EverestLabs Feature
the robots we’ve been using for the past five years are the same. And the beauty of this robot is that it fits in the same spot as it takes a human to sit. The same 3 by 3 by 6 feet area is where the robot goes,” Ambati added.
tI can say with confidence that it’s not about a job
Selecting a
displacement in the world of recycling. It’s about increasing
productivity. things you can do
AI and robotics solution: how it works
RecycleOS, an all-inclusive AI software and robotics solution designed by EverestLabs, essentially comprises a 3D depth-sensing camera, AI and a robot. “We built a software layer that understands where we put the camera anywhere in the world. It can identify what’s on a conveyor belt, whether it’s metal or plastics, fibers etc.,” Ambati explained. Supported by its robotics operations center in Andhra Pradesh, India, the easy-to-use analytics platform tracks the robotic performance around the clock. It delivers daily reports on the number of missorted beverage cans each day, successful picks, the economic value of these cans and the greenhouse gas emissions saved from recycling them. Another advantage of the system
lies in the fact that AI and robotics can be deployed within a few hours with no downtime or retrofits. “All
CMI, EverestLabs expand partnership
From a chance meeting at the Resource Recycling Conference in Austin, Texas in 2022 to the first-of-its-kind project to maximise beverage cans recovery at Caglia, CMI and EverestLabs will now deploy another robot at LRS in the Chicago area. Ambati hopes that CMI and its founding members will release more funding, so that these efforts can add up to what he calls a big recovery. “If I can help 1,000 recycling plants in the US with modern technology, we can significantly reduce this. And the technology exists today, we don’t need to discover it.” In fact, a study carried out by
CMI in 2020, titled Aluminum Beverage Can: Diver of the US Recycling System, found that one in four beverage cans are missorted at a typical MRF. In 2022 CMI also supported on-the-ground testing at five loss points across three diverse MRFs. It found an average loss of seven to 36 used beverage cans per minute, which represents an annual average revenue loss of $71,900 with a payback period of three years per the return- on-investment calculator that CMI commissioned and published online for MRFs to use. As for the cost of EverestLabs’
equipment, the leasing contract can be renewed with the option to buy it once the lease ends. “The cost depends on whether the equipment is bought or leased. Annually it costs less than a manual sorter whether you run a single-shift plant or a multi-shift operation,” Ambati said. He added, “The amount of investment needed in a grand scheme of things is quite insignificant if you ask me. Beverage can makers can have hundreds of robots in North America automating recovery and bringing these cans back into manufacturing.”
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What’s in store for EverestLabs in 2024?
The start-up has enjoyed more than its fair share of success to date. From being named the 2023 finalist in the enhanced automation category by Edison Awards that honours innovation excellence across a wide range of categories to being funded by leading American, Canadian, and Japanese venture funds. What next? “This year we’re focused on expanding our presence strategically in North America. We’ll be entering the Canadian market soon and various other international markets.”
AI and the future of work
2023 marked a significant milestone in AI’s journey to the mainstream. And it is here to stay. Featuring highly on the agenda at this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, its impact on employment and global regulations is undeniable and widely debated. For Ambati, perhaps unsurprisingly, AI technology is not about displacing jobs. “I can say with confidence that it’s not about a job displacement in the world of recycling. It’s about
increasing productivity. You don’t have hundreds of thousands of people saying they want to do a job of hand sorting for 8 hours a day, picking 40, 60 or even 20 items a minute. That’s why the concept of displacing jobs in recycling is misunderstood. It’s about making more money for recycling plants, making employees better and deploying employees in high-value tasks.”
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