Fanuc Corp. Returns to Taiwan to Restart Production

Taipei, May 9, 2011 (CENS)--Fanuc Corp., the world's largest brand of CNC (computerized numerically controlled) devices and industrial robots, will return to Taiwan to resume production.

Fanuc will likely locate its production site in the Taichung Industrial Park sometime in May this year, becoming the first foreign firm to roll out CNC lathe controllers in Taiwan after the implementation of the cross-Taiwan Strait economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA). Before 2000, Fanuc was also located at the same site but later shut production.

A clause in the ECFA stipulates, of the nine machine tools in the early-harvest list to enjoy duty reduction, production of origin certificate, requiring all CNC devices installed in machine tools for shipping to China must be produced either in Taiwan or China.

To avoid being excluded by such stipulations, the government is trying to attract CNC device makers as Fanuc and others to invest in Taiwan for local production.

To meet such ECFA requirements, the Science and Technology Development Foundation under the Ministry of Economic Affairs will budget NT$100 million towards the development of locally-made CNC devices.

At the end of August or the beginning of September, the Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) with the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) will visit Japan to attract investors from materials, green energy, precision machinery, digital content, and ITC sectors to invest in Taiwan.