“As high as 65 percent of people are still clueless about what kind of profession they will have. On the contrary, 75-375 million people worldwide are forced to switch professions in the Industry 4.0 era,” said Prof. Dr. Catur Sugiyanto, M.A., Professor from Faculty of Economics and Business UGM.
He delivered this statement during the National Seminar and Call for Papers on Industry 4.0, Saturday (10/13) at Merapi Auditorium, Faculty of Geography UGM. Held by UGM Graduate Students Association, the seminar carried the theme ‘Role of Academics in Facing the Challenges of Industry 4.0 Era’.
According to Ahmad Rayhan, S.H., the event chairperson, the theme was chosen due to the rapid development of the industry. Meanwhile, academic positions are neglected because there are not many who can use them. “Therefore, it is important for them to address these challenges,” he said.
The event is divided into two sessions, namely the national seminar and presentation of the selected papers to publish later. Catur came as one of the speakers along with I Made Andi Arsana, Ph.D., Head of UGM Office of International Affairs. Additionally, the seminar also presented a keynote speaker, Ir. Herry Abdul Aziz, M.Eng., Staff of Communication and Information Technology Ministry.
Catur highlighted the problem of the increasingly diminishing human roles in industries due to the Industry 4.0. The lifespan of a company is getting shorter, ended early, or replaced by new businesses. As a result, workers must also be ready to switch from one job to another.
Arsana responded, this was affected by the characteristics of Industry 4.0, which are big data, internet of things, cloud computing, and cognitive computing. All of these characteristics lead to the creation of a cyber-physical system or robotization which has started to be used widely in industries.
“Many human jobs are being replaced by machines. Human power is a secondary commodity because using machines is more profitable,” he said.
In his opinion, when it reaches this stage, it is humans who need to adapt by improving their technological skills. “So, we have to study more. Skill is not limited to fields of study. People from social sciences can understand technology better than engineering people.”
Arsana noted that the purpose of education is open-mindedness. He advised to maintain one thing in this era. “The thing we need to maintain is value, not tradition. It doesn’t matter if space and time have changed, but the essence must remain,” he concluded.