Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Summary Reader Response draft 2

 According to the article “How tech can ease the cleaning industry’s manpower crunch”, written by GERMii (2021), cleaning robots that are equipped with Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) technology are a revolution in the cleaning industry. The pandemic has significantly impacted the world, changing their attention to cleaning and sterilizing. As the requirement for cleanliness is increasing, robots complement the cleaners by accomplishing monotonous roles, while the cleaners can prioritize sterilizing “high-touch, high-risk or difficult-to-clean areas” (GERMii, 2021, Robots can complement cleaning staff section, para. 4). At the same time, organizations need to teach their staff to operate the robots and use data from the robots to optimize cleaning operations. With Covid-19 causing the demand for cleaners to fluctuate, organizations can send their cleaners for training and upskilling when the demand is low. This article's emphasis on cleanliness also leads to over-cleaning and excessive usage of chemicals, potentially causing an impact on health, cost, and the environment. Organizations need to inform and instruct their cleaners on mitigating these risks. The article also wrote about SoftBank Robotics’ floorcare cleaning robot, Whiz, which uses UV-C to disinfect surfaces, reducing the use of hazardous chemicals. Cleaning robots are now equipped with the newest technology and are a revolution in the cleaning industry. As technology advances, investing in technologies for cleaning robots will benefit a few areas of industry like the healthcare industry and many others, which provides efficiency, especially with the prominence of sanitation being in the spotlight.

One of the benefits of having cleaning robots is its cost of efficiency in the long run and the long operating hours. A cleaning robot can help with your task lists like covering the cleaning tasks that need to be performed most frequently, such as vacuuming and disinfecting surfaces (Flynn, 2022). With the help of technology, this would ensure the cleanliness of the area with minimum supervision.

Today's advanced models often incorporate autonomous mapping technology that can accurately reconstruct the floor plan. Most cleaning robots come with an app that lets you program a specific route on your floor plan for the robot to follow. So it can be programmed to run at a specific time each day to clean the specific areas that need cleaning most often (Flynn, 2022.). Robots are more flexible and cost-efficient compared to manpower because cleaning work can be programmed to run at any specific time.

Robotic floor cleaning has emerged as a valuable use case to help healthcare organizations achieve consistent cleanliness and operational efficiency. Robotic floor scrubbers directly address the demand-supply imbalance created by increasing cleaning demand and a limited workforce. Working collaboratively with employees, and cleaning robots like the unit operated by Brain Corp make supervisory teams more efficient and effective (Baylin, 2020),

Some other areas, like self-catering and construction companies responsible for implementing cleaning and floor care solutions, often face challenges due to labor shortages and/or lack of skills, resulting in irregular cleaning. A further concern is when there are cleaning gaps that result in an unhealthy environment due to dirt overload. While traditional automated scrubbers are efficient, they still require direct human manipulation and supervision. This is where autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) come in (Buildings, 2021). They offer the use of machines to improve human skills without the need for manual human intervention. This would greatly increase the efficiency and cost efficiency in the long run.

Despite the potential factors of having cleaning robots, things like robots have limited mobility (GERMii,2021) as some of the ground is uneven so robots are unable to reach but overall it increases efficiency in another area. Hence, this will cause lesser job opportunities for the people, which will increase the unemployment rate (Holzer (2022). However, in Singapore, the government is trying to provide more upgrading training through skill-future which would allow people to have more job opportunities (SkillFuture Singapore, n.d ). Overall, the research shows that with the introduction of cleaning robots, high-quality patient care, effective clinical procedures, and a safe working environment for patients and healthcare professionals are all made possible by using robots in the medical field ( Intel, n.d ).

In conclusion, as technology advances, we will be exposed to a more advanced method that might have a more efficient way of ensuring cleanliness in all industries. Despite all the negative impacts like robot features and the increase in the unemployment rate. Cleaning robots are still very efficient as they can be programmed to do multiple tasks. Also, robots with cleaning and sanitizing capabilities are in high demand among medical professionals as the staff will be less likely to be infected with surface germs. Hence, having cleaning robots will greatly boost the industry's cleanliness and efficiency in terms of manpower issues and cost efficiency.


References: 

1.             (GERMii, 2021). How tech can ease the cleaning industry’s manpower crunch. Govinsider. https://govinsider.asia/intl-en/article/how-tech-can-ease-the-cleaning-industrys-manpower-crunch-robots-germii 

 

2.            (Baylin, 2022). How robots improve cleaning performance in healthcare facilitieshttps://braincorp.com/blog/how-robots-improve-cleaning-performance-in-healthcare-facilities/ 

 

3.             (Flynn, 2022). Are cleaning robots effective? RobotLAB Group - Robotics Solution Integrator. https://www.robotlab.com/cleaning-robots/blog/are-cleaning-robots-effective#:~:text=Cleaning%20robots%20are%20most%20effective,or%20any%20other%20cleaning%20task

 

4.             (Flynn, 2022).  Are cleaning robots effective? RobotLAB Group - Robotics Solution Integrator. https://www.robotlab.com/cleaning-robots/blog/are-cleaning-robots-effective  

 

5.             (Buildings, 2021 ). The next cleaning revolution: Autonomous Mobile Robot Scrubbers. https://www.buildings.com/janitorial-pest-control/article/10196042/the-next-cleaning-revolution-autonomous-mobile-robot-scrubbers 

 

6.             (Holzer, 2022). Understanding the impact of automation on workers, jobs, and wages. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2022/01/19/understanding-the-impact-of-automation-on-workers-jobs-and-wages/#:~:text=Indeed%2C%20digital%20automation%20since%20the,for%20highly%20educated%20analytical%20workers


7. Skillsfuture credit. SSG | SkillsFuture Credit. (2022). 

https://www.skillsfuture.gov.sg/credit#:~:text=SkillsFuture%20Credit%20aims%20to%20encourage,opening%20credit%20of%20S%2450.     

  

7.        (Marr, 2022). Developing the most in-demand skills for the future of work. Forbes.https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2022/06/15/developing-the-most-in-demand-skills-for-the-future-of-work/?sh=3f1f1ca1b977 

 

8.             (Defi, es. al, 2022). Healthcare Workers' point of view on medical robotics during COVID-19 pandemic - A scoping review. International journal of general medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8995177/ 

 

9.             (Intel, n.d) Robots in the medical field are transforming how surgeries are performed, streamlining supply delivery and disinfection. Robotics in Healthcare: The Future of Robots in medicinehttps://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/healthcare-it/robotics-in-healthcare.html#:~:text=High%2DQuality%20Patient%20Care,social%20engagement%20for%20elderly%20patients.  

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