Robots, cobots, and automation, oh my

Of the more than 40 million pounds of machinery across 1,226,523ft² of show space, the 89,020 IMTS 2024 registrants had a chance to visit the 1,737 exhibitors and see a lot of automation – robots and cobots to be exact. The robots and cobots throughout the four halls of McCormick Place outnumbered machine tools – my estimate (with a little insight from others at the show) is there were more than 630 robots and cobots on display – and it’s not surprising considering the manufacturing industry continues to face a lack of skilled workers.

The International Federation of Robotics (IFR) just came out with its “World Robotics 2024 Report” which shows 4,281,585 units operating in factories worldwide with 70% of all newly deployed robots in 2023 installed in Asia, 17% in Europe, and 10% in the Americas.

According to Marina Bill, president of the IFR, “The annual installation figure of 541,302 units in 2023 is the second highest in history. It is only 2% lower than the record of 552,946 units installed in 2022.”

The report goes on to note that the United States accounted for 68% of installations in the Americas and installations in the metal and machinery industry were up 8% to 4,171 units. This is good news that U.S. manufacturing is investing in automation, but it took decades to get to this level and still lags Asia and Europe.

Forty years ago in a November 1984 issue of Industry Week, editor Stanley J. Modic (my father-in-law) penned an editorial about “The economics of change.” In that piece he noted Bob Speetzer of General Electric’s Factory Automation Division said to a group of manufacturers: “Management’s preoccupation with short-term payoffs in gauging investment could be equated to committing industrial suicide. The Japanese don’t automate because there’s a three-year or five-year payback. They automate because they believe that the only way they can be world-competitive is to drive toward the lowest possible cost on all products.”

Stan agreed, writing that “Until the U.S. industrial management starts looking at investment in new technologies and automation as strategic decisions with far-reaching competitive implications, rather than tactical decisions based on financial implications – and until it understands automation technologies change not only the factory floor but the entire business in new and important ways – the future will remain unsettled.”

While automation has slowly been embraced since that 1984 column, 40 years later IMTS 2024 attendees were sure to see the benefits of automation and why it’s not replacing jobs – rather increasing productivity and putting workers to better use than being the human robot.

How is your company embracing cobots, robots, and automation? Drop me an email to let me know.