A new report from the International Federation of Robotics (FIR) reports on the progress of industrial robot purchases around the world. According to the president of this organization, Junji Tsuda, industrial robots are an essential part of the progress of the manufacturing industry, since the automation of tasks can increase the productivity of the manufacturing sector.
From 2013 to 2017, the sale of industrial robots has grown by 114%. Last year, 261,800 robots were sold, which corresponds to a 37% increase compared to the volume of global sales in 2015, ie 253,300 robots. For market developments in the coming years, the FIR estimates that by 2021, the number of industrial robots sold worldwide is expected to reach 630,000.
The purchase of industrial robots by region
Asia remains the fastest growing market in the world. With 261,800 robots purchased in 2017, this continent alone accounts for 37% of the total volume of robot sales in the world.
Europe is the second largest market for the sale of industrial robots. Last year, 66,300 robots were sold. The average growth rate is 10% per year. On the American continent, 46,100 industrial robots were shipped in 2017, representing a growth of 12% compared to 2017. Overall, five countries dominate the purchase of industrial robots around the world. In descending order, these countries are:
- China has significantly improved its leading position with 36% of the total supply of industrial robots. Approximately 137,900 robots were sold in this country in 2017. This figure is considerably higher than the total sales volume of Europe and the Americas.
- In 2017, sales of industrial robots in Japan increased by 18% to 45,566 robots.
- The number of robots distributed in South Korea decreased by 4% to 339,732 in 2017.
- The number of robots installed reached 333,192, which is 6% more than in 2016. The growth driver of all manufacturing industries in the United States has been the trend to automate production.
- The number of robots sold in Germany has increased by 7%; it was 21,404 in 2017.
For Canada, although it is an emerging market for industrial robots, it acquired 4,003 robots in 2017. This number represents a 72% increase over the previous year. ‘2016.
To read about the subject : Global industrial robot sales doubles over the past five years
Source : Bulletin Vecteurs économie et innovation, MEI
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