|10 January 2017|
Worldwide spending on robotics will hit nearly $200 billion by 2020, according to a new report.
The Worldwide Commercial Robotics Spending Guide – compiled by the International Data Corporation (IDC) – states spending on robotics and related services will more than double by 2020, growing from $91.5 billion in 2016 to more than $188 billion in 2020.
“The market for robotics continues to experience tremendous growth,” said John Santagate, research manager, Supply Chain at IDC Manufacturing Insights. “This growth is really fueled by a combination of technology improvements, expanded use cases, and acceptance in the market. Innovators in the field of robotics are delivering robots that can be used to perform a broader range of tasks, which is helping to drive the adoption of robotics into a wider base of industries.”
“After manufacturing, the three industries with the largest robotics spending in 2016 were Resource Industries ($8.0 billion), Consumer ($6.5 billion), and Healthcare ($4.5 billion). These industries will maintain their relative positions throughout the forecast, although Consumer spending will significantly narrow the gap with Resource Industries by 2020. Cross Industry robotics spending, which represents use cases common to all industries, such as warehouse pick and pack, will also rank among the top segments throughout the five-year forecast. The industries that will experience the fastest growth over the 2015-2020 forecast period are Consumer, Healthcare, and Retail,” IDC said.
