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According to data from the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), the North American robotics market experienced its best quarter ever in Q1 2022. Companies in the United States, Canada, and Mexico ordered 11,595 industrial robots during this period, representing a 28% increase from Q1 2021. Revenue grew 43% to reach $ 664 million, achieving double-digit growth compared to the same period last year. We may need several years to fully understand how the pandemic has changed business practices and operations. However, one area where its impact can clearly be seen is the increased use of robotics in factory workshops. Maya Xiao, senior analyst at Interact Analysis, said: "The pandemic and the resulting labor shortages and rising wage costs have driven factory automation across numerous industrial sectors." A new report published by PMMI (Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies) titled "The Future of Robotics and Collaborative Robot Automation 2022" states that compared to 2019, 54% of respondents increased their spending on robotics by 29% in 2022. The report also notes that most consumer goods manufacturers (84%) today use robotics on their production lines, and 93% of participants predict they will use robotics in their production workshops within the next five years. According to the report, the top five achievements CPG consumer packaged goods companies expect to gain from adding robotics include reducing labor and repetitive tasks (90%), increasing speed and productivity (78%), repeatable quality and consistent product handling (67%), improved operator safety (51%), and minimizing waste and human errors (33%). In addition to labor shortages, advances in robot payload, end-of-arm tooling (EOAT), artificial intelligence, machine learning, vision, sanitary construction, and other innovations are helping drive the robotics boom. The pandemic and technological progress jointly drive development of robotics in food and pharmaceutical packaging, case packing, and palletizing/depalletizing.
