In yet another indication that the worldwide demand for robots is booming, Wittmann Battenfeld GmbH announced it will spend more than $1 million to increase robot production worldwide, including at its Torrington, Conn., facility.
The first stage of the expansion, which was recently completed, increased production to 4,200 robots a year. This included increasing capacity for assembling small components used mostly in the W808 and W818 models, which can lift up to 13 pounds.
Overall enlargement of the robot production facility at Wittmann Group's Vienna headquarters in also scheduled for completion by January.
The second phase, scheduled for later in 2016, will see a large machining center and paint booth added to the Wittmann's U.S. facility in Torrington, Conn.
The investment will bring overall production to 4,500 robots a year.
A study earlier this year by The Boston Consulting Group projected that the annual growth rate for spending on industrial robots would increase from the current 2-3 percent gain each year to 10 percent a year over the next decade.
