New and emerging technologies - EduqasImpact on people

Companies are trying to save money, improve products, develop new materials and become more efficient. New technologies are developed to positively impact the manufacturing industry and society.

Part ofDesign and TechnologyCore technical principles

Impact on people

There is a link between the development of technology and people. On the one hand, people influence how technology is developed in order to suit their own wants and needs. On the other hand, technological developments change people's lifestyle and behaviours.

Technology push

Research and development in science and industry can lead to new discoveries, which can be used to improve existing products or develop new ones. This is known as , and it happens before there is demand for a product. Research and development are valuable for companies who are the first to introduce a new, product. are an example of a product developed due to technology push, where existing touchscreen technology was used to improve the mobile phone market.

Market pull

is when product ideas are produced in response to market forces or customer needs. Examples of this include the development of cameras, which have become smaller, more lightweight and higher performing as a result of customer needs. Originally, rolls of film needed to be developed to view the photos, whereas digital cameras have catered to a customer need to see photos immediately and know if a second shot is needed.

A photograph of a large camera is displayed on the screen of a small digital camera.

Change in job roles

The rapid changes in technology and in recent years have meant a decline in the need for . Rather than facing unemployment, workers have had to be retrained or to manage the new technologies. Examples of this include robotics where an employee needs to understand how a robot is programmed and can be controlled to perform a task such as welding, rather than perform the manual skill of welding themselves.