SAINT LOUIS, MO (KMOX) - As manufacturers have struggled to find enough workers, they're turning to automation and robotics to get their products to consumers.
At Pasco on South Hanley in St. Louis, skilled tradesmen craft packaging automation systems for a wide variety of industries -- everything from agriculture to paints and oils.
Pasco Chief Operating Officer Jim Nardulli tells KMOX, their business grew nearly 40% during the pandemic as companies were at a loss to find human labor. "They're looking and saying, of these processes that require humans, workers, what can we realistically, logically, and rationally automate?"
Listen to KMOX Virtual Consumer Editor Megan Lynch's in-depth report on Pasco and the demand for automation from Total Information AM at the link below.
"People think of robots and that's a red herring," explains Nardulli, "these are just articulated arms that do repetitive tasks." In many cases, says Nardulli, they're doing jobs that are too dirty, dangerous, or demeaning for humans.
Nationwide, the Wall Street Journal recently highlighted the heightened demand for robotics in industry, quoting the Association for Advancing Automation figures showing a boost in automation of 40% in the last year.
Nardulli expects that even if the country dips into a recession, there will still be a demand for more automation. "There simply aren't people to hire."
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