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ABB has expanded manufacturing, employees, and coaching area in Auburn Hills, Mich. Supply: ABB
ABB Ltd. as we speak opened its renovated U.S. robotics headquarters and manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, Mich. The corporate stated the location will assist ABB Robotics’ improvement and manufacturing of main techniques in and for the Americas.
ABB added that it’s investing in long-term progress within the U.S. market, which it predicted will expertise an 8% compound annual progress fee (CAGR). The firm, which is predicated in Sweden and Switzerland, stated that is its third world robotics manufacturing facility enlargement in three years throughout China, Europe, and the Americas and is a part of its efforts to strengthen its “local-for-local” footprint.
“The opening of our refitted state-of-the-art U.S. robotics headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich., is a big a part of our world progress story, reaffirming our dedication to business management within the U.S.,” said Sami Atiya, president of ABB’s Robotics and Discrete Automation Enterprise Space. “Robotics and AI are important instruments for firms in addressing important labor shortages, localized provide chains, and the necessity to function extra sustainably.”
“The advances in AI-driven software program and {hardware} make our robots extra accessible to a wider vary of companies, enabling them to extend resilience and develop into extra aggressive,” he added. “America is now the world’s second-largest robotics market, and our manufacturing facility will assist ABB assist present clients, in addition to new progress sectors throughout the U.S. and the Americas area.”
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Auburn Hills will get 4 enhancements
With a 30% enhance in area, the $20 million Auburn Hills facility will assist ABB’s efforts to be a strategic accomplice for its rising buyer base.
“We had our first manipulator roll off the road in 2016, and ABB remains to be the primary main robotics firm to fabricate techniques within the U.S.,” stated John Bubnikovich, president of ABB’s U.S. Robotics Division. “We wish this and our different competence facilities to get nearer to clients, to know their wants and necessities from a section standpoint.”
He instructed The Robotic Report that the expanded services embody 4 key elements: a Buyer Expertise Heart, coaching area, extra versatile manufacturing, and modernized worker workspaces.
ABB Robotics needs to be a trusted strategic accomplice to U.S. clients, says VP John Bubnikovich. Supply ABB
Buyer Expertise Heart
Bubnikovich stated ABB’s new Buyer Expertise Heart will “showcase its newest and biggest applied sciences.” It can additionally present a venue for ABB to collaborate with academic establishments and clients on digital and AI-powered automation.
“Robots was once sophisticated and wanted lots of people to deploy, however it’s now simpler,” Rubnikovich stated. “Schooling and outreach are important elements to progress. An SME [small-to-midsize enterprise] can now successfully apply robots with out a military of engineers.”
New coaching middle
Whereas ABB had already skilled 5,000 staffers and customers to this point, the enlargement will enhance the variety of individuals going via utility and robotic coaching, he stated.
Full with a brand new coaching middle, the Ann Arbor facility will educate greater than 3,000 staff and college students every year. Along with capitalizing on the focus of technical abilities in the neighborhood, ABB stated it should prepare staff with no prior expertise or diploma with the abilities wanted to construct a profitable profession within the robotics and automation business.
“There shall be one thing for everybody — from fundamental robotic programming to superior functions like portray,” stated Rubnikovich.
ABB expands localized manufacturing
The localized manufacturing functionality will present flexibility, provide chain resilience, and the chance to study from the experiences of ABB’s items all over the world, he added.
“Operations are creating engineering improvement platforms, or EDPs, in native areas,” stated Rubnikovich. “As an illustration, Mexico just lately surpassed China for imports into the U.S., and we are able to leverage some modular meeting in Mexico for efficiencies of scale.”
“Now we have three world factories — Auburn Hills, Sweden, and Shanghai — and we’re including fashions and autonomous cellular robots [AMRs] for native use,” stated Rubnikovich. ABB acquired AMR maker ASTI in 2021. “Our robots shall be built-in into manufacturing processes all through the manufacturing facility. This can assist our understanding of how clients apply robots in another way, even in the identical utility area. What higher approach to exhibit our merchandise?”
The expanded facility will assist ABB Robotics’ specialist facilities together with its Packaging and Logistics hub in Atlanta; its Life Sciences and Healthcare hub on the Texas Medical Heart in Houston; and its AI Analysis Lab in San Jose, Calif.
“We additionally opened up a Root-Trigger Evaluation [RCA] middle to extend responsiveness,” Rubnikovich stated. “It used to take 60 days to do RCA as a result of we needed to ship gear again to Sweden, however now it takes below 10 days. The competence to diagnose an issue and make changes — that ensures high quality along with native manufacturing,”
A contemporary office
The office modernization is meant to assist ABB entice and retain expertise, plus construct a tradition of inside collaboration, stated Bubnikovich.
“Jobs in an automatic plant are higher-skilled work than simply meeting,” stated Bubnikovich. “They embody doing upkeep on robots, fine-tuning programming, and different issues as you evolve manufacturing for effectivity and synergy. This funding shall be a win-win.”
The brand new coaching middle will present that robots have modified manufacturing jobs for the higher. Supply: ABB
ABB invests in Michigan manufacturing
ABB famous that the enlargement will create jobs with assist from a $450,000 Michigan Enterprise Improvement Program performance-based grant.
ABB Robotics has invested $30 million in coaching since 2019 throughout 4 places, opening its Auburn Hills manufacturing facility in 2015. The newest funding in Auburn Hills is a part of the beforehand introduced roughly $170 million that ABB is investing in its electrification and automation companies throughout the U.S.
“ABB’s $20 million funding in Auburn Hills will create greater than 70 good-paying, high-skill jobs and construct on Michigan’s superior manufacturing management,” stated Gov. Gretchen Whitmer through the opening ceremony. “World wide, ABB’s know-how helps the manufacturing of electrical autos, medical gadgets, electronics, and even pastries.”
“In the present day’s enlargement at their robotics headquarters will tighten the provision chain and lower down on manufacturing delays, whereas constructing on ABB’s long-standing investments in native workforce improvement and hands-on training,” she stated. “Let’s maintain competing to convey extra cutting-edge investments residence to Michigan.”
“By our expanded facility, accomplice ecosystem and complete AI-enabled product portfolio, we’re pushing the boundaries of know-how to drive efficiency to new ranges,” stated Bubnikovich. “We sit up for rising assist for our clients, to increasing our position as an employer, and to energizing the transformation of society and business to realize a extra productive, sustainable future.”