2005: A Good Year for Robotics

The US Robotics Industries Association (RIA) reports that 2005 was the best year ever for the industry in North America.

New orders were up some 23%, surpassing the previous all time high of 1999. North American manufacturing companies ordered 1,228 robots with a total value of $1.16 billion. Orders from automotive manufacturers jumped by 49% - together with their component suppliers, these companies accounted for around 70% of new robot orders in 2005.

The RIA estimates that some 158,000 robots are now installed in American manufacturing operations.

All is not completely rosy, as the end of the year saw a downturn in order books. Donald A. Vincent, Executive Vice President of the RIA, is cautious about 2006. He said:

"Among our concerns is that in the fourth quarter of 2005, we witnessed a slowdown in year on year performance, as new orders in North America actually declined two percent from the same period in 2004.

"We’re also concerned about the troubles faced by leading companies in the automotive industry, since the automotive manufacturers and their suppliers are the largest users of robots in North America.

"And, we remain concerned by the continued shift of manufacturing operations from North America to overseas countries such as China, as well as the robustness of the U.S. economy, which certainly is not as healthy as it was when we posted our previous record year in 1999. All of these factors make us cautious about the expectations for 2006"