International Federation of RoboticsPlus 1.7 million industrial robots by 2020
The global stock of industrial robots will increase from around 1.83 million units in 2016 to over 3 million units in 2020, according to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR) in its recently published World Robotics Report 2017.
In the USA, robot installations rose by 14% to a peak value of 31,400 units (2016). The driving force behind the sustained growth since 2010 has been the automation trend to strengthen the competitiveness of US industry in overseas markets. The investments were aimed at keeping production in the domestic market or bringing it back from abroad. As a result of this dynamic development, robot density in the USA - especially in the automotive industry - has increased significantly. With a density of 1,261 installed robots per 10,000 employees, the USA ranked second after the Republic of Korea in 2016. Most robots in the USA are imported from Japan, Korea and Europe.