The North American robotics market set all-time records in terms of the number of robots sold and the value of market in 2022, according to a report from the Association for Advancing Automation (A3).
The publication revealed that North American companies ordered 44,196 robots last year, valued at US$2.38bn (£1.99bn).
A3 also reported that, in the first nine months of 2022, North American companies bought 35,804 robots, marking a 24% increase compared to the same period in 2021.
More than 50% of the reported sales came from the automotive industry, which saw 23,807 orders for robots placed, up from 16,752 in 2021.
While orders from non-automotive industries seemed to decline compared to the previous three years, some original applications began to emerge in such industries as food services, construction and agriculture, such as cooking and food service robots.
“Although labour shortage and supply chain issues impact nearly all industries in North America, automakers’ public commitment to move to electric vehicles (EVs) has set in motion a resurgence of robot orders in this market,” said Jeff Burnstein, president of A3.
“Automotive OEMs and components suppliers alike recognize that investing in robots is instrumental to the emergence of EVs as well as to manufacturing all vehicles as they compete to meet customer demand.
“While the numbers of robots sold to non-automotive companies isn’t as staggering as it’s been over the last couple of years, it’s clear that companies in every industry see automation as necessary for success.”
