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The Association for Advancing Automation (A3) reported that North American companies ordered 9853 robots valued at $501 million in Q2 2021, up from 5196 sold in the second quarter of last year during the peak of the pandemic shutdown.

That second quarter increase marks the third-highest quarter on record for robot units sold overall with more than half—5530—coming from outside the automotive industry, with systems delivered into the metals; semiconductor & electronics; plastics & rubber; food & consumer goods; and life sciences sectors. In a release, Jeff Burnstein, A3 president, noted that the pandemic helped many companies realize the inherent benefits of automation, today and in the future. “By automating—either for the first time or expanding on how they use automation—companies will be better prepared to handle any upcoming issues that impact their ´óÏó´«Ã½,” Burnstein said.

Robot sales into the plastics & rubber space rose 51% in the second quarter, with strong results also seen in metals (up 99%), automotive components (up 85%), semiconductor & electronics/photonics (up 62%), food & consumer goods (up 51%), and life sciences/pharmaceutical/biomed (up 21%). Automotive OEMs, which often dominate robotic investments, came in at plus 49%.

Machine Vision’s Record Start

In addition to the large increase in robotic orders, A3 reported that machine vision, motion control and motor markets saw record increases in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the year-ago period. The North American machine vision market expanded 26% to $764 million, a new record. For the first six months of 2021, the North American machine vision market grew 18% to $1.5 billion, which is the best start to a year on record, according to A3.

Beyond machine vision, the motion control and motors sector recorded $1.065 billion in shipments, 13% greater than second quarter 2020 sales and also marking a new record. Motors, actuators, and mechanical systems and electronic drives saw the largest increases.