Foxconn (富士康), Apple’s chief contractor, unveiled its new business headquarters in central China’s Zhengzhou, marking the deepening of ties between Foxconn and Henan Province, where it has a mega-factory that churns out iPhones and other gadgets.
This move has dispelled speculation that Foxconn will shift its production away from Henan, where it employs at least hundreds of thousands of workers.
Notably, robotics will become one of the key focuses of Foxconn’s new business HQ, given its organizational structure.
In addition to a chairman’s office, the new HQ will set up a robot development center, alongside other units devoted to the R&D and manufacturing of EV, battery and more.
This signals that the Taiwanese company, the world’s largest electronics contract manufacturer, has made a crucial step toward diversifying its business from producing iPhones, tablets and other electronic accessories alone.
According to a display board at Foxconn’s new business HQ in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan, it will adopt a strategy called Foxconn 3.0.
Under this strategy, the manufacturing giant is to evolve into a dominant player in the area of cutting-edge products and services, to embrace digitalization and branch into EV, digital health and robotics.
Foxconn aims to not just invest in key robotic technologies, but also establish a manufacturing platform for robots to assist in designing and producing service robots.
Aside from the targeted industries, Foxconn will also invest heavily in three core technologies, including AI, semiconductor and next-generation communications.
Foxconn estimated that after the strategic overhaul, its market size is expected to reach US$1.4 trillion by 2025.
