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Apple manufacturer Foxconn to replace employees with a million robots
Sean Fallon
Primary Apple manufacturer Foxconn will replace a portion of its workforce with a million robots over the next three years
Foxconn's robots take over
Published on Aug 1, 2011
Robots will be taking a bigger role in the production of our precious iPhones and iPads rolling off production lines at the Taiwanese manufacturing giant Foxconn.
Foxconn also manufactures products for Sony, Nokia and other heavy-hitters in the industry.
The company has announced that it will replace part of its workforce with a million robots over the next three years. These bots will be charged with handling repetitive actions like spraying, weilding and assembly, Xinhua News reports.
The move will help lower payroll costs and increase efficiency that will undoubtely help it stay ahead of rivals like Pegatron, who are winning more and more of Apple's business these days.
How much of Foxconn's workforce will get the axe remains to be seen, but the manufacturer does currently employ 1.2 million people and 10,000 robots.
Based on that information, my guess is that a lot of Chinese workers will be searching for new jobs. Given Foxconn's storied history of poor working conditions and employee suicides, that might not be such a bad thing in the long run.
Still, there's no doubt that it will have a large financial impact on the local population. TechCrunch compares the possibilities to what happened in Detroit with the automobile industry - and we all know that didn't end well.
