The seemingly unstoppable march of robots replacing humans may have hit a snag: high-end customisable cars.
Mercedes says it is replacing many of its production line robots with humans - a reversal of recent trends.
That is because its S-Class sedan has a growing array of options like carbon-fibre trim and heated cupholders, which humans are better at dealing with.
Head of production Markus Schaefer said: "Robots can’t deal with the degree of individualisation and the many variants that we have today.
"We’re saving money and safeguarding our future by employing more people."
The manufacturer's main plant in Sindelfinger is highly reliant on automated processes, dealing with 1,500 tons of steel each day and producing 400,000 vehicles each year.
Cars including the luxury S-Class Maybach sedan and GT sports car are produced at the 101-year-old site.
But it is the rising demand for customisation that it forcing the company to reconsider the trend of using more and more robots in production.
Because while robots are good at reliably performing repetitive tasks, they can struggle to adapt to new processes and techniques.
Mr Schaefer said: "The variety is too much to take on for the machines.
"They can’t work with all the different options and keep pace with changes."
In the past robots would have to be reprogrammed which could take weeks - bringing production to a standstill.
But human crews mean production lines can be transformed in a weekend.
The International Federation of Robotics (IFR) says that robot use increased 43% between 2013 and 2014, so the move bucks a very clear trend.
South Korea currently leads in the robotics stakes with 478 per 100,000 workers, Japan comes in second and Germany third. The fastest growing market is China.
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