ABB Starts Manufacturing Robots in U.S.
The new plant supports the $7.5 billion sales market in the U.S., which is the company’s largest.
Posted: June 1, 2015
ABB Ltd. (Zurich, Switzerland), the global leader in power and automation technologies, announced that it will start producing robots in the United States, making it the first global industrial robotics company to fully commit and invest in a North American robotics manufacturing footprint. The company made the announcement at the opening of a new robotics plant at its facility in Auburn Hills, MI. Production is to commence immediately.
The United States is the company’s largest market with $7.5 billion in sales. ABB has invested more than $10 billion in local R&D, capital expenditure and acquisitions since 2010, taking local employment from 11,500 to 26,300. Continued investment in the North American value chain and manufacturing constitutes a significant part of global growth plans reflecting the company’s next level strategy.
“Today, we are marking and celebrating the next stage of our commitment and growth in North America with the start of local robot manufacturing in Auburn Hills,” said ABB chief executive officer Ulrich Spiesshofer. “We are the first global automation company to open a robot manufacturing facility in the United States. Robotics is a fundamental enabler of the next level of North American industrial growth in an increasingly competitive world. With our continued commitment and investment, our local team is well positioned to support our customers with robotics solutions made in the United States. Our leading technology of web-enabled, collaborative and safe robots will contribute to job security and quality of work.”
“The new North American manufacturing presence elevates our offering and service to robotics customers in the United States, Mexico and Canada, allowing us to achieve best-in-class delivery schedules and technical support in North America,” said Per Vegard Nerseth, the managing director of ABB Robotics. “The expansion is consistent with our global strategy, which is to establish a local presence in key robotics growth markets to provide our leading technology to our customers.”
The portfolio of products manufactured at the new facility will expand in phases, with the goal that most the robots and robot controllers delivered in the United States, Canada and Mexico will be manufactured in Auburn Hills. Localized manufacturing streamlines the delivery process and results in significantly reduced robot lead times for customers.
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