Robots are set to take 600,000 UK builders' jobs in the next 20 years, according to a new report. Nearly one in three construction roles could be wiped out over the next two decades by robots and digital technology, the report found. Research by London-based engineering giant Mace said 600,000 of the current 2.2 million positions in the industry could be automated by 2040 in what it called the'fourth industrial revolution'. Research by engineering giant Mace said 600,000 of the current 2.2 million positions in the industry could be automated by 2040 in what it called the'fourth industrial revolution'. By 2040, there will be just 15,500 carpenters and interior fitters, down from 260,000 now, and the number of labourers will slump from 127,000 to 7,500.