Robots To Boost Japan's Productivity By 50 Percent In The Next Five Years

Tokyo, Japan (AHN) - Labor productivity of the aging Japanese population is seen improving by 50 percent in the next five years - with the help of robots.

Bloomberg reports that more and more companies are cooperating with the government's drive to offset its dwindling workforce with technology.

The service industry is seeing the benefits of robots, particularly in doing menial jobs such as cleaning. The machines could wipe spotless an area at less cost and won't demand overtime payment even if they work round-the-clock.

The battery-powered RFS-1, as the machine is known, costs a cool $43,000 but owners swear the investment is well worth it. The robot has a maximum lifespan of 10 years.

Tokyo-based Fuji Heavy has sold 45 of the units and is taking the project a step further to develop a robot that could help sort library books in dingy libraries.

Hajime Aoyama, the cleaner's inventor, said it is easy to pitch the product which he perfected after a five-year research and a $3.5-million investment.

"Robots are sincere and don't cheat," he said.

Japan is the first developed country where annual death rates exceed birth rates, with more annual deaths than births. Government estimates that its work force are 30 percent less efficient that American laborers.

The Tokyo Institute of Technology said robots do not cause unemployment.

"The main purpose of robots is to improve productivity and to replace human workers in places or tasks that are too dangerous or require high precision. The introduction of robots in a factory may reduce the number of workers, but it also creates higher quality jobs for hardware/software development," it said.