More robots being shipped to non-automotive companies
Tony Pallone | March 12, 2019
According to the Robotic Industries Association (RIA), a trade association within the umbrella of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), 2018 saw a record number of robots shipped to North American companies — but not necessarily to the companies one might think. The automotive industry, long a leader in robotics implementation, has seen shipments slowing down; non-automotive companies, by contrast, have seen a 41% increase since 2017. Notable growth has been seen in sectors such as food and consumer goods (48%), plastics and rubber (37%), life sciences (31%) and electronics (22%).
Robot units shipped to North American automotive OEM and tier supplier customers in 2018 showed a 12% decrease relative to 2017 data. The industry overall accounted for just 53% of total robot shipments in North America — its lowest percentage share since 2010.
“While the automotive industry has always led the way in implementing robotics here in North America, we are quite pleased to see other industries continuing to realize the benefits of automation,” said A3 president Jeff Burnstein. “As we’ve heard from our members and at shows such as Automate, these sales and shipments aren’t just to large, multinational companies anymore. Small and medium-sized companies are using robots to solve real-world challenges, which is helping them be more competitive on a global scale.”
Once every two years, A3 produces the Automate show; the 2019 edition will be held from April 8-11 in Chicago. This year’s theme is “Win the Future,” and will explore how automation such as robotics can secure success for companies in a rapidly-shifting manufacturing landscape. More than 400 robotics vendors, integrators and other automation companies will demonstrate solutions on the show floor; many will also share expertise in conference sessions.
Additional upcoming events hosted by RIA include the International Robot Safety Conference (Oct. 15-17 in Indianapolis), the Collaborative Robots, Advanced Vision & AI Conference (Nov. 12-13 in San Jose, California) and the A3 Business Forum (Jan. 13-15, 2020, in Orlando, Florida).