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Apple said to demand suppliers switch to robotic production

MacDailyNews

Sep 2

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Daisy can disassemble up to 1.2 million phones each year, helping Apple recover more valuable materials for recycling. The company has offered to license the patents related to Daisy for researchers and other electronics manufacturers developing their own disassembly processes. — Apple’s Daisy robot can disassemble up to 1.2 million phones each year, helping Apple recover more valuable materials for recycling.

Apple is rapidly expanding automation and robotics in its manufacturing supply chain, according to DigiTimes. Although Apple has pushed for greater automation in supplier facilities for over two years, insiders report that it now mandates automation as a key condition for securing manufacturing contracts. This move aims to reduce reliance on manual labor, ensure consistent product quality across facilities, and lower long-term production costs, while also supporting Apple’s ongoing efforts to diversify its supply chain away from China.

Hartley Charlton for MacRumors:
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Apple’s alleged automation mandate spans all major product categories, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch. Apple now purportedly expects suppliers to fund their own automation upgrades rather than rely on Apple to finance or subsidize the necessary capital equipment. This policy change diverges from Apple’s previous approach, where the company frequently invested in tooling and machinery for contract manufacturers to meet its specifications.
The financial burden of this new automation requirement is apparently already impacting supplier margins. High initial capital expenditure, coupled with operational disruptions during integration of robotic systems, has reportedly strained profitability for some suppliers…
Apple ostensibly hopes that increased use of robotics will help standardize processes, digitize inspections, reduce the impact of labor shortages and political instability, implement consistent processes for new suppliers, and mitigate the challenges of maintaining consistent build quality when production is increasingly split across multiple countries.

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MacDailyNews Take: ‎’Tis taking seemingly forever, but:

The robots will come eventually. There are too many benefits. They don’t get tired. They don’t make mistakes. — MacDailyNews, December 5, 2014

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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]

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