How do new and emerging technologies change the way products are designed, made and used, and who do they affect?
New and emerging technologies: how they impact industry, enterprise, people, culture, society and the environment, including automation, CAD/CAM, the changing workforce, and the positive and negative effects of technological change.
A focused answer to Eduqas GCSE Design and Technology (C600) on new and emerging technologies: how they reshape industry, the workforce, people, culture, society and the environment, with automation, CAD/CAM and a balanced evaluation of their impact.
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What this dot point is asking
Eduqas C600 opens its core content with new and emerging technologies under the heading "Design and technology and our world". You need to understand how technological change reshapes industry and the workforce, enterprise, and the lives of people, and how it affects culture, society and the environment. In the written exam this is tested by Explain questions on automation and the workforce, and by high-tariff Evaluate questions that want a balanced judgement on the impact of new technology.
Impact on industry and the workforce
In industry, automation and robotics carry out repetitive tasks faster, more consistently and around the clock, raising productivity and quality. CAD (computer-aided design) lets designers model and test ideas on screen, and CAM (computer-aided manufacture) drives machines such as CNC routers, laser cutters and 3D printers directly from that model, so parts are accurate and repeatable.
The workforce changes as a result. Routine manual jobs are reduced (sometimes called deskilling where craft skills are no longer needed), while new skilled roles appear to program, maintain and supervise the machines (upskilling). Work also moves away from dangerous or repetitive tasks, improving safety.
Impact on enterprise, people and society
New technologies lower the barrier for enterprise: small businesses can prototype with a 3D printer, sell worldwide online and use digital marketing, so innovation and creativity reach the market faster. For people, products become smarter and more connected, changing work patterns (remote and flexible work) and improving access for users with disabilities (voice control, adaptive devices).
For culture and society, technology changes how we communicate, shop and spend leisure time, and it can both connect communities and raise concerns about health, privacy and screen time. Eduqas wants you to weigh these effects rather than treat them as all good or all bad.
Impact on the environment
The environmental story is genuinely two-sided, which is why it is a favourite Evaluate question.
- Reducing impact. Precise CAD/CAM cuts material waste; sensors and smart controls cut energy use in products; lighter modern materials and composites cut fuel use in transport; design for disassembly aids recycling.
- Increasing impact. Digital devices have short lifespans and create electronic waste; manufacturing electronics and running data centres demand large amounts of energy; rare materials must be mined; and rapid product cycles (and planned obsolescence) encourage throwaway consumption.
Try this
Q1. State one way automation improves the safety of workers in a factory. [1 mark]
- Cue. It removes people from dangerous, dirty or repetitive tasks.
Q2. Give one environmental drawback of fast product cycles in digital technology. [1 mark]
- Cue. Short product lifespans create electronic waste (and drive resource use).
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas C600 20194 marksExplain two ways that automation in manufacturing affects the people who work in a factory.Show worked answer →
A 4-mark Explain wants two developed effects, and the strongest answers are balanced (one positive, one negative).
Effect 1, job losses and deskilling. Automated machines and robots do repetitive assembly and handling, so fewer routine manual workers are needed and some traditional skills are no longer used, which can cause unemployment in that workforce.
Effect 2, new and safer roles. Automation creates skilled jobs to program, maintain and supervise the machines, and it removes people from dangerous, dirty or repetitive tasks, improving safety and creating higher-skilled employment.
Markers reward two developed points with cause and effect (the machine does X, so the worker is affected in way Y). Two bare statements such as "people lose jobs" and "people get new jobs" with no development cap the mark at two.
Eduqas C600 20226 marksEvaluate the impact of new and emerging technologies on the environment. Use examples in your answer.Show worked answer →
A 6-mark Evaluate is marked on a levels grid: it wants a two-sided argument with examples and a supported conclusion, not a list.
Positive side. New technologies can reduce environmental impact: CAD/CAM cuts material waste through precise nesting and tool paths; sensors and smart controls reduce energy use in products; new materials (lighter composites) cut fuel use in vehicles; and design for disassembly aids recycling.
Negative side. They can also increase impact: digital devices have short lifespans and drive electronic waste; data centres and manufacturing electronics demand large amounts of energy; rare materials must be mined; and faster product cycles encourage throwaway consumption (planned obsolescence).
Conclusion. A top-level answer judges that the impact depends on how the technology is used: it can cut waste and energy when designed for efficiency and recycling, but worsens impact when it fuels short product lifespans. Markers reward balance, named examples, and a justified conclusion.
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Sources & how we know this
- WJEC Eduqas GCSE (9-1) Design and Technology (C600) specification — WJEC Eduqas (2017)