive job losses. In fact, the opposite happened, as new professions were created thanks to new technology,” Nikolaides added.
BMW’s use of humanoid robots is considered another important step towards advanced automation, as the global automotive industry continues to seek new ways to increase efficiency and respond to labor market challenges.