Automation is the use of control systems such as computers to operate industrial machinery and perform processes, replacing human operators. In the scope of industrialization, it is a step beyond mechanization. Whereas mechanization provides human operators with machinery to assist them with the physical requirements of work, automation greatly reduces the need for human sensory and mental requirements as well.

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• Anything that can be automatically done for you can be automatically done to you.
  • Wyland's Law of Automation
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