WHITEPAPER robotics business review Meet the 2017 RBR50: Top 50 Robotics Companies RoboticsBusinessReview Editor’s Note by Eugene Demaitre, Senior Editor However, they’ve also provided robots for materials handling and responded to the rise of collaborative robots, or cobots, which could extend automation into small and midsize enterprises. The past year marked a period of solid advancements for the robotics industry, and 2017 looks to continue that trend. The International Federation of Robotics expects strong growth worldwide, especially in industrial robots. Midea Group’s purchase of Germany-based KUKA validates the latter’s success and reflects the desire of China, which is regarded as “the world’s factory,” to work more closely with those who can help it increase its robot density. The U.S. was well-represented in this year’s RBR50 list, with 32 of the companies residing in the states. That’s no surprise, since the U.S. has a mix of strong university research, a healthy investment climate, and applications across numerous sectors, from manufacturing and military to supply chain and surgical. Similarly, Siasun, China’s biggest maker of industrial robots, has reportedly been scouting in Europe for potential acquisitions. U.S. companies would do well to watch for such team-ups to make sure they stay flexible and open to such partnerships themselves. The number of industrial robots in North America grew 10.2% to 30,875 units worth $1.8 billion in 2016, according to the Robotics Industries Association. Just behind manufacturing, supply chain and logistics are the areas of most interest in automation. We expect these segments to continue growing this year, driven It’s also no surprise that industrial powerhouses such as Germany, Japan, and China are represented, but don’t count out rising robotics nations such as India and Canada or smaller ones such as Denmark and Estonia. PIPELINE ROBOTICS OUR ROBOTS WILL SAVE GAS UTILITIES BILLIONS IN PIPE REP