Photo taken on Aug. 21, 2019 shows a pipeline patrolling robot exhibited at the World Robot Exhibition in Beijing, capital of China. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
(ECNS) - A slowdown in the development of the robot industry does not indicate that the sector is entering a cooling-off phase, with rapid growth still expected ahead, according to experts.
A report published by the Chinese Institute of Electronics showed that the global industrial robot market has grown at an average annual rate of 8.3 percent since 2014, but is expected to reach only 2.9 percent this year. The service robot sector is estimated to grow 14.2 percent this year, far below average annual growth figures.
Miao Wei, the Minister of Industry and Information Technology, said the robot industry faces many problems and challenges, such as the need to improve core technologies, the further application of robots across more areas, and the need for measures to control risk and to enhance regulations.
But Miao emphasized that rapid development will be maintained within the robot industry with the acceleration of the global industrial transformation and new innovations.
Xin Guobin, of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said the reasons for the decline in growth rate are multi-faceted, and include factors related to the deterioration of the international trade environment, downward pressure on the global economy, and the stagnant application of robots in the automobile and electronics industries.
Xin said the robot industry has entered a stage of deeper adjustment and it becomes urgent to improve quality and efficiency to ensure the healthy development of the industry.
Qu Daokui, the president of the China Robot Industry Alliance and the chief executive of the Shenyang-based Siasun Robot and Automation company, said the global robot market, including China’s domestic market, shifted from a period of rapid growth to low-speed growth in 2018, and even approached zero growth.
In Qu’s view, the development of the robot industry will not be linear and ups and downs will become the new normal for the sector. The current slower growth is just one of such downs but great potentials still lie ahead.
