Robots replacing humans in China's factories
Fuoshan, a city in the Southern province of Guangdong is to introduce 20,000 robot machines to replace humans in the next two years say reports, due to its cost benefits. &nbsp;This is in line with expert's predictions that one third of jobs will be replaced by software, robots and smart machines by 2025 and that by 2016, 1,500 of southern China's industrial enterprises will have replaced their workers with robots. &nbsp;Doubts remain on the social impact on the country.
Fuoshan in China’s Southern province of Guangdong is planning to introduce over 20,000 robot machines to replace humans in the next two years, reports People’s Daily Online.

Lu Yi, Mayor of Fuoshan, made the announcement yesterday at a local innovation promotion campaign. He further elaborated that – currently with only 3,000 robot machines operating – the city has a huge market potential for these robots.

A recent study in China revealed that the cost incurred while hiring ten welders would be $15,976, where as automating the process would require just $2,873 annually.

Cost benefits associated in replacing humans with robots has in turn created huge demands for automated machines in industrial cities like Foushan. The city requires 2,000 robot machines in the porcelain and building materials industry, about 1,000 in the aluminium processing industry, 1,500 in the automobile industry and 3,000 in mechanical machinery area. Mayor Lu Yi asserts that by 2017, 3,000 enterprises would be replacing people with robots.

Apart from Fuoshan, other cities like Dongguan – also from the Southern province of Guangdong and popularly known as the World Factory – are joining the world of automation. Recently the city revealed its first unmanned factory, which could lay out a vision of future manufacturing. All processes in the factory are operated by computer-controlled robots, computer numerical control machining equipment, unmanned transport trucks and automated warehouse equipment. The technical staffs just sit at the computer and monitors through a central control system.

A prominent manufacturing hub in China, Dongguan is planning to finish 1,000 to 1,500 ‘robot replace human,’ programs by 2016, which is in line with the strategy of ‘Made in China 2025.’

According to Luo Weiqiang, the general manager of a Dongguan-based cell phone module company, workers required at the factory has been reduced from 650 to 60, and in the future it is expected to come down to 20. Currently, 60 robot arms at 10 production lines are polishing the modules day and night. Each line had an automatic belt and three workers who are just responsible for checking lines and monitoring.

The study also revealed that the introduction of robots has reduced the defect percentage rate to less than five percent from earlier 25 percent. This is the first step of the ‘robot replace human’ program, where in the next two years, 80 percent of the processes would be replaced by robots increasing their count by 1,000.

Image courtesy of People’s Daily