Within the manufacturing industry, high levels of productivity would not be possible without the introduction of automation. A typical automotive manufacturer simply could not keep up with the demand for volume or consistency without these technologies. So whilst a typical vehicle assembly plant may have seen the number of workers in its body assembly area fall with a sharp increase in the number of robots, the complete assembly plant have seen significant increases in prosperity and jobs. This cascades into the plant’s supply chain and local supporting businesses. The same comments can be made for highly automated warehouses that can process more orders in faster times and as a result grow to meet demand, employing more people. To show this, studies at London School of Economics by Graetz and Michaels in 2015 showed that there is no direct link between an increase in the use of automation and jobs lost.

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