The robotics market has grown strongly in recent years due to enterprises’ growing demand for automotive solutions to optimise output and save both labour and operational costs.

Vu Trong Tai (L), general manager of Reed Tradex Viet Nam, and Huynh Phong Phu, local business manager, robotics and discrete automation, ABB Viet Nam, in a recent interview with the local media in HCM City (Photo: VNA)

Speaking in a recent interview with the local media in HCM City, Huynh Phong Phu, local business manager, robotics and discrete automation, ABB Viet Nam, said in 2017 Viet Nam became the seventh largest robot market in the world with robot sales jumping by more than 8,000 units.

The driver of the growth was the influx of foreign investment, especially by Korean enterprises, in the electronics industry.

Robots were also used by companies in the fields of automobiles, food, beverages, consumer goods, and metal manufacturing, he said.

The market has around six robot suppliers, and all are foreign.

Phu said ABB sold nearly 5,000 robots in 2017. It achieved double digit growth last year and targets over 20% growth this year.

According to the latest report from Global Market Insights, Inc., the global smart factory market is anticipated to rise from 75 billion USD in 2018 to over 155 billion USD by 2025.

Also speaking at the event, Vu Trong Tai, general manager of Reed Tradex Viet Nam, said: “The factories that are digitally advanced and connected facilities will sharpen the manufacturing performance in a host of operations.”

Phu said the auxiliary manufacturing industry in Viet Nam was growing faster than ever with the convergence of many factors, including the entry of large global manufacturers such as Samsung, LG, Toyota, Honda, Canon, and Brother into Viet Nam, whose production facilities are at the heart of the global supply chain.

At METALEX Viet Nam 2019, to be held from October 10 to 12 at HCM City’s Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre, the ABB would show a fully automated production demo of robots controlled by ABB AbilityTM Connected Services, a sophisticated suite of digital services, to enable visitors to experience the future factory, he said.

Tai said METALEX, an international exhibition of machine tools and metalworking solutions, would feature 600 brands from 45 countries and territories, 30% more than last year.

This year WELDING Viet Nam 2019, the only international exhibition of welding and cutting materials, equipment, and technologies in Viet Nam, would be co-located with METALEX Viet Nam, he added.

(Source: VNS/VNA)