Analysis:
Universal Robots is the world’s leading cobot developer. It has been for a number of years. In 2022, for example, the Teradyne subsidiary generated $326 million in revenue, a 5% increase from 2021. Teradyne expects its industrial automation group to see continued growth in 2023, in large part because of new products like the UR20. With the increased payload and long reach, the UR20 opens up new cobot applications for the company, especially palletizing, which must have been top-of-mind when UR’s engineers were developing the UR20. And although Universal Robots’ market share has slightly declined, the UR20 further diversifies the company’s cobot lineup and helps it keep pace with competitors that already introduced heavy-duty cobot arms. On top of all this, the UR20 will ship with the company’s top-notch global support, hands-on training and service offerings. It is also compatible with the UR+ ecosystem, which is an app store for UR’s cobot arms and a clear differentiator from the competition. – Steve Crowe