Welcome to another episode of Manufacturing Happy Hour recorded in front of a LIVE audience. A couple of months ago at IME West in Anaheim, we had a chance to sit down with Jerry Perez, FANUC America's Executive Director of Global Accounts. FANUC is one of the biggest names in industrial robotics in the world, so as you can probably guess, this is a very robot-centric conversation.

In this episode, Jerry shares some insights on the role of the global pandemic in creating that shift from automotive to non-automotive applications of robotics. He also highlights some out-of-the-box applications for robotics that FANUC has been cooking up behind the scenes.

Many in the industry are aware of the problems robotics is solving in the manufacturing industry. But it’s not just about how they fill the workforce gap. Jerry, Chris, and co-host Jake Hall of Manufacturing Millennial point out a few key areas that robotics is contributing positively to.

It’s not all business as usual though, we also chat about how robots are portrayed in Hollywood and pop culture as a whole.

In this episode, find out:

• Jerry tells us how to officially pronounce FANUC
• Jerry’s take on the largest driver of non-automotive applications on robotics
• How robotics can be applied in the food and hospitality industry
• How FANUC plans keep workers safe near robots
• When to use cobots
• What new opportunities are out there for robot applications
• Issues that robots address in the manufacturing industry
• Jerry, Jake, and Chris’ favorite pop culture robots
• How FANUC is involving the next generation in robotics
• One of the best conversations Jerry has had at IME West
• What manufacturing companies can do to attract younger generations

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Tweetable Quotes:

• “As technology becomes more adoptable, the marketplace becomes more accepting of robots.”
• “If you're working around something that might poke or punch you, you want to be able to operate it safely. The industry has gone through safety standards to make this happen with Cobots.”
• “When you’ve got a lot of foot traffic, that’s the perfect spot for a Cobot.”

Links & mentions:

• FANUC America, global leader in industrial robotics

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list

of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.