A career in Robotics
In this article I will try to enlighten the readers about Robotics as a career option, skills required, its market value. I have also listed some the the prestigious institutes which offer a degree in this field.
Many of us must have heard, seen and got fascinated by the term 'ROBOT'. This field has inspired every film-maker, every writer and science enthusiast.Its a very good and promising career option for Mechanical, Electrical or a Computer engineer. The demand for robotic experts is going up day by day as industries in business of manufacturing automobile, plastics, chemical companies, metallurgy, machinery etc are investing huge amount from their yearly budget into robot-enabled machines. This helps them cut labor costs.Market value
McKinsey's 2012 report had stated a very good result in their research about manufacturing industries in India- that the India's manufacturing sector will have 90 million jobs by 2025. International federation of Robotics (IFR), a non-profit organisation which is active in 15 countries has put the operational stick of robots in India at 7800 across industries. Hence as the production rate of robots is on the rise, the need for robotic professionals is also increasing. Though India is yet to catch its counterparts like Korea, China and the US, we are certainly in the most promising countries for robotic research. India specializes only in industrial automation robots currently, which is a crucial, but a small part of robotics. We do need researchers to move into the most exciting part of robotics- The Humanoid Robots.
A report by Markets and Markets estimates that the global industrial robotics will reach $32.8 billion by 2017 at a CAGR of 5.0 percent from 2012 to 2017. Hence, these numbers clearly indicate that the industry needs professionals to design and develop both industrial and humanoid robots.Robotics as a career choice
Robotics is a very promising field and has 'n' number of jobs available. It is a mixture of 3 core departments of engineering- Mechanical, Computer and Electronics. For example- a mechanical engineer can choose to be an applicaiton specialist,who uses and maintains the robots and the machines. Currently there is no company in India that manufactures Robots. However, we are a home to many international MNC which offer great job opportunities. A computer engineer develops microchips and codes programmes for the movement and instructions of robots. While, an electrical engineer develops the electrical sensors to run the machines. Other career options include researchers and designers.
1. Robotics researchers in India get paid Rs 2 to Rs 3 lakhs ( a week or ten days).
2. Researchers abroad get $10000 to $15000 per month.
3. PhD students in Singapore universities get stipend around $5000 per month.
4. Application specialists (fresher) earns around Rs 4 lakh per year.Skills required
A robotics professional should have a deep understanding of circuit boards, processors, chips, computer hardware and software etc. You should always read research papers and journals to keep up with the latest developments. Your should be good with maths and science and should be patient and always hungry for knowledge.Institutes offering courses
This field is offered as a specialized course in engineering and technical institutes. It is also offered as a inter-disciplinary subject in 2nd or 3rd year of engineering syllabus.
At VJTI( Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute) robotics is offered as an elective to final year Btech students. It is also a compulsory subject for Mtech students specializing in CAD and CAM in which they are taught the application of industrial automation robots.
Other institutes include :
1. Indian institute of Robotics IIR, Delhi.
2. Kuka college, Pune.
3. Industrial Robotics Training centre, Gaziabad.
Firms like Irobokid and Robotix Learning Solutions Pvt.Ltd conduct workshops in schools in order to train and develop students interest in robotics.