A Detailed Guide To Collaborative Robots Market

 

On the technological front, the collaborative robot market has gone a paradigm shift in recent years due to several product launches. The demand for cobots is steadily mounting across all industries owing to their cost-effective performance, and it will continue to do so in the next five or so years.

The pace at which it is moving predicts massive growth in the period 2018 to 2023. Add to it the drop-in prices of Cobots in not just Canada and the USA, but in other places too, their ROI is exceptionally high.  Thanks to their high accuracy, more sectors are moving towards automation and robotic application which, in turn, will throw open many doors of opportunity in the coming era.

General Analysis Of Collaborative Robots Market

The industries where cobots are being utilized are:

  •    Automotive
  •    Electrical
  •    Plastics & Polymers
  •    Pharma & Chemistry
  •    Food & Beverage
  •    Aerospace & Defense
  •    Metal & Machining
  •    Electronics & Semiconductor

The applications were collaborative robots are employed include:

  •    Gluing
  •    Welding
  •    Polishing
  •    Dispensing
  •    pick & place
  •    Screw Driving
  •    Test & Inspection
  •    Material Handling
  •    Moulding Operations
  •    Small Parts Assembly
  •    CNC Machine Tending
  •    Packaging & Palletizing

What sets cobots apart from traditional robots?

  •    Quick and easy installation.
  •    Enhanced process efficiency.
  •    The ability to be employed alongside human workers.
  •    Lower cost and investment than conventional industrial robots.

Cobots: Some Critical Industry Insights

In 2017, the worldwide revenue of Collaborative Robot Market was about 373.3 million USD. With the increasing demand for safety alongside constant development in the automation field, the number was predicted to reach 9767.8 million USD as the year 2025 comes to a close. The dominant share in the market is captured by the automotive industry, which covered 20% back in 2015. It will remain as the central revenue generator in the segment for the year.

Some other market trends will be:

  •    The assembly and material handling application will see the highest growth.
  •    Companies will increase payload capacities due to cobots.
  •    The largest share in the industry, application-wise, is pick and place, but it will be overtaken by the assembly and material handling soon.

What has spurred the industry demand?

The major factors which will drive the growth of the cobots in USA, Canada and elsewhere are:

  •    The economical price points luring in both small and medium-sized enterprises and enhancing industry share.
  •    The rise in tasks that necessitate higher payload capacity.
  •    Advanced sensors, EOATs, and software built in co-robots that prevent injuries and accidents happening to human workers.
  •    The capability of collaborative robots to work, effectively, with humans without being caged.
  •    They reduce time to assemble, increase capacity and speed of operations.
  •    The growing demand for products such as F&B and upsurge in the cost of living, which increased the need for appliances and furniture, both drive the cobot market.

Regional Insights: Cobots In USA, Canada & Europe

Regions-wise, the collaborative robot market is dominated by the following in the given order

  •    Europe
  •    Asia-Pacific
  •    North America
  •    Rest-of-the-World

But when considered country wise, USA leads the share in the cobot market. The United States is also expected to continue remaining the top position for some time to come. Growth-wise, APAC will have the highest with China leading the way in the region.

Manufacturers of cobots, presently, are primarily distributing in:

  •    Europe
  •    North America
  •    Japan

Competitive Insights: Taking A Look At The Manufactures

The biggest names in the collaborative robot manufacturing industry are:

  •    FANUC Corporation
  •    KUKA AG
  •    Mrk-Systeme GmbH
  •    Precise Automation, Inc.
  •    Rethink Robotics, Inc.
  •    Robert Bosch GmbH
  •    Universal Robots A/S
  •    ABB Robotics
  •    Aubo Robotics
  •    Denso Corporation
  •    Yaskawa Electric Corp.
  •    Omron

The front-runner in the sales market share was Universal Robots at more than 58% in 2017. Each company is investing in new product development, especially due to the interest shown by developing countries. Mergers and acquisitions, along with VC investment, are common in the market as each business tries to remain ahead of the curve.

Challenges Faced By The Collaborative Robot Market

  • Vision: The technology which allows the cobots to identify and navigate around objects (including people) is improving at a very slow pace.
  • Dexterity: The gripping and mechanical skills of cobots are still restricted, but hardware improvements are working on it. Till date, this is the most significant challenge in the field.
  • Low ROI: Cobots have not penetrated the agriculture and manufacturing field due to low labour costs.
  • Security: Cobots are highly vulnerable to cyber threats and physical security issues. If they malfunction or there is a power surge, it can cause injuries to humans or even loss of life.

That said, all these problems can be overcome through R&D and better manufacturing.

Opportunities In The Cobot Market

The synchronized work cobots and human employees perform has led to a massive window of opportunity in the field.

  • They can perform complex operations like assembly, packaging, sorting, dispensing, etc. and provide enormous savings in terms of human labours and the time for executing these tasks.
  • Critical operations are easier to perform with machine aids.
  • Standardization of mechanical and electrical procedures.
  • Low-skilled labours can complete work like vehicle painting, placing of components, and packing without in-depth knowledge or training by utilizing the simple interfaces of cobots.

The Gist Of Cobot Market Study

Over the course of 5 years, the Collaborative Robot market will see a revenue CAGR of 51.4%. Currently, the market size is US$ 370 but it is set to touch the US$ 4500 million mark by 2024.  By 2027, the revenue from this sector will be approximately $7.5bn with a 29% share of the entire industrial robot market.

The massive acceleration of the segment is chiefly due to:

  • Consistently decreasing price.
  • Quick return on investment.
  •  Minimal infrastructure requirement.
  •  Greater awareness at SMEs level.
  •  Wider adoption by OEMs.
  •  The ample availability of cobots from mainstream industrial robot vendors.
  •  A viable solution in a plethora of applications, inside and outside of the factory setting.

With the persistent development in the field and endless new product launches, the collaborative robots market is set to be the next big thing that transforms industries as we see them.

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