Robo Top

 

They assemble cars, perform surgery and even handle cargo at airports. But give most robots a needle and thread, and they would probably come undone. That's why practically all the clothes sold in the world today are still made by hand, often by very low-paid workers in Asia. Those workers may use tools such as sewing machines, but fully automating such labour is difficult. "You have a problem if it's sewing," says Cam Myers, founder and chief executive of California-based CreateMe, a robotics company. "You have to keep [two pieces of fabric] in alignment under motion." His company takes another approach. Forget sewing – glue the pieces of fabric together instead. "Once the adhesive is laid down, you simply line something over it and stamp." CreateMe has designed robots that do this and the firm is already making women's underwear this way. It will begin producing t-shirts, too, in the coming months. Mass production could follow next year. Roboticists have eyed the garment manufacturing industry for decades. If machines could ever take over such work, clothes-making could come back to countries in the West, and the environmental footprint of garments might be slashed in the process. But millions of textile workers could also be out of a job.

BBQ - Would the impact of these machines be overall positive on the planet?

CreateMe - Robot T-Shirt

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Mars £80 Factory Investment

 

Mars is investing £80m into its factory in the home of its confectionery business in the UK. Up to five million chocolate bars a day can now be made in Slough, Berkshire, after a major upgrade in production lines and facilities – double what the business did in 2025. Mars Wrigley UK & Ireland General Manager, Adam Grant, said: "That's enough to stretch all the way from Slough to Edinburgh." The firm said it is the single biggest investment ever made at its site and is paying for new technology - including robots - to move large boxes of chocolate around the factory floor. It is the second largest Mars factory in Europe, behind Belgium. The first ever Mars bar was created in Slough in 1932 when Forrest Mars Sr set up a small kitchen on the Slough Trading Estate. Before entering the production area, there are reminders of the history of the past 94 years with photos of memorable moments on the walls. The multi-million pound investment at the factory will pay for advanced manufacturing processes, digital innovation and workforce development. It includes major upgrades to production lines, infrastructure improvements and the introduction of new digital systems designed to improve efficiency, quality and sustainability. The firm says it will help it to deliver the "perfect" Mars bar every time. Alongside factory renovation, new training and development programmes are being introduced to upskill the workforce in automation, digital and AI-enabled roles.

BBQ - How important is investment to improve quality?

Mars Factory

Race for Humanoid Robot

The race is on to build a humanoid robot. At a recent industrial trade fair the G1 humanoid robot built by Chinese firm, Unitree was standing at about 4'3" (130cm) greeting passers by. The G1 is smaller and more affordable than other humanoid robots on the market, and has such a highly fluid range of motion and dexterity that videos of it performing dance numbers and martial arts have gone viral. Unitree is just one of dozens of companies around the world developing robots that have a human form. The potential is huge - for business it promises a workforce that doesn't need holidays or pay rises. It could also be the ultimate domestic appliance. After all, who wouldn't want a machine that could do the laundry and stack the dishwasher. But the technology is still some way off. While robotic arms and mobile robots have been common in factories and warehouses for decades, conditions in those workplaces can be controlled and workers can be kept safe. Introducing a humanoid robot to a less predictable environment, like a restaurant or a home, is a much more difficult problem. To be useful humanoid robots would have to be strong, but that also makes them potentially dangerous - simply falling over at the wrong time could be hazardous. So much work needs to be done on the artificial intelligence that would control such a machine."The AI simply has not yet reached a breakthrough moment". Unitree underlines that advantage - its G1 is cheap (for a robot) with an advertised price of $16,000 (£12,500).

BBQ - What year do you think we will see a humanoid robot as part of the workforce?

Humanoid Robot

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