Foxconn Aims to Fully Automate Entire Factories in Three Phases

Foxconn is aiming to fully automate production at its factories in China in three phases, according to Dai Jia-peng, general manager for Foxconn's Automation Technology Development Committee.

The first phase involves setting up individual automated work stations for that is dangerous or that works are unwilling to do. The second phase involves the complete automation of productions lines to decrease the number of robots used. In the third phase, entire factories will be automated leaving just a minimal number of workers for production, logistics, testing and inspection processes.

Dai says the company's factories in Chengdu, western China, Shenzhen, southern China, and Zhengzhou, northern China, have already been brought to the second or third phase. There are 10 fully automated production lines at some factories.


Foxconn has already deployed over 40,000 Foxbots, its robots developed and produced in house. The company make about 10,000 Foxbots a year.

Despite its progress, Dai says industrial robots won't be able to completely replace workers because humans have the ability to quick switch tasks.

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