Japan Wants Robots to Help Build Its Skyscrapers
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It takes about half a million man-days to erect a 30-story office tower, a number that hasn’t changed much over the years, because building sites have remained largely impervious to advances in automation. That’s becoming a problem for construction companies in Japan.
The industry, which bore the brunt of Japan’s prolonged labor shortage, is expecting the situation to get worse with at least a million people set to leave or retire from the profession over the next decade. Shimizu Corp., a Japanese general contractor founded more than 200 years ago, is seeking to soften the blow by introducing robots that can weld beams, haul supplies and install ceiling panels.