ABB to realize 'robots make robots' in Shanghai

SHANGHAI -- Swiss tech giant ABB will realize "robots make robots" in Shanghai, the company announced at the 2021 International Business Leaders' Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai held on Friday.

According to Peter Voser, chairman of ABB, with a total investment of $150 million, ABB's new robotics factory in Shanghai will be put into operation in the first quarter of 2022.

The new 67,000-square-meter factory will be one of the most advanced, automated and flexible factories in the robotics industry worldwide, utilizing the latest manufacturing processes -- a cutting-edge center where robots make robots.

Production in the facility will be based on cells of automation, with robots moving from station to station, enabling greater customization and more flexibility than in traditional, linear production systems.

In order to realize "robots make robots," ABB's new factory in Shanghai will include an R&D center to accelerate the innovation and development of artificial intelligence.

The factory in Shanghai will better participate in and promote the development of China's high-end manufacturing industry, said Voser.

ABB currently has three factories worldwide. In addition to Swedish and American factories, the new factory in Shanghai will mainly serve Asian customers.

ABB has 27 local companies with 15,000 employees in China, with business activities covering R&D, manufacturing, sales and services.