OMRON buys 10% stake in cobot maker Techman Robot
OMRON has signed an investment agreement with Techman Robot, a Taiwanese developer of collaborative robot manipulators. Through this investment, OMRON will hold approximately 10% of Techman's shares. Although the terms of the deal have not been disclosed, the investment is expected to be completed by December 2021.
In recent years, the need for automation to reduce labor shortages in the manufacturing sector has become a social issue. In addition, the coronavirus pandemic poses new risks for people working in close proximity. In this context, demand is growing for collaborative robots that can work safely side by side with people on production floors without protective barriers and flexibly handle a wide range of tasks.
At the same time, safety and performance must be ensured to accelerate coexistence and coordination between people and machines. In 2018, OMRON entered a strategic alliance with Techman to meet growing automation needs caused by labor shortages. Since then, TM series robots have been sold as a joint product worldwide through OMRON's distributor network. OMRON and Techman have also jointly developed a mobile manipulator that combines an OMRON mobile robot with a TM series manipulator.
Through its investment in Techman, OMRON aims to jointly develop innovative robots that combine OMRON's factory automation equipment with Techman's collaborative robots, ensuring safety and performance and offering a solution to the labor shortage on production floors.
“The environment surrounding the manufacturing industry is changing significantly. Anticipating these changes, since 2016 OMRON has been developing advanced manufacturing using its unique value creation concept of "innovative automation" to address the challenges faced by manufacturing operations. We have focused on robotics and market development since acquiring industrial robot maker Adept Technology in 2015. In 2018, we added Techman's collaborative robots to our product lineup. Strengthening our alliance with Techman is now helping further advance collaboration between people and machines in manufacturing”
By strengthening collaborative robots, OMRON seeks to create production sites where people and machines interact with each other and to solve the labor shortage. Using automation technologies cultivated on production floors, the company will actively develop automation to address labor shortages even outside the manufacturing sector, including the primary and tertiary sectors.
“Techman Robot has successfully entered the global market and since 2018 has become the second-largest collaborative robot company in the world. Through its alliance with OMRON, Techman Robot has strengthened its reputation worldwide, helping fulfill our company's mission of improving people's lives through innovation. We aim to close the gap for every business and create intelligent manufacturing solutions for human-machine collaboration. We are pleased to deepen our long-standing relationship with OMRON through this cooperation, which is an important opportunity for both companies, closing the fast-growing market gap driven by the urgent need for intelligent manufacturing”
Techman believes this partnership will open the door to a new future. OMRON and Techman Robot will together create a highly flexible and scalable collaborative robot solution that will help customers easily and fully integrate collaborative robotics into intelligent manufacturing.
"OMRON robotic solutions simplify integration by combining control, safety, motion and other requirements in a single software architecture and development environment. Meet your current and future needs for process development, operational flexibility and preventive maintenance with technologies designed to work in tandem with human creativity. We promote harmony between people and machines by enhancing safety, collaboration and efficiency," says the OMRON website.
TM Robot is a high-performance production tool that is compatible with and flexible for human-machine work. Compared with traditional industrial robots, which require more workers to maintain strict workplace conditions, TM Robot can safely perform work without such hassle. It shows how companies can use technology to work faster and better, without needing a million-dollar capital or a large factory to justify their investment.
Cobot technology has undergone many developments, so it is now accessible to small businesses as well. In an era when quality prevails over quantity, machines capable of delivering both can give any company a competitive edge. "Break away from tradition and choose collaborative robots. The TM Robot will be your best choice for building a smart factory," said Techman Robot.
