The Japanese robots are coming, Europe - FT中文网
登录×
电子邮件/用户名
密码
记住我
请输入邮箱和密码进行绑定操作:
请输入手机号码,通过短信验证(目前仅支持中国大陆地区的手机号):
请您阅读我们的用户注册协议隐私权保护政策,点击下方按钮即视为您接受。
FT商学院

The Japanese robots are coming, Europe

EU’s tight labour market combined with tech advances mean demand for robot workers is increasing

Japanese robots are going to become a more common sight in Europe. Rising wages are boosting demand for factory robots that can process everything from handling food to welding cars. For their manufacturers, which are starting an aggressive push, there is room for growth. 

Fanuc, one of Japan’s largest robotics companies, has quadrupled the size of its Spanish sales hub near Barcelona, adding to its expansion in Europe where it already has 10 facilities, including in Germany, Italy and Turkey.

Until now, demand for robot workers has been largely concentrated in Asia with about three-quarters of newly deployed robots installed in the region. Asia’s urgent need for automation has been growing over the past decade as low birth rates and a labour shortage from an ageing population increasingly cause problems for companies.

China has long been the largest market for Japan’s robot companies. The number of robots used in manufacturing in China reached a ratio of 322 units per 10,000 employees in 2021, exceeding robot density in the US. For Fanuc, the country accounted for almost 30 per cent of its sales in fiscal 2022.

But Chinese orders during the quarter to December quarter fell more than a third, the biggest drop among the markets it operates in. That is partly down to the local economic slowdown but also the results of price competition from local rivals that are entering the market.

The cost of a standard robot arm is about $330,000. As labour costs rise around the world, the required investment to improve productivity is starting to look more attractive than ever before. Growth in negotiated wages in the eurozone rose 4.7 per cent in the third quarter last year, the highest on record, before slowing slightly to 4.5 per cent in the fourth quarter.

Companies were already struggling to find workers in the EU’s tight labour market. Volkswagen has been using Fanuc’s robots for about a decade. The machines themselves are also becoming more sophisticated, able to handle an increasing number of tasks, such as painting, welding, quality inspection and handling dangerous chemicals. Generative artificial intelligence functions will help increase the scope of robot activities as object detection and real-time decision-making enhance efficiency and productivity.

Shares in Fanuc, which boasts gross margins of almost 40 per cent, are down a fifth from their June peak reflecting concerns about a slowdown and mounting competition in China. But Europe, whose revenue contribution to group sales is only 17 per cent, provides ample room for growth. The robots are coming.

版权声明:本文版权归FT中文网所有,未经允许任何单位或个人不得转载,复制或以任何其他方式使用本文全部或部分,侵权必究。

欧盟成员国同意对中国电动汽车征收关税

此举正值中国企业在欧洲市场份额增长之际。

以色列能独自摧毁伊朗的核设施吗?

分析人士认为,如果没有美国的支持,以色列空军将很难成功开展行动。

以色列空袭震撼贝鲁特,打击真主党的行动不断扩大

以色列国防军声称已击毙黎巴嫩武装组织精密导弹制造公司的头号人物。

阿斯麦的减碳壮举和“晶圆女王”

在苹果、谷歌、台积电和阿斯麦等全球领导者的推动下,循环经济已经从一个理论概念发展成为科技行业的一个重要话题。

如何分割全球经济

大集团通过多种方式使不结盟变得困难重重。

豪华套房和咸鸭:豪华礼物能在美国买到外国影响力吗?

联邦检察官将矛头对准了他们所指控的企图在美国权力机构中谋取影响力的行为。
设置字号×
最小
较小
默认
较大
最大
分享×