Dive Brief:
- Industrial robot sales in North America plummeted 30% in 2023 after two years of record ordering activity, according to the Association for Advancing Automation (A3).
- Companies purchased 31,159 robots last year, down from 44,196 in 2022 and 39,708 in 2021, A3 said in a news release last week. Sales to automotive manufacturers declined the most at 34%, while all other industries saw a 25% total decrease.
- “While robot sales naturally ebb and flow, the return to more typical robot sales after the last two record years can likely be attributed to a few obvious issues: a slow U.S. economy, higher interest rates and even the over purchasing of robots in 2022 from supply chain concerns,” A3 President Jeff Burnstein said in a statement.
Robot sales plunge after pandemic surge
Dive Insight:
Industrial robot sales grew at a frenzied pace during the pandemic as employers looked to meet heightened demand in a difficult hiring environment. But companies have since drawn back their purchases as they grapple with an uncertain economy and limited investment capital.
A slower pace of distribution center openings also likely contributed to the reduced demand for robots, Burnstein said.
Robot ordering activity hasn't dried up completely, however. The Feed, a sports nutrition retailer, announced in January it is installing 48 Brightpick Autopickers in a Colorado warehouse for order fulfillment. And alcohol distributor Southern Glazer's Wine and Spirits said in November it will deploy Symbotic's end-to-end automation system with robotic case-picking capabilities in select distribution centers.
Burnstein said there is optimism that overall ordering activity could pick up again soon. Q4 sales jumped 20% quarter over quarter, with more orders reported in industries including automotive, plastics and rubbers, metals and semiconductor and electronics/photonics.
“While robotic sales were down over the year, 2023 ended with both an increase over the previous quarter and a nearly equal number of sales from automotive and non-automotive companies,” Burnstein said. “Both are promising signs that more industries are becoming increasingly comfortable with automation overall."
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