Even a category as hot as robotics is not immune from macroeconomic trends. According to figures from automation advocacy group, A3, the North American robotics market declined in the first half of 2024, both in terms of sales and revenue.
The number of industrial robotics ordered in H1 declined 7.5% year-over-year to 15,705. Revenue dipped 6.8% to $982.83 million for the combined two quarters. The association points the blame at broader economic headwinds among manufacturers.
Breaking things down category by category presents a mixed bag. Automotive, by far the largest employer of industrial automation, saw its share of ups and downs. On the OEM side, order numbers increased by 14.4%, while revenue dropped 12%. With automative components manufacturers, both sales and revenue were down, 38.8% and 27.3%, respectively.
“Rising inflation and borrowing costs have dampened spending on robotics, with many companies opting to delay major investments,” A3 President Jeff Burnstein noted in a statement.
The semiconductor market has been particularly hard hit, owning to ongoing supply chain issues, with orders down 40% and revenue down 41.4%
Figures have seen a broad dropoff after the pandemic accelerated sales across sectors: 2023 saw a precipitous 30% drop to 31,159 orders for the year. Sales were 44,196 on the year for 2022 and 39,708 for 2021.
But A3 sees some silver linings among the unfortunate figures. “Despite these challenges, the push for operational efficiency and workforce augmentation continues to drive demand for robotics in industries such as food and consumer goods and life sciences, among others,” Burnstein said.
Life sciences brought some good news with a 47.9% increase in sales and 86.7% jump in revenue. Food and consumer goods saw an even stronger increase, up 85.6% with orders and 56.2% with revenue.
None of the slowing seen in today’s report is cause for panic. There was bound to be adjustment after pandemic buying sprees. And while bigger economic issues are presenting headwinds, automation remains an inevitability for most industries; it’s a question of when, not if.
