These are the core concerns that drive our newsroom-defining topics that are of great significance to the global economy.

These are our most ambitious editing projects. enjoy!

Our emails will shine in your inbox, and there will be something new every morning, afternoon and weekend.

For many years, automakers have adopted automation and replaced humans with robots. However, according to Bloomberg News, Toyota intends to take a step back, replacing automated machines in some factories in Japan, and creating a large number of manual production lines equipped with labor.

For a Japanese company, this is an unconventional choice. To date, Japan has the most industrial robots, estimated at 309,400 (pdf p. 17). Only South Korea has a higher ratio of robots to humans.

Toyota's latest strategy has two main aspects. First, it wants to ensure that workers really understand what they are doing, rather than loading parts into the machine and being helpless if the machine fails. Secondly, in the long run, it wants to find ways to make the process more quality and more efficient. The company is concerned that automation means it has too many ordinary workers and not enough artisans and masters.

So far, people have taken back the work done by robots in more than 100 work areas, reduced waste in crankshaft production by 10%, and helped shorten the production line. Others improved shaft production and reduced the cost of chassis parts.

"We cannot simply rely on machines that can only repeat the same tasks over and over again," project leader Mitsuru Kawai told Bloomberg. "To become the owner of the machine, you must have the knowledge and skills to teach the machine."

Kawai has been with Toyota for 50 years, so he is immersed in its management philosophy. The manual line re-focused on "Kaizen" or continuous improvement, and "Monozukuri", which is essentially the art of getting things done. This is a renewed commitment to the management philosophy behind the decades-old Toyota production system.

Machines are good at completing tasks quickly and at low cost. But people—especially those who have experience performing tasks on their own—bring process, insight into process design, and consistency in quality. Toyota found that competitions to reduce human factors ultimately reduce process efficiency.

The automaker’s plan also follows a human capital philosophy similar to that outlined by Professor George Mason Taylor Cowan, who argued in his book "Average is Over" that jobs and benefits in the future economy will flow to those who can use it. And improve more and more intelligent machines.

Toyota's strategy may come at the cost of expansion. While promoting more deliberate manual manufacturing, Toyota will not build a new factory for three years. In terms of sales volume, it is still the world's largest automaker, but Volkswagen follows closely behind.

📬 Start drinking coffee and daily briefing (BYO coffee) every morning.

By providing your email, you agree to the Quartz privacy policy.

© 2021 Quartz Media, Inc. All rights reserved.