Cobot first: Universal Robots and Gibas hand over 1,000th cobot in Benelux

Universal Robots, developer of collaborative industrial robotic arms, together with their automation partner Gibas Automation, yesterday handed over the 1,000th cobot in the Benelux. The company that received this 1,000th cobot is Smart Robotics, supplier of intelligent robotic solutions for packaging & logistics applications within various sectors.

While the first cobot was still personally delivered from Denmark, Universal Robots has grown exponentially in recent years and their easy-to-use cobots are now sold worldwide, including in the Benelux. This growth is due in part to the benefits that a cobot offers, such as easy and safe use, increased productivity and the ease with which cobots work together with staff members.

Stefaan Poppe, director at Gibas Automation: "In our 10-year partnership with Universal Robots, we have gradually seen cobots overcome initial skepticism, and more and more companies and industries are making the move to automation. Cobots lower the threshold for manufacturers, who never expected to use robots, to start automating. We are therefore proud that as a partner of Universal Robots we can now hand over the 1,000th cobot and we expect the next 1,000 to follow soon."

Mark Menting, founder and managing director of Smart Robotics: "We have been working with Universal Robots and Gibas Automation since the founding of Smart Robotics. Meanwhile, we have also been named a Certified System Integrator. At the time, we did extensive research on the best fit for us and chose Universal Robots because they offer the best cobot hardware on the market. For our application of Palletizing and item-picking are the Universal Robots perfect in use: , flexible, agile and easy to reprogram for a new application. It feels like an honor to take delivery of the 1000th cobot sold and we are happy to celebrate this milestone with Universal Robots and Gibas Automation. And of course, we look forward to continuing and strengthening this collaboration. "

The possibilities are many

When Universal Robots started in the Benelux, these devices were mainly used in the metal industry. Nowadays, more and more sectors are seeing the benefits of cobots, such as food, packaging, construction, hospitality, pharma and more. Currently, palletizing and item picking using image sensors are very big, along with the welding application.

Manufacturing companies face tough challenges, such as a shortage of qualified personnel. At the same time, the corona crisis has put increasing pressure on manufacturing environments, where social distancing is not always a given. As a result, the importance of cobot technology will only increase.

Christian Janse, Sales Manager Benelux at Universal Robots: "Traditional automation often does not offer a solution for SMEs due to the high investment, increasing product variety and shortage of technical staff. Cobots not only offer an affordable and flexible solution for them, but they also ensure better production quality by combining the strengths of both humans and robots. The Benelux market is therefore bound to grow exponentially over the coming years, with Universal Robots leading the way. I believe that this 1,000th cobot is just the beginning of automation of MKOs in the Benelux."