IDC forecasts global robotics spending to reach $188 billion in 2020
Key robotics use cases in the assembly manufacturing sector are assembly, welding, and painting.

According to a recent study by IT market analysis firm IDC, global spending on robotics and related services is projected to more than double from $91.5 billion in 2016 to $188 billion in 2020.

The report (' Worldwide Commercial Robotics Spending Guide ') stated that the robotics market size includes data on robotics systems, system hardware, software, robotics-related services, and aftermarket robotics hardware sectors, as well as data on commercial purchases of drones and aftermarket drone hardware sectors.

John Santagate, a principal researcher in charge of supply chain research at IDC Manufacturing Insights, stated, "The robotics market is experiencing rapid growth," adding, "This growth is built upon a combination of technological advancements, expanded use cases, and increased adoption in the market." He went on to explain, “Innovators in the field of robotics are developing robots capable of performing a wider variety of tasks, which is providing a foundation for robotics to expand into a broader range of industries.”

▲Reference Photo: 'Universal Robots', a leader in collaborative robots, Universal Robots Plus

Last year, more than half of global robotics investment occurred in the manufacturing sector, with discrete manufacturing accounting for 31% and process manufacturing for 28%. This trend is expected to remain relatively stable throughout the forecast period, with robotics spending in these manufacturing sectors projected to reach $110 billion in 2020. Key robotics use cases in discrete manufacturing include assembly, welding, and painting, while the main use case in process manufacturing is mixing.

The sectors with the largest investments in robotics were the resource industry, consumer, and healthcare, in that order.

Last year, following manufacturing, the top three industries with the largest investments in robotics were resource industries ($8 billion), consumer ($6.5 billion), and healthcare ($4.5 billion). While the consumer sector is expected to narrow the gap with resource industries through 2020 due to high growth forecasts, these three industries are expected to maintain their rankings throughout the forecast period. Additionally, cross-industry robotics spending—specifically for use cases applicable across all industries such as warehouse outbound and packaging—is expected to remain in the top tier during the five-year forecast period. The sectors expected to show the fastest growth rates from 2015 to 2020 are the consumer, healthcare, and retail sectors.

"Robotics is now an indispensable element in industrial transformation and is having a massive impact on enhancing operational agility and efficiency in both developed and emerging markets," said Dr. Jing Bing Zhang, Research Director overseeing the robotics sector at IDC Manufacturing Insights. "The adoption of robotics is progressing rapidly in general industrial sectors, and some of the leading vendors surveyed by IDC have seen an average annual growth rate of more than double over the past few years targeting the automotive industry."


▲ 2016 Robotics Market Share by Sector (Source: IDC)

From a technological perspective, spending in the robotics systems sector, which includes consumer, industrial, and service robots and aftermarket robotics hardware, is expected to exceed $40 billion in 2016. Meanwhile, service-related investments, such as application management, education and training, hardware deployment, system integration, and consulting, were provisionally estimated to have surpassed $20 billion in 2016. The fastest-growing segment in the robotics market is the drone and aftermarket drone hardware sector, which is projected to reach $20 billion by 2020.

Regionally, the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan, is expected to account for more than two-thirds of the robotics market during the forecast period. The second largest region is Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), which is projected to have reached $14.7 billion last year. Next is the Americas region, which is projected to reach $12.9 billion in 2016. The Asia-Pacific robotics market is expected to exhibit the fastest growth trend, with spending more than doubling during the forecast period from 2015 to 2020. The next fastest-growing region is the Americas, which is projected to become the second-largest market in the overall market by 2018.