Service With A Cyber Touch: Robots In The Service Industry

#News(General) [ via IoTForIndiaGroup ]

Debates on automation often point to jobs that require interpersonal skills as the last safe haven for humans: The robots will take over factory floors and Artificial Intelligence will dominate programming and management; we will retreat into hospitality and health care to assist our fellow humans.

Techmetics, a Singapore-based robotics company, has a different idea. It has developed robots targeted exactly at the hospitality and health care industry. Techmetics’ approach offers interesting insights into the Future of Work.
Singapore’s hospitality sector enjoys fast-growing demand from business travel and tourism; but Singapore’s labor supply lags behind, as the population is increasingly well-educated and aging. Japan faces a similar challenge. Immigration can help address the labor shortage, but it brings other economic and social challenges.

Techmetics’ founder, Mathan Muthupillai, developed a passion for robotics at an early age and decided that robots could provide an answer. The company has now developed nine different models of robots. Some can bring heavy carts of linens and amenities to specific locations; some can deliver meals or medical supplies; some can deliver drinks (though not mix cocktails …); and some act as mobile information booths.

The robots look like close relatives of R2D2, and their amped-up cuteness factor with cartoonish eyes and smiles helps accelerate human acceptance. Setting them up is surprisingly easy, according to Hiren Mowji, VP of Sales and Marketing, and often takes no more than a couple of days: First, a Techmetics expert uses a joystick to drive an “explorer” robot around the facility, mapping the terrain. The electronic map is reviewed for accuracy; an easy to use fleet management software then allows to program and dispatch robots across the facility, on a pre-planned schedule or as the need arises. The software can be installed as an app or as a web-based application.

The response has so far been very positive, according to Hiren Mowji. As is always the case when a new technology makes its way into the workplace, some are quicker to embrace it while some react with diffidence and fear; but where Techmetics robots have joined the workforce, most of their human colleagues have quickly come to appreciate the ability to offload some of the most arduous and tedious tasks to the smiling mechanical helpers.

What do the human workers do with the extra time freed up by the robots’ help? Hiren Mowji notes that in the hospitality business “there are never enough hours in a day” for all the work required of the housekeeping staff. They will now be able to provide extra care to make sure every aspect of the guests’ experience measures up to expectations, from making sure each room is perfectly set up to meeting those customer requests that require more thoughtful attention.

Read More..