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Q1 Robot Orders Surge

May 7, 2021

Robot orders in the first quarter of 2021 climbed 20 percent over the same period in 2020, with substantial increases in purchases coming from companies in metals--up 86 percent, according to industry stats from the Association for Advancing Automation (A3). North American companies purchased 9098 units valued at $466 million in Q1, with automotive OEMs and component suppliers combined seeing a 12-percent increase year-over-year.

“Robot sales have increased considerably as more and more companies in every industry recognize that robotics and automation can help them compete globally,” says Jeff Burnstein, president of A3. “While advances in robot technology, ease of use and new applications remain key drivers in robot adoption, worker shortages in manufacturing, warehousing and other industries are a significant factor in the expansion of robot use. COVID didn’t create the move toward automation, but certainly has accelerated trends that already were underway.”