Robots on the rise: How automated workers are replacing humans in China

Danish robot maker Universal Robots sees a potential goldmine in offering robots with a human touch to small enterprises on the mainland that are struggling with rising wages and a shortage of labour.

The incentive for Chinese manufacturers to employ robots is increasing because of wage rises, says Enrico Krog Iversen, CEO of Universal Robots, which specialises in producing lightweight robots.

Robots that can interact with humans without the hindrance of a safety barrier will be in growing demand from the mainland's small and medium-sized enterprises, he says, noting that intuitive programming that is easy to set up is also necessary.

"Smaller robots are the ones that are having the biggest success in China," Iversen told the Post. "It's a flexibility issue that robots can fit into many applications. For those traditional robots, there is not enough room."

Since entering the Chinese market in December 2011, Universal Robots has teamed up with 11 partners to distribute its lightweight robots to the mainland's SMEs. One of the company's customers was in the printed circuit board industry, employing robots in loading materials into production machines, Iversen says. "By putting up robots here, it can have very consistent production, and also be safer."

Another Chinese customer is from the computer numerical control machining industry that automates machine operations with collaborative robots.

"Using robots helps increase the throughput of machines," Iversen says.