Switzerland-based ABB Group, a power and automation technology company, will start production of industrial robots at its new Auburn Hills robotics manufacturing center, and has plans to hire 500 employees by 2020.
“Robotics is a fundamental enabler of the next level of North American industrial growth in an increasingly competitive world,” says Ulrich Spiesshofer, ABB Group CEO. “With our continued commitment and investment, our local team is well positioned to support our customers with robotics solutions made in the United States.”
The Auburn Hills plant is ABB’s third robotics production facility in the world, along with facilities in Shanghai and Västerås, Sweden. Spiesshofer says ABB is the first global automation company to open a robot manufacturing facility in the U.S. ABB’s Auburn Hills facility currently has 500 employees.
The company plans to sell most of the robots manufactured in the new facility to customers in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, which Spiesshofer says will reduce robot lead times for customers.
He says the company has invested $10 billion in local R&D, capital expenditure, and acquisitions since 2010. The ABB Group operates in about 100 countries and employs 140,000 people.
