Demand for robotics skills strong in modern industry
Don’t let the fact that Adrian Schut, owner of Almonte Laser Engraving near Ottawa, does carpentry work fool you. He’s also a hard-core robotics aficionado.
It’s a skill he started developing in earnest in Grade 9, when he began entering Skills Canada competitions. Over time, he entered worldlevel competitions and continues to help up-and-coming competitors today.
Robotics has been a passion for Schut since he was a child. “I used to play around with Lego Mindstorms [robots] when I was little. When I got to high school, I spent every lunch hour working in the technology room. I was always late for class.”
The connection between robotics and his carpentry business makes perfect sense, since he designs his own computer numerical control (CNC) systems for his shop. And CNC machining happens to be one of the areas where robotics skills have a role to play.
Schut says he loves the fact robotics brings together so many moving parts — literally. “You get to work on so many different aspects — design, wiring and manufacturing. And there are so many different career paths you can go down. CNC is one because it involves control systems and programming.”
It’s not unusual to see a skilled worker from another discipline to move into robotics, says Neil Wenger, electronics technologist with the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) Shell Manufacturing Centre in Edmonton. Its continuing-education course in robotics automation control draws many people who already have a designation in a related field, such as electronics, mechanical or instrumentation engineering.
The certificate course introduces 12 different areas of robotics automation control studies, including pneumatics, hydraulics and control systems. The idea, Wenger says, is to fill in the missing pieces that are in high demand in Alberta.
“Manufacturers who design systems for the oil and gas or related industries come to us saying it’s hard to find qualified people for this type of work in our area. But there’s quite a bit of automation going on. Robots are just about everywhere now.”
Whether they are industrial robots (stationary arms that do spot welding or painting), or mobile (e.g. guided vehicles), “all of these things need to be programmed because all of them have a computer base,” Wenger says.
The mechanical element in the oil and gas industry is a significant part of what’s driving the Western economy, says Shawna Bourke, director of communications and programming for Skills Canada Alberta in Edmonton. “Demand for robotics skills is there on the processing, manufacturing and construction side, among others. I’ve heard from SAIT [Southern Alberta Institute of Technology], for example, that 93 per cent of its graduates have immediate employment.”
Within each industry, robotics skills can cross multiple functions, from initial research and development to prototyping, building and maintenance, depending on the level of qualifications.
Farther east, it’s the automotive industry that tends to be the biggest employer in the robotics field, says Diogo Barco, a professor at Humber College School of Applied Technology in Toronto. In fact, many graduates from its program take up jobs in the U.S. “Many of the automotive companies come up for interviews and tend to take a lot of top students. Local industry is also looking for the same skills, including food and beverage, packaging and transportation.”
Humber’s electromechanical engineering technology program offers both a two-year technician and a three-year technologist course. “Technicians work in maintenance and are usually not responsible for design,” Barco explains. “Technologists can also do troubleshooting and some design work.”
People who thrive in robotics have a good grasp of spatial concepts and how things work mechanically. “They want to understand how to apply basic principles and learn about electrical, electronics and circuits, as well as the mechanics of pulleys, gears, belts, pneumatics and hydraulics,” Barco says. “Usually they’re also very interested in programming, even if it has been in such areas as web design. And of course, they need skills in maths and sciences.”