Editorial
Music of the future
The Blechexpo and Schweisstec trade fair duo took place in Stuttgart at the beginning of November. Like other sectors, sheet metal workers and welding technicians have mixed feelings about the future. The reasons are mostly of an economic nature.
When it comes to the technological future, the trade fairs paint a consistently positive picture. More energy efficiency and sustainability, increases in productivity and little gimmicks that will make working and living easier and/or more enjoyable in the future.
Such gimmicks can be many things: a cordless screwdriver that minimizes the strain on the worker's wrist with short pulses for difficult fastenings, an appealing user interface, an exoskeleton that provides support for heavy or demanding physical work, or a Bluetooth speaker in a suction hood.
Admittedly, the Bluetooth speaker in the welding fume extraction hood made us smile at first. Equipping a fume extraction hood with a speaker so that welders can connect their smartphone and listen to their music doesn't sound like the ground-breaking development the industry has been waiting for. But a closer look reveals one or two advantages: The skilled worker creates a working environment through his music in which he feels comfortable - employee satisfaction increases. Thanks to the loudspeaker, they can do without ear pods and can hear more of their surroundings on the shop floor - which is a safety issue. In addition, the speaker can be used not only for the latest Spotify list, but also to issue warning and status messages. Networked production opens up many more possibilities.
As you can see, gimmicks can quickly develop added value. And what was perhaps only intended for a trade fair or for the company can develop into a business idea. Dreams of the future ...
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