As the manufacturing industry in North America undergoes its fourth evolution—the so-called Industry 4.0 period that began before the global pandemic and accelerated in response to many societal challenges posed by COVID-19—technological advancements are significantly impacting the design of manufacturing work and the experience, skills, and competency of the workforce.
But a human-based workforce will not be replaced by an automated one, according to a report released by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and the Smart Factory Institute—a Chattanooga-based institute available to all manufacturers, large and small, across the country for innovation and workforce training.
