The latest IFR statistics show that India has hit an all-time high in robot installations. This article explores what this means for India, why the world’s most populated country needs robots, and how the government’s active role in propagating Industry 4.0 technology will make us a self-reliant nation.
According to the most recent report by the International Federation of Robots (IFR), India has – for the very first time – made it to the list of ten countries with the highest annual robot installations, ranking #10 with 4,595 robot units deployed in 2021. This represents an increase of more than 50% from 2020, when 3,215 units were installed.
The operational stock has also hit an all-time high with over 33,200 units installed as of 2021. The nation’s industrial robot installation base has been climbing steadily for over a decade. It has been growing at an average rate of 16% per year since 2016, with the operational stock more than doubling from then to 2021.
For years now, India has been lagging in robotic adoption when compared to other leading global manufacturing nations. In descending order, China, Japan, the USA, the Republic of Korea, and Germany are the leading markets for industrial robots, with 78% of all installations in these five countries. China alone accounted for 52% of all global robot installations in 2021, and has been the largest market for industrial robots since 2013.
In terms of robot density (the number of robots for every 10,000 employees), India sits at just 7 robots per 10,000 staff. This is a stark difference from the world average of 141, signifying that while we’re on the right track, we still have a long way to go when it comes to adopting this automation technology.
From Menial to Meaningful Work
The world has been divided in its opinion on robotics, with many narratives weaved around robots stealing jobs. In India, that fear is – understandably – even greater, considering the abundance of unskilled and semi-skilled labor. To paint a picture, as of just a few weeks ago, India’s population surpassed China to become the world’s most populated country with over 1.425 billion people, according to population estimates from the United Nations. 38.5% are employed in the manufacturing sector, as per 2022 research from the Quarterly Employment Survey (QES).
However, despite these figures, propagators of robotic automation maintain that these machines, in fact, are indispensable in scaling new heights of manufacturing excellence. After all, robots are intended to handle manual, menial tasks that are Dull, Dirty, Dangerous, or Difficult. By taking over these, people can be reallocated to handle tasks that are more meaningful and require human ingenuity.
“Our extensive research from around the world has resulted in ample evidence that automation does not lead to job substitution, but rather to a reallocation of both jobs and tasks in which robots complement and augment human labor by performing routine or dangerous tasks,” says Carsten Heer, Press Officer at the IFR. “This in turn places a premium on higher-skilled labor in the sectors in which automation has substituted for labor, but also may create new lower-skilled jobs in other sectors due to spillover effects.”
Barriers to Robotic Adoption
Robots have been around since the 1950s, which is when the world’s first programmable industrial robot Unimate was developed. Yet, their adoption has been relatively slow in many parts of the world, especially for small and mid-sized businesses in India looking for ways to stay competitive.
Pradeep Shoran, Vice President – Sales & Marketing at KUKA India Pvt. Ltd. (subsidiary of world-renowned KUKA Robotics) explains, “Multinational companies, especially automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), are the biggest and quickest adopters of robotic automation. This is primarily because their internal procedures already incorporate robots in their automation processes, making it easy to implement them in their global plants. SMEs and MSMEs in India, however – who make up the bulk of the industry – are often either unaware or unable to change or develop processes that accommodate robots.”
Many limitations of industrial robots establish strong barriers to robotic automation for the small manufacturer. One of the biggest challenges they present is their lack of in-built safety features, which means a large chunk of shop floor space is required to cordon off industrial robots with cages or fences to separate them from people. The cost of so much facility space (if available in the first place), external fencing, area scanners, and other safety precautions can stack up, mounting on top of the existing hardware cost of just the robot itself. This makes the whole solution a heavy capital expense, especially for small businesses.
Industrial robots also require programmers with advanced technical skills to deploy them, adding to the long list of additional costs. Plus, deployments can take weeks if not months, making for a significant period of downtime that not everyone can afford. This also makes industrial robots inflexible – relocating them to a new line or process would once again need sufficient space, safety measures, and external expertise for reconfiguration to a new task. All in all, these factors combined are some of the contributors to India trailing behind in robotic adoption.
Cobots Redefining Workforce Dynamics
Built to address the challenges of traditional robots, the first collaborative robot (or “cobot”) entered the market in 2008. It was developed by global cobot leader Universal Robots (UR) a Danish company that pioneered the concept of Human Robot Collaboration (HRC). This means that – in contrast to traditional industrial robots – cobots are equipped with advanced safety mechanisms that enable them to share the same workspace as people (subject to application risk assessment). Therefore, cobots can essentially work side-by-side with people on the shop floor, eliminating the need for additional investment and efforts on external safety fixtures, and the hassle of making infrastructure changes for their installation.
Cobots are also relatively easier to program, with the best collaborative robots being no-code technology that even those with no prior robotics experience can easily deploy. Usually, even frontline workers can task and re-task these robots as needed with very basic training, making for relatively quick deployments and therefore much less downtime. With some cobots, a simple application can even be up and running within a day or two.
The compact, collaborative, and simple nature of the cobot makes for a flexible automation solution that can be programmed and reprogrammed as needs evolve, helping manufacturers cope with the ever-changing market demands. They are also ideal for partial automation, which strives to augment human labor rather than just replace it. Your cobot can handle specific tasks on an assembly line – those that are monotonous or expose people to mental and/or physical stress – while your employees can work alongside cobots, be moved to more meaningful work such as managerial assignments, or even be upskilled to become robot programmers themselves. Many traditional automation methods require complete mechanization, which is often out of reach for the average small business. Partial automation, though, is a hybrid approach that endeavors to combine the benefits of automation technology with human intelligence. Collaborative robots, thus, make automation accessible to a much wider audience that traditional robotics simply are not feasible for.
According to Adam Sobieski, APAC Regional President at Universal Robots, cobots are key in driving robotic adoption in India. “Cobots have transformed the way Indian companies adopt robotics technology, enhancing productivity, efficiency, and competitiveness across industries,” he explains. “The affordability, ease of integration, and ability to work alongside humans in tight space have democratized automation, enabling companies of all sizes to reap the benefits of robotics. With supportive government initiatives and a growing demand for efficiency, collaborative robots are paving the way for a brighter future in Indian industries.”
Choosing the Right Solution
Just like with any technology, it is important to note that both industrial robots and cobots each possess their own strengths and limitations. Cobots, for example, typically have much lower payload, speed, and reach than industrial robots, making them unsuitable for heavy-duty, high-speed applications. Because of their advanced technology, many cobots also have a high initial investment cost when compared to traditional robots. Industrial robots, on the other hand, move at high speeds and some can lift up to 2.5 tons, but its other challenges may prevent robotic adoption altogether.
Nikhil Modi, Global Marketing Lead at Phillips Machine Tools India Private Limited, a leading manufacturing automation solution provider, explains that it is imperative to properly explain to customers when to use a robot versus a cobot. “A good rule of thumb is to explore deploying traditional industrial robots for low-mix, high-volume manufacturing, and collaborative robots for high-mix, low volume operations,” he explains. Robotic solution providers, thus, must serve not only as salespeople but guides who have the customer’s long-term interests at heart.
Jamshedpur-based New Engineering Works (NEW) is an automotive MSME supplying components to the likes of Tata Motors, Cummins, and Brakes India. When first purchased in 1996, the company was run out of a small shed with just a handful of machines. Today, NEW boasts of a 45,000 square foot plant with over 50 CNC/VMC machines. The company attributes much of its success to robotic automation. “Since 2016, we’ve installed 2 industrial robots, 7 collaborative robots, and 2 overhead gantry robots,” says Divesh Debuka, Partner, New Engineering Works. “It’s all about doing your research to determine the type of robot that works best in a particular application and understanding how to balance your people and equipment. I’m proud to say that not a single person has been replaced by a robot – instead, they’ve acquired the skills to oversee the robots themselves, or moved to other managerial tasks.”
Debuka adds that since the installation of robots, employee satisfaction has improved as they are thrilled about the investments in robotic technology that enable them to have a better working environment. “A lot of them are even excited to work with the robots we’ve installed,” he says.
Government Support & Safety Regulations
India’s manufacturing industry is one of the nation’s greatest assets, contributing to around 17% of our GDP, with the government aiming for 25% by 2023. Reports from India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) find that India is also on track to export goods worth US$1 trillion by 2030 and become a major global manufacturing hub in the coming years. While many initiatives, investments, and policies are in place to enable these ambitions, there is little to no support for boosting robotic adoption, despite its proven and direct impact on advancing manufacturing efficiency and quality.
Take for example, import duties. While India is slowly giving rise to a slew of robotics and AI startups, most of the recognized, proven players in the industry are from other nations. Indian manufacturers are already wary of the cost of robotic automation, and import duties mean driving the price up by approximately 8-11%, further increasing the inaccessibility of the technology.
Countries like the USA and China, in contrast, have multiple incentives in place to promote the use of Industry 4.0 technology. Initiatives include grants to further the development of robots within the country as well as subsidies given to companies that invest in robotic automation. “The top manufacturing nations are usually those with the highest number of robots, and also those with policies in place to help adopt them,” states Shoran. “Similarly, support from our government will go a long way in helping Indian manufacturers explore robotic solutions.”
Another monumental barrier to embracing robotic automation is the lack of adequate and enforced laws surrounding occupational health and safety. This often leads to the exploitation of workers in the industry, where they are forced to jeopardize their own well-being to earn a living. The manufacturing sector has no dearth of such physically and mentally demanding tasks, with examples including but not limited to spray-painting, welding, and even various packing and palletizing processes. Because of the abundance of cheap labor and lack of imposed worker safety regulations, manufacturers sometimes take the shortcut by employing people for these often lethal applications that really, machines should be tasked to handle.
The Road Ahead
The nation’s manufacturing sector is growing at a phenomenal pace. However, it has become increasingly evident that there is tremendous untapped potential that could be unlocked by the widespread adoption of robotic automation. The coming years, hopefully, will see much more support from the government through initiatives that champion the adoption of robots.
Collaborative robots, especially, are making robotics more accessible to small and medium-sized manufacturers. They enable Human Robot Collaboration – a key tenet of Industry 4.0 and even 5.0, which sees humans and robots working together, with people handling value-added tasks with robots handling repetitive or dangerous tasks, thereby enabling mass customization and personalization. Yes, people may lose jobs just like with any other automation solution – but they’re losing the monotonous, hazardous, and even deadly jobs that humans shouldn’t be doing anyway, freeing up to handle more meaningful work instead. Plus, net positive outcomes have been observed in numerous cases around the world, where the benefits of robotic automation have outweighed any negative impacts, often leading to the creation of jobs.
As we ascend towards becoming a self-reliant nation, it is crucial to understand that investing in robotic automation also means investing in your people and processes, thereby enabling a robust industry with everlasting global value.