Industrial robots are undoubtedly the most common equipment in future factories. If you are not familiar with this field, then you are out of date! Today, let’s review the four major families of industrial robots that are always mentioned when discussing the giants in this industry: FANUC, KUKA, ABB, and YASKAWA. We will explore their history and respective advantages!
In the world of industrial robots, the most famous companies are Switzerland’s ABB, Germany’s KUKA, Japan’s FANUC, and YASKAWA, collectively known as the four major families of industrial robots. They hold a significant position in the Asian market, commanding over 70% of the Chinese robot industry market share, and almost monopolizing high-end fields such as robot manufacturing and welding. Now, let’s unveil the mystery of these four families.
Switzerland’s ABB
ABB (Asea Brown Boveri) was formed in 1988 from the merger of two international companies with over 100 years of history (Sweden’s ASEA and Switzerland’s BBC Brown Boveri). It ranks among the Fortune Global 500 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. ABB’s business covers five major areas: power products, discrete automation, motion control, process automation, and low-voltage products, renowned for its power and automation technology. ABB boasts the largest variety of robot products, technologies, and services today, making it the world’s largest supplier of industrial robots by installed capacity. ABB emphasizes the integrity of the robots themselves; for its six-axis robots, while the speed of a single axis may not be the fastest, the precision achieved when all six axes operate together is very high.
Core Areas
ABB’s core technology is the motion control system, which is also the biggest challenge for the robots themselves. By mastering motion control technology, ABB can easily achieve path-following accuracy, movement speed, cycle time, programmability, and other robot performance metrics, significantly enhancing production quality, efficiency, and reliability.
Revenue Situation
ABB’s stocks are traded on the Zurich, Stockholm, and New York stock markets. More than half of its revenue comes from the European market, one-fifth from Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, and one-quarter from North and South America. As of March 8, 2016, the company’s market value was approximately $41.5 billion (Yahoo Finance), with revenues of about $35.5 billion and a net profit of $1.9 billion.
Germany’s KUKA
KUKA (Keller und Knappich Augsburg) was established in 1898 in Augsburg, Germany, initially focusing on indoor and urban lighting but soon expanded into other fields. In 1973, it developed its first industrial robot named FAMULUS. KUKA’s main clients come from the automotive manufacturing sector, and it also focuses on providing advanced automation solutions for industrial production processes, extending into neurosurgery and radiography in hospitals. Its orange-yellow robots prominently represent the company’s color scheme.
Fields of Involvement
KUKA robots can be used for material handling, processing, spot welding, and arc welding, covering industries such as automation, metal processing, food, and plastics. The user base of KUKA robots includes renowned companies such as General Motors, Chrysler, Ford, Porsche, BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Ferrari, Harley, Boeing, Siemens, IKEA, Swarovski, Walmart, Budweiser, BSN Medical, and Coca-Cola. Furthermore, KUKA robots are widely used in the food industry, logistics, construction, and glass manufacturing.
Revenue Situation
As of March 8, 2016, KUKA’s market value was approximately $3.5 billion, with revenues of about $3.1 billion and a net profit margin of 3%. The revenue from the company’s system integration business and industrial robot business accounted for approximately 58% and 42%, respectively.
Japan’s FANUC
Founded in 1956, FANUC launched its first electric hydraulic stepping motor three years later. In the 1970s, benefiting from rapid advancements in microelectronics, power electronics, and especially computing technology, FANUC decisively abandoned its original electric hydraulic stepping motor CNC products and began a transformation. In 1976, FANUC successfully developed a CNC system and subsequently collaborated with SIEMENS to create a high-level CNC system. Since then, FANUC’s products have been updated annually, making it one of the world’s strongest companies in CNC systems, design, manufacturing, and sales.
Core AreasFANUC is a global leader in CNC system production. What sets FANUC industrial robots apart from those of other companies is their more convenient process control, smaller base sizes for similar types of robots, and unique arm designs.
Revenue SituationAs of March 8, 2016, FANUC’s market value was approximately $23.5 billion, with revenues of about $6.1 billion and a net profit margin of about 27%. The company has maintained a high level of profitability, with a long-term gross margin exceeding 40%.
Japan’s YASKAWA
YASKAWA (Kabushiki-gaisha Yaskawa Denki) was founded in 1915 and is Japan’s largest industrial robot company, headquartered in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture. In 1977, YASKAWA developed Japan’s first fully electric industrial robot using its motion control technology, subsequently developing various automated robots for welding, assembly, painting, and handling, leading the global market for industrial robots. As of September 2015, YASKAWA had sold over 280,000 robots, becoming the world’s top robot seller!
Core Areas
YASKAWA primarily produces servo and motion controllers, which are key components in robot manufacturing. Its mastery of core technologies is closely tied to its nearly century-long history in electrical engineering, giving YASKAWA a unique advantage in robot development. YASKAWA has developed various automated robots for welding, assembly, spraying, and handling, with core industrial robot products including spot welding and arc welding robots, painting and handling robots, LCD glass panel transfer robots, and semiconductor chip transfer robots, being one of the earliest companies to apply industrial robots in the semiconductor production field.
Revenue Situation
As of March 8, 2010, YASKAWA’s market value was approximately $3.5 billion, with revenues of about $3.7 billion and a net profit margin of about 6%. The company’s revenues from motion control, industrial robots, system engineering, and drive control accounted for approximately 47%, 36%, 12%, and 4%, respectively.
Collaborating with Renowned Enterprises
The best industrial robots are undoubtedly European products, with KUKA being the top tier. However, when the four major families entered the Asian market, the quality of ABB robots domestically declined, while YASKAWA and FANUC offered better value for money compared to European and American products, making them more aligned with the needs of clients in China. Nowadays, robot manufacturers typically prefer to collaborate with renowned automobile brands; for instance, Volkswagen exclusively uses KUKA, General Motors primarily uses FANUC, while European brands favor ABB, reflecting the strategic adjustments of the four major families.
All four families began by engaging in businesses related to the robot industry chain, such as ABB and YASKAWA in power equipment and motor businesses, FANUC in CNC systems, and KUKA initially in welding equipment. Ultimately, their ability to become leading comprehensive industrial automation companies globally stemmed from mastering the technology of robot bodies and their core components and their commitment to research and integrated development, which has earned them the reputation of the four major families of industrial robots today.
What Other Notable Companies Exist Beyond The Four Major Families?
The following are the top ten robot companies listed in the RBR50:
NO.1 3D Robotics (3DR)
3DR is a private robotics company located in Berkeley, California, dedicated to the research and development of innovative, flexible, and reliable personal drones and related technologies. The company’s personal intelligent drone platform provides consumers with stunning aerial imagery and data analysis, along with capabilities for mapping, measurement analysis, and 3D modeling.
NO.2 ABB Robotics (ABB)
ABB is a publicly traded company focused on developing industrial robots and robotic arms, located in Zurich, Switzerland. It holds a dominant position in the supply of industrial robots, modular production systems, and services. ABB provides powerful solutions to manufacturers for improving production efficiency, product quality, and ensuring worker safety. As manufacturers increasingly seek new ways to enhance flexibility, agility, and competitiveness, ABB is also penetrating traditional industries while exploring new markets.
NO.3 Aethon
Aethon is a private company focused on developing mobile robots, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Aethon is a leader among global suppliers of autonomous mobile transport robots. The TUG robot automates internal logistics transport tasks, capable of autonomously navigating in dynamic and complex environments, such as transporting goods in hospitals.
NO.4 Google
Google focuses on developing medical, assistive, humanoid, industrial, robotic arms, and mobile robots, located in California, USA. In 2013, Google rapidly acquired seven advanced and diverse robot companies—Boston Dynamics, Bot&Dolly, Holomni, Industrial Perception, Meka Robotics, Redwood Robotics, and Schaft, Inc.—causing a significant stir in the robotics industry.
NO.5 Amazon
Amazon focuses on developing mobile robots, located in Seattle, USA. Amazon plays the role of an online retailer in North America and even internationally, serving consumers through its retail website, where products can be purchased primarily from manufacturers and third-party distributors.
NO.6 Autonomous Solutions
ASI is a private company focused on developing mobile robots, headquartered in Mendon, Utah. For over fifteen years, ASI has provided hardware and software systems for autonomous vehicles in mining, agriculture, automotive, industrial, security, and military markets. ASI has a multi-year, multi-million dollar robotics product development project with some of the world’s leading original equipment manufacturers in mining, agriculture, and security sectors.
NO.7 CANVAS Technology
CANVAS Technology is a private company focused on developing industrial and mobile robots, located in Boulder, Colorado. This industrial robotics startup is still operating in stealth mode but has already attracted funding from many investment firms, such as Visionnaire Ventures, AME Cloud Ventures, and Morado Venture Partners.
NO.8 Carbon Robotics
Carbon Robotics is a private company focused on developing robots, located in San Francisco, California. The company manufactures low-cost robotic arms for the market; KATIA is their first product, featuring the capabilities of an industrial robot but priced and available similarly to a laptop.
NO.9 Clearpath Robotics
Clearpath Robotics is a private company focused on developing industrial and mobile robots, located in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. The company designs and manufactures solutions for unmanned vehicles for academic, industrial, and military applications.
NO.10 Cyberdyne
Cyberdyne is a private company focused on developing medical and assistive robots, located in Ibaraki, Japan. The company commercializes Professor Sankai’s inventions and his laboratory at the University of Tsukuba; its flagship product is the hybrid assistive limb (HAL), which can interpret nerve signals through the skin, enhancing or restoring human motor functions.
The development momentum of the Chinese robotics industry cannot be underestimated, with three companies making the list.
NO.12 DJI Innovations
DJI Innovations is a private company focused on mobile robots, located in Nanshan District, Shenzhen, China. The company manufactures drones and related camera systems for professional fields such as film and television, agriculture, environmental protection, search and rescue, and energy infrastructure.
NO.18 Foxconn Technology Group
Foxconn Technology Group is a publicly traded company focused on developing industrial robots, located in Taipei, Taiwan, China. Founded in 1974 by Terry Gou with an investment of $7,500, it is the predecessor of Foxconn Technology Group.
NO.38 Siasun Robot & Automation Co., Ltd.
Siasun Robot & Automation Co., Ltd. is a publicly traded company focused on developing industrial robots, located in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China. Its main business involves research and development of industrial robot applications and the assembly and testing of automated production lines. Its application fields cover automotive, motorcycle, engineering machinery, electronics, and electrical assembly.
Many internationally renowned automation equipment suppliers have provided equipment to Shanghai Siasun, including Delphi, WEBSTO, ZF, CONTINENTAL, SDS, and others.
Content compiled fromthe internet
