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ABB has expanded manufacturing, workers, and coaching house in Auburn Hills, Mich. Supply: ABB
ABB Ltd. at this time opened its renovated U.S. robotics headquarters and manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, Mich. The corporate mentioned the positioning will help ABB Robotics’ improvement and manufacturing of main programs 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 price (CAGR). The firm, which is predicated in Sweden and Switzerland, mentioned that is its third international 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 major a part of our international progress story, reaffirming our dedication to business management within the U.S.,” acknowledged Sami Atiya, president of ABB’s Robotics and Discrete Automation Enterprise Space. “Robotics and AI are important instruments for firms in addressing crucial 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 grow to be extra aggressive,” he added. “America is now the world’s second-largest robotics market, and our manufacturing facility will assist ABB help 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 house, the $20 million Auburn Hills facility will help ABB’s efforts to be a strategic companion 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 programs within the U.S.,” mentioned 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 phase standpoint.”
He instructed The Robotic Report that the expanded amenities embody 4 key components: a Buyer Expertise Middle, coaching house, extra versatile manufacturing, and modernized worker workspaces.
ABB Robotics desires to be a trusted strategic companion to U.S. clients, says VP John Bubnikovich. Supply ABB
Buyer Expertise Middle
Bubnikovich mentioned ABB’s new Buyer Expertise Middle will “showcase its newest and best applied sciences.” It should additionally present a venue for ABB to collaborate with instructional establishments and clients on digital and AI-powered automation.
“Robots was once difficult and wanted lots of people to deploy, but it surely’s now simpler,” Rubnikovich mentioned. “Schooling and outreach are crucial 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 educated 5,000 staffers and customers thus far, the enlargement will enhance the variety of individuals going via utility and robotic coaching, he mentioned.
Full with a brand new coaching middle, the Ann Arbor facility will educate greater than 3,000 employees and college students every year. Along with capitalizing on the focus of technical abilities locally, ABB mentioned it can practice employees with no prior expertise or diploma with the abilities wanted to construct a profitable profession within the robotics and automation business.
“There will likely be one thing for everybody — from fundamental robotic programming to superior purposes like portray,” mentioned Rubnikovich.
ABB expands localized manufacturing
The localized manufacturing functionality will present flexibility, provide chain resilience, and the chance to be taught from the experiences of ABB’s models around the globe, he added.
“Operations are creating engineering improvement platforms, or EDPs, in native areas,” mentioned Rubnikovich. “As an example, Mexico lately surpassed China for imports into the U.S., and we will leverage some modular meeting in Mexico for efficiencies of scale.”
“We’ve three international factories — Auburn Hills, Sweden, and Shanghai — and we’re including fashions and autonomous cell robots [AMRs] for native use,” mentioned Rubnikovich. ABB acquired AMR maker ASTI in 2021. “Our robots will likely be built-in into manufacturing processes all through the manufacturing facility. This may assist our understanding of how clients apply robots in a different way, even in the identical utility house. What higher approach to display our merchandise?”
The expanded facility will help ABB Robotics’ specialist facilities together with its Packaging and Logistics hub in Atlanta; its Life Sciences and Healthcare hub on the Texas Medical Middle 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 mentioned. “It used to take 60 days to do RCA as a result of we needed to ship tools again to Sweden, however now it takes underneath 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, mentioned Bubnikovich.
“Jobs in an automatic plant are higher-skilled work than simply meeting,” mentioned Bubnikovich. “They embody doing upkeep on robots, fine-tuning programming, and different issues as you evolve manufacturing for effectivity and synergy. This funding will likely 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 help from a $450,000 Michigan Enterprise Growth 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,” mentioned Gov. Gretchen Whitmer throughout the opening ceremony. “Around the globe, ABB’s know-how helps the manufacturing of electrical automobiles, 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 mentioned. “Let’s hold competing to convey extra cutting-edge investments house to Michigan.”
“By our expanded facility, companion ecosystem and complete AI-enabled product portfolio, we’re pushing the boundaries of know-how to drive efficiency to new ranges,” mentioned Bubnikovich. “We sit up for rising help for our clients, to increasing our function as an employer, and to energizing the transformation of society and business to attain a extra productive, sustainable future.”
