Abstract :
As the British Automation and Robot Association observes: "The range of possible applications for robots is rapidly expanding and it is imperative that a world class manufacturing company should keep an eye on developments and implement robots wherever benefits can be gained." If this continues, perhaps new products will be made with technologies that are as far removed from modern manufacturing systems as today\´s advanced robots and lasers are from systems that remove the need for two people to work a loom. In 2012, Apple manufacturer FoxConn announced its intention to replace its human-operated assembly line with one million robots. Could this be paving the way for a manufacturing utopia?
