You may already know that Robotics in Thailand is on rising demand in Asia and worldwide, especially in the automotive industry. Therefore, Japan is willing to buy robots and other devices to automate a wide variety of tasks, which include earthmoving, hotel room service and manufacturing. That not being the only reason, Japan is experiencing a shortage of labor, so the mid-sized companies are planning to use robotics.
According to the Bank of Japan survey, companies having a share capital of 100 million yen to 1 billion yen have a plan to boost investment in the fiscal year, starting in April. But then, it is still unclear as how much of that is being spared on automation. However, companies selling robotics devices say that the orders are increasing while the Japanese government says that it sees a huge amount of investments been dedicated to the increased efficiency.
The way Japan is coping with the aging population that is likely to provide critical lessons for other societies, which include China and South Korea. Mr. Yasuhiko Hashimoto (works in Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd’s robot division) says, “More than 90% of Japan’s companies are small and medium-sized, but most of these companies are not using robots.”
Presently, robotics represents 25% of Japan’s automotive manufacturing output in Thailand. As the government is promoting gen-next cars, Mr. Tsuda expects the local automotive industry to rely heavily on the industrial robotics.
The World Robotics 2017 report viewed Thailand as one of the growing markets for the industrial robots in Asia. The sales projection has been shown below;
Mr. Tsuda mentioned that Yaskawa Electric presently makes 3,500 units of industrial robots a month from plants in Japan and China. In fact, they have established Yaskawa Electric Thailand Co., in 2004 with about 81 employees in order to sell industrial robotics, system sales and engineering and mechatronics sales. Besides, it is one of the many companies in Japan who have been approached by the government in Thailand to invest in building an industrial robot factory in the EEC (Eastern Economic Corridor).
For your information, Robotics is one of the 10th targeted industries, enjoying the highest investment privileges, especially if the plant is situated in Thailand’s special economic zone. Firms participating are able to enjoy facilities from the Board of Investment (BOI), which includes a 50% reduction in the corporate tax for 3 years, provided the companies keep working in the high-tech sectors.
