With growing awareness of the impact that human activities are having on the environment, companies across all sectors are setting themselves ambitious targets to make their operations more sustainable.
Aimed at minimising their environmental footprint, these targets encompass a broad spectrum of measures, from sourcing sustainably produced ingredients and the use of biodegradable materials for packaging, through to recovering and recycling waste materials when products reach the end of their useful life.
In many cases, introducing these measures requires a rethink of existing processes – whether it be in terms of how a product is made, or, when it comes to the end of its life, how its constituent parts can be reused.
As developments in artificial intelligence (AI) are expanding robots’ decision-making capabilities, software is also helping significantly to simplify their programming and operation, which is creating new ways for companies to improve the sustainability of their operations.
The following are examples of projects that are using the inherent flexibility of robotic automation to reduce their environmental impact and create new potential revenue streams that could help to build a new breed of circular economy businesses.
Read the full article in DPA's September issue