ABB has opened its refitted US robotics headquarters and manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, Michigan, which will support ABB Robotics’ ‘global leadership in developing and manufacturing cutting-edge robotic solutions’ in the US, for the US and the Americas. The company says this expanded facility reflects its commitment to long-term growth in the US market, which is predicted to follow global growth rates for robotics of 8% CAGR, as well as ABB’s global investment to build robotics and automation capacity and create new, highly skilled jobs. This is the company’s third global robotics factory expansion in three years (across China, Europe, and the Americas) and is part of its efforts to further strengthen ABB’s ‘local-for-local’ footprint.
Sami Atiya, president of ABB’s ‘Robotics and Discrete Automation Business Area’, said: “The opening of our refitted US robotics headquarters in Auburn Hills is a significant part of our global growth story, reaffirming our commitment to industry leadership in the US. Robotics and AI are essential tools for companies in addressing critical labour shortages, localised supply chains, and the need to operate more sustainably. The advances in AI-driven software and hardware make our robots more accessible to a wider range of businesses, enabling them to increase resilience and become more competitive. America is now the world’s second-largest robotics market, and our production facility will help ABB support existing customers as well as new growth sectors throughout the US and the Americas region.”
The expanded facility will support ABB Robotics’ specialist centres including: its Packaging and Logistics hub in Atlanta, Georgia; its Life Sciences and Healthcare hub at the Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas; and AI Research Lab in San Jose, California. Complete with a new training centre, the facility will educate over 3,000 workers and students each year, equipping them with ‘the skills to thrive in a new era of AI-powered automation’.
The expansion will create 72 new highly skilled jobs in the area and is supported by a $450,000 Michigan Business Development Programme performance-based grant. Since 2019, ABB Robotics has invested $30 million at four locations in the US, having opened its Auburn Hills manufacturing facility in 2015. The recent investment in Auburn Hills is part of the previously announced $170 million that ABB is investing in its electrification and automation businesses throughout the USA.