Terry Gou, President of Foxconn International Holdings Ltd., said that within three years the company will import one million robots to increase productivity and efficiency.
Gou said that Foxconn has been increasing the number of production-line robots replacing unskilled workers who do simple tasks, Nanfang Daily reported on Aug. 1.
Foxconn presently has 10 thousand robots. Next year the number will reach 300 thousand, and after three years, the company will use one million robots.
“On Foxconn’s assembly line, there are a lot of simple tasks, such as repetitively pressing the same single button. Previously, workers did these tasks, now robots will automatically do them. Not only will there be high controllability, efficiency will also increase,” a Foxconn employee said.
Foxconn’s total labor force is close to one million, the majority in mainland China.
Foxconn International Holdings Ltd is currently ranked one of the world’s largest contract manufacturers. It’s also ranked number 60 in Fortune’s top 500 businesses for 2011.
Foxconn uses what many critics have described as military-style work ethic, including regular overtime and high-pressure production requirements. Last year several workers committed suicide at Foxconn’s factories in China.
Foxconn’s Robots to Number a Million
President of Foxconn International Holdings Ltd said that within three years the company will import one million robots to increase productivity and efficiency.
8/1/2011
Updated: 8/2/2011
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