AUTOMATE 2023, renowned as the largest automation trade show in North America, was held from May 22nd to 25th in Detroit, Michigan. According to A3, organizer of AUTOMATE 2023, the show featured more than 750 exhibits, covering more than 300,000 square feet, with 25,000 registrants from all over the world.
Korea Pavilion organized by Korea Association of Robot Industry(KAR) participated in this show, and received an overwhelmingly positive response; 9 companies in Korea Pavilion made their successful debuts at the show by presenting their flagship products and cutting-edge technologies.
DOGU Co., Ltd., is a company specializing in autonomous mobile robots. The company demonstrated “Patrover”, its outdoor patrol robot designed to detect obstacles to avoid collision and drive well regardless of road conditions. It also introduced “Iroi”, its indoor guide robot designed to serve various purposes – providing guidance and delivery services during the day and patrolling at night. The company held a meeting with ‘MGM’, a global resort and casino company which expressed a significant interest in adopting “Iroi” that can be utilized for not only guidance but also advertising and disinfection. They both agreed to continue discussion on mutual cooperation after the show.
HCNC Co., Ltd., with more than 20 years of expertise in manufacturing IT and facility automation, has supported manufacturers to improve their productivity and strengthen their competitiveness. The company introduced its soft gripper and Hyundai Robotics’ small handing robot at the exhibition. The gripper and the robot displayed by HCNC Co., Ltd., captured attention of major companies such as ‘Amazon’, ‘Effecto’, ‘Ford’, ‘General Motors’, ‘Schmalz’ and ‘Universal Robots’. Its soft gripper specially developed to handle random objects and delicate products impressed show attendees, and the company is now reviewing the agreement with ‘Schmalz’, a leading automation company in Germany and ‘Effecto’, a leading end-effector company in Italy.
Neuromeka Co., Ltd., one of the leading cobot manufacturers in Korea, introduced its own robot model, the “Indy” series and collaborative robot-centered welding automation solutions. The company had numerous meetings with System Integrators on site, and ‘Onyx Engineering(Windsor, Canada)’ expressed strong interests in the laser cutting solution using a 3D vision camera that can be easily applied to welding wire extraction. Neuromeka Co., Ltd. had in-depth discussions with ‘AP COM’, a retailer based in Chicago. AP COM had a strong interest in Neuromeka Co. Ltd.’s frying solution and bubble tea solution, and also suggested signing a lease agreement for franchise stores in North America.
Rainbow Robotics Inc., is a company which develops a wide variety of robots, including cobots, autonomous mobile robots, humanoid robots and 4-legged mobile robots. The company introduced five different models of ‘RB Cobot Series’ at Automate 2023 and made its maximum efforts to recruit distributors in North America. The company had meetings with more than 30 companies including System Integrators(S.I.) during the exhibition and will continue to proceed agency contracts through continuous communication. Some of the meetings have already been proven successful : the company will sign a NDA(Non-Disclosure Agreement) with a U.S. System Integrator, ‘P'(the company name not disclosed as agreed) and sign the agency contract later.
RS Automation Co., Ltd., as a specialist in the automation industry, has been providing smart factory solution, PLC, Motion controller and other automation products to over 500 customers for 30 years. At the show, the company introduced “MMC-EtherCAT”, a real-time motion controller based on network which supports various motion profile and functions. It is able to control up to 64 axes of Servo drives and 5,440 points of I/Os at every 1 msec in position loop. The company conducted 14 successful consultations and the managing director stated “Due to COVID-19, global supply chain has collapsed and manufacturers are still having hard time getting the components as required. In this case, our products can be an ideal alternative because we can provide products that show high performance at reasonable price and deliver them in a timely manner.” He added, “We are willing to provide samples and actively engage in technical support and training for customers in North America.”
Taeha Co., Ltd., a manufacturer specializing in liquid dispensing systems and facilities to various industries such as electronics, automotive, pharmaceuticals, machinery, semiconductor in the world. The company featured various pneumatic dispensing valves and “PRO CAN PUMP” facilities that boast accuracy and precision and essential accessories for the facility such as cartridges, barrels and needles. Taeha Co., Ltd. was one of the companies that received the most attention from the visitors on site. The manager from Taeha Co., Ltd. stated “We had 40 meaningful meetings at the show, and we expect to have sales worth $700,000. In addition to this, we have already accomplished one of our main goals of participating in AUTOMATE 2023 : to enter Mexican market. We met ‘ERAT’, Mexican manufacturer of automation equipment, and discussed technology exchange and cooperation for mutual benefit.”
Twinny Co., Ltd., is a company which develops and supplies autonomous mobile robots for warehouse order picking and factory automation. At AUTOMATE 2023, the company introduced “Nargo Order picking”, an autonomous mobile robot that performs advanced autonomous driving technology to resolve the strenuous labor of searching for goods. Twinny’s advanced technology enables autonomous driving in broad indoor and outdoor environments such as factories and distribution centers without additional infrastructure and structural change. It is also possible fto interconnect any WMS(warehouse management system) . According to the sales manager from the company, it had meetings with 10 companies including logistics service providers in North America and computer manufacturers in Taiwan, and the consultations taken place on site are worth approximately $700,000.
UND Co., Ltd. is a venture company that was awarded as ‘Robot Company of the Year’ in Korea in 2022 and as a ‘Super Gap Start-up 1000+’ by Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups. It is also well-known for commercializing “Magbot”, the world’s first fully wireless robot automatic tool changer which received UR+ certification from ‘Universal Robots’. The company’s robot automatic tool changer and the ultra-power-saving robot magnetic gripper successfully captured the attention of many leading companies from all over the world : it had meetings with ‘Ford’, ‘General Motor’, ‘Utec’, ‘Thyssenkrupp’, ‘Yushin America’, ‘Kawassaki USA‘, ‘Gimatic’, ‘Effecto’, ‘Mindman’, ‘Techman Robot’, etc., to count a few. The CEO, Chul-Soo Lee, stated that the company will proceed 15 PoC(Proof of Concept)s in the second half of 2023, and is expected to achieve sales worth more than $1 million in 2024 and $5 million in 2025.
Throughout the exhibition, the Korea Pavilion along with 9 Korean companies witnessed an impressive outcome. 181 successful consultations worth $5 million took place at AUTOMATE 2023. An official from the Korea Association of Robot Industry(KAR) expressed enthusiasm about the huge response received from North American buyers who demonstrated keen interests in Korean robot companies. The official viewed Korean companies’ participation in AUTOMATE 2023 as a significant milestone towards successful entry into the North American market. Furthermore, KAR pledged to continue supporting Korean robot companies in their pursuit of opportunities in North America, with plans to expand participation at renowned exhibitions as well as to host export promotion activities in the coming days.
