ABB sells first American-made robot

Factory in Michigan begins production with material handling robot

The first ABB robot made in the United States has been sold, marking a milestone in ABB’s U.S.-based robot production.

ABB announced in May 2015 that it would begin manufacturing robots at its Auburn Hills, Mich. facility, making ABB the first major industrial robot company to make robots in America. Robots for the Americas markets were previously made at ABB factories in Sweden and China.

The first model produced is the IRB 2600, a material handling robot. The first robot produced was purchased by Hitachi Powdered Metals USA, which will use the robot in its Greensburg, Ind. facility.

ABB will begin making other models of robots this year at the Michigan facility. The company’s goal is to manufacture 75 percent of robots for North American users at the Michigan facility by 2018.

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Casey Laughman is the former Editor in Chief of Food Engineering magazine. He has almost two decades’ experience as a writer and editor for mainstream and trade publications. He spent several years as a writer and editor for two news services before becoming the editor of a legal publication and managing editor of a trade magazine that covered the commercial facilities market.