In short: In what could possibly be a worrying signal of issues to return, Chinese language cellphone maker Xiaomi has constructed a brand new autonomous good manufacturing facility that may not solely make 10 million handsets per 12 months, however may determine and proper manufacturing points whereas optimizing the whole course of.
Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun mentioned the 860,000-square-foot facility, positioned within the Changping district on the northeast outskirts of Beijing, follows a lab-level good manufacturing facility inbuilt 2019 that produced round 1 million telephones per 12 months – it dealt with the whole manufacturing of the Xiaomi Combine Fold.
The brand new facility is described by Jun as a really automated mass-production manufacturing facility. It options 11 manufacturing traces, in a position to produce the corporate’s upcoming flagship MIX Fold 4 and the MIX Flip telephones at a relentless price of 1 each few seconds.
Let me know within the feedback what you are most interested in this Xiaomi Good Manufacturing unit. pic.twitter.com/5TU5ts9aMS
– Lei Jun (@leijun) July 8, 2024
The manufacturing facility can function 24 hours a day with out folks on the ground, writes Gizmochina, although the video reveals a handful of individuals in what Jun calls the Warfare Room, monitoring the Xiaomi Hyper IMP (Clever Manufacturing Platform).
All these 24/7 factories aren’t new, however Xiaomi’s facility additional reduces the necessity for human staff through the use of AI to determine and clear up any points which will seem throughout manufacturing.
In accordance with a Weibo put up (by way of New Atlas), the IMP is ready to enhance course of flows, make selections, and execute instructions. It could possibly additionally understand full-scenario digital administration, from the procurement of uncooked supplies to supply. All of which makes it a manufacturing facility that is in a position to “evolve” itself, in keeping with the put up.
Step into the center of our manufacturing facility, the “Warfare Room”. Our Xiaomi Hyper IMP (Clever Manufacturing Platform) is the mind of the operations, proactively fixing points and optimizing manufacturing.ð pic.twitter.com/6ZWhOm5wle
– Lei Jun (@leijun) July 9, 2024
Robots have been changing manufacturing facility staff for a few a long time now; one of many largest cuts got here in 2016 when Foxconn diminished its workforce by 60,000 by swapping them out for unpaid machines that toil 24/7. However Xiaomi’s good manufacturing facility takes automation to the intense by probably changing those that would diagnose or repair issues with the manufacturing and assist optimize processes.
It isn’t simply manufacturing vegetation the place robots are taking human jobs. Amazon has not too long ago began ramping up the usage of autonomous machines in its achievement facilities and warehouses, from 350,000 robots in 2021 to greater than 750,000 by June 2023. In October final 12 months, the tech large introduced Digit, a 5-foot 9-inch 143-pound robotic from Agility Robotics, was being deployed to warehouses. The 2-legged machine can stroll ahead, backward, and sideways; squat and bend; and transfer, grasp, and deal with gadgets utilizing its arm/hand-like clasps. It could possibly imitate nearly all the things {that a} human can do, with no need to carry out bodily capabilities or take time without work on account of stress.
