Universal Robots co-organized the "Dongguan Intelligent Collaborative Robot Vocational Skills Competition"

Adhering to the spirit of "Skills China Action", we will help Dongguan build a "skilled talent city" and empower the upgrading of manufacturing talents in the Greater Bay Area and China.

The 2022 "Dongguan Vocational Skills Competition - Intelligent Collaborative Robot Vocational Skills Competition" was held on September 17. This competition is a first-class competition at the Dongguan municipal level, sponsored by the Dongguan Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau and undertaken by the Guangdong Intelligent Robot Research Institute. Universal Robots, a Denmark cobot manufacturer, is the lead co-organizer of the competition, providing the winners with an industry-recognized certificate of completion, exclusive sponsorship of all cash prizes, training support for the competition, and several models of hands-on cobot equipment.

Universal Robots co-organized the "Dongguan Intelligent Collaborative Robot Vocational Skills Competition"

　　[Figure: Universal Robots' cobots as practical equipment for the finals]

　　[Figure: The contestants use Universal Robots' cobots as the practical equipment for the finals]

As the upgrading of the manufacturing industry continues to move forward, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized in recent years that the team of skilled workers is an important foundation to support China's manufacturing, and it is necessary to accelerate the training of a large number of high-quality workers and technical talents. In 2021, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security also issued the Implementation Plan of the Skills China Initiative, which clearly stated that more than 40 million new skilled talents would be added during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. As an important manufacturing town in the Greater Bay Area and even the country, Dongguan also issued the "Work Plan on Continuing to Promote the "Three Projects" and Deepening the Construction of the "Capital of Skilled Talents" this year, emphasizing that by the end of 2025, the proportion of high-skilled talents in the city will reach 40%.

The purpose of this competition is to give full play to the exemplary and leading role of vocational skills competition in talent training and provide talent guarantee for the high-quality development of the industry. The competition is aimed at professionals engaged in robot-related positions in Dongguan, and sets exam questions with reference to the national vocational skill level (level 3/senior worker) standards for industrial robot system operation and maintenance personnel and the new knowledge and new technology of intelligent collaborative robots. The preliminary round will be conducted in the form of theoretical knowledge competition, and the top 24 contestants will enter the practical finals, and finally decide 1 gold award, 2 silver awards, 5 bronze awards, and 10 winning awards.

The competition was a complete success, and the winners not only received the certificate of completion and bonuses and prizes from UROS, but also won the honorary certificate of "Dongguan Technical Expert" issued by the Dongguan Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau according to the award level.

Adam Sobieski, President of Universal Robots Greater China, attended the competition as a guest of honor. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mr. Su said, "China is one of the world's most important manufacturing and robotics markets, and Universal Robots has always had a strong commitment to the Chinese market. Co-sponsoring this competition is an integral part of Universal Robots' education program. Through a series of training and education programs, Universal Robots hopes to help train more collaborative robot experts in the industry, and empower more young people in China to upgrade their skills to become senior engineers and technicians, so as to prepare a good talent pool for China's manufacturing industry to continue to move towards the high-end of the industrial chain. ”

　　[Photo: Su Bikai, President of Universal Robots Greater China, and other guests attended the launching ceremony of the competition]

　　[Photo: Su Bikai, President of Universal Robots Greater China, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony]

Sun Zhenghua, Technical Director of Universal Robots Greater China, attended the competition as a special guest. "The characteristics of cobots make them ideal for training environments," says Sun. Cobots are ideal for everyday teaching environments, such as corporate training centers and classrooms on campus, due to their ability to work safely with people in close proximity, simple programming, and quick and flexible installation and deployment. With more than 50,000 cobots deployed worldwide, we have accumulated first-hand feedback on the needs of our users, so as to ensure that the training content is constantly updated to truly meet the needs of our users. ”

Zhang Guojun, President of Guangdong Intelligent Robot Research Institute, the organizer of the competition, said: "Dongguan City is vigorously promoting the construction of a 'skilled talent capital', and one of the main tasks is to promote the vocational skills competition to a new level and build a characteristic skills competition system. As a new R&D institution in the field of robotics and intelligent manufacturing supported by the Dongguan Municipal People's Government, Guangdong Intelligent Robot Research Institute carries an important mission of talent cultivation. In the process of hosting this competition, we have worked hand in hand with collaborators such as Universal Robots to provide talent for the industry in close cooperation with corporate practices, hoping to fill the gap between the skills of workers and the needs of the market."

Automation skills training should address the dual gap of general workers and high-tech talents in the manufacturing industry

Behind the government's various policies focusing on cultivating manufacturing talents, the global manufacturing industry is facing the problem of difficulty in recruiting manufacturing workers, and China is no exception. The difficulty in recruiting workers is first reflected in the general job position, because the repetitive work with low wages lacks a sense of fulfillment and attraction for young people. As digital transformation accelerates, automation tools such as cobots will play an increasingly important role in replacing tedious, dangerous, repetitive, and labor-intensive tasks, allowing workers to focus on more valuable work, improving efficiency and safety while increasing employee fulfillment.

In addition, the difficulty in recruiting workers is reflected in the shortage of high-skilled talents. Automation replaces basic tasks, but it also creates many new jobs and catalyzes the demand for highly skilled workforce. According to the World Economic Forum, the development of automation will create 97 million new jobs by 2025. At the same time, the data shows that in recent years, the ratio of China's high-skilled talents has remained above 2 for a long time, which means that a technical talent corresponds to at least two positions, which is in demand. Specific to the field of intelligent manufacturing, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security released the "Ranking of the 100 Occupations with the Most Shortage of Jobs in the Fourth Quarter of 2021", which shows that the ranking of industrial robot system operators has risen rapidly, and the degree of lack of engineering has increased.

Obviously, as the pace of industrial automation continues to accelerate, the industry must prepare for this purpose, and at the same time, practitioners need to update their skills, which will greatly benefit the career prospects of individuals. With state-of-the-art cobots and a range of educational and training initiatives, Universal Robots hopes to help practitioners achieve "knowledge refreshment" and upskilling, grasp the opportunities of new jobs in the future, and help the industry reap the benefits of automation investment faster.

The coverage of Universal Robots' education programs continues to expand

Co-sponsoring the competition is an integral part of UR's overall education program. Universal Robots has always wanted to help the industry develop more cobot talent, create a training ecosystem, and combine the power of Universal Robots, distributors, colleges and authorized training centers to provide more value to students.

Universal Robots China has set up "Universal Robots Academy" training centers in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing and Taiwan, and at the same time deployed the "Universal Robots Academy" authorized training center project, which currently covers Dongguan, Suzhou and other key cities in the Greater Bay Area and many strategic regions of the Yangtze River Delta, so that students can participate in professional collaborative robot training at the "doorstep". The UR Academy training modules cover a range of advanced cobot programming and operation skills, including cobot scripting, industrial communication, and interface operation. Those who pass the training not only receive industry-recognized certificates, but also gain first-hand hands-on experience.

To date, around 150,000 people worldwide have acquired the skills needed to work with Universal Robots through the Universal Robots Academy training courses. In addition to empowering industry professionals, Universal Robots is also expanding its training programs to a wider range of educational fields, providing its advanced collaborative robots, online learning platforms, offline simulators, and teaching materials to students of multiple age groups such as schools, colleges, and universities in many countries around the world to prepare students for their future careers. Teachers and students who have passed the training are certified, and more than 1,000 students and teachers worldwide have been certified.

Universal Robots co-organized the "Dongguan Intelligent Collaborative Robot Vocational Skills Competition"

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