Robotics guru lists the next three industries to be automated

DETROIT — The automotive and logistics industries are no strangers to robots.

They’re among the most heavily invested businesses in automation in the U.S. economy, using robots to sort packages, transport goods and assist in building vehicles.

But other industries where robotics haven’t yet taken hold may be potential investment opportunities and expansion areas for automation companies in the coming years.

Those emerging areas intrigue Jeff Burnstein, an automation-industry guru and president of the Association for Advancing Automation. His trade group represents more than 1,000 global companies involved in robotics, machine vision, motion control, and motors and related technologies.

Burnstein, who recently received a prestigious award for his more than 40 years in the industry, believes automation and robotics could greatly assist in doing the “dull, dirty, dangerous jobs” that people don’t necessarily want to do.

“If you look at what’s driving a lot of the automation in many industries it’s shortage of people,” he said on the sidelines of an automation convention last week in Detroit.

Labor shortages, led by the manufacturing industry, are the key driver in the growth of automation, he said.

Here are three industries Burnstein predicts are next for automation:

Tractor maker Deere & Co., for example, offers a suite of automated-assistance features such as turning and guidance for crop row lines. Deere is working on an autonomous tractor that can “see, think, and work on its own, freeing up time for farmers to complete other tasks simultaneously,” according to its website.

Other automated technologies for agriculture include drones that can spray pesticides over crops, remote-controlled tractors, automated harvesting systems, and other data and logistics farming apps.