Bosch Rexroth strengthens factory automation through majority stake in Kassow Robots
Nicole von Killisch-Horn21.03.2022Lohr am Main / Germany
Danish specialist offers cobots with unique flexibility
Bosch Rexroth is to expand its range of collaborative robots
Thanks to their seven axes, cobots from Kassow Robots can work in very tight spaces and cover a wide range of applications
Acquisition enables Bosch Rexroth to offer one-stop solutions, especially for the consumer goods and mobility industry including battery production as well as for the semiconductor production
Bosch Rexroth invests in factory automation: The company is planning to acquire the majority stake in Kassow Robots ApS based in Copenhagen (Denmark) and thus expand its portfolio for the Factory of the Future. Kassow Robots develops and produces collaborative robots (cobots) for industrial applications with around 25 associates at their Copenhagen and Prague (Czech Republic) sites. Bosch Rexroth and Kassow Robots signed a respective contract on March 18, 2022. Both sides have agreed to keep the purchase price confidential. The transaction is subject to anti-trust approval.
“Collaborative industrial robots are another important building block for the versatile Factory of the Future,” said Dr. Marc Wucherer, the member of Bosch Rexroth’s Executive Board who oversees sales and factory automation. The lightweight robots from Kassow Robots can be used in a variety of ways in industrial production. The cobots have a high payload and range and can be used in the tightest of spaces: With seven axes, a cobot from Kassow Robots can grasp items around corners like an arm – a unique flexibility on the market to date.
“There is huge demand for flexible robotic systems. In the coming years the market for cobots is expected to grow by 15 to 20 percent each year. We want to take advantage of this potential and expand our portfolio with collaborative robots from Kassow Robots. This will benefit in particular our customers in the consumer goods and mobility industry including battery production as well as in the semiconductor production,” said Wucherer. In 2019, global sales of cobots totaled around 670 million dollars (source: Interact Analysis, 2021).
Bosch Rexroth to facilitate the global expansion of Kassow Robots
“With Bosch Rexroth, we have found a partner who is an international leader in factory automation and who can help us expand our business activities. This will enable us to open up new markets for our cobot portfolio,” explained Kristian Kassow, the company’s founder, managing director and joint owner.
Since start of sales of the first two cobot models in 2019, the company’s range of products has grown to five collaborative robot models. These offer a reach from 850 to 1800 millimeters, payloads from 5 to 18 kilograms and can achieve joint speeds of up to 225 degrees per second. All models have seven axes and are easy to program and operate. The software provides a modular platform allowing easy integration of peripherals like grippers, vision systems or other customized functionalities.
Thanks to the combination of reach and payload, the cobots can perform a wide range of automation tasks: from packing, machine loading and pick-and-place applications to visual quality control. Compared to smaller industrial robots, integration costs are much lower. The cobots’ inherent safety and lower mass require less effort to make them safe. Since 2019, Kassow Robots has already sold cobots in a lower three-digit range. Bosch Rexroth is planning to significantly expand the business internationally.
Bosch Rexroth is developing the Factory of the Future
Only the floors, ceilings and walls will be stationary and fixed. Everything else will be interchangeable and flexible – this is how Bosch Rexroth sees the Factory of the Future. The company is continuously launching solutions that fit optimally into this concept. Its portfolio includes software for production, drive and control technology, digital assistant systems for employees as well as smart manufacturing and transport robots. With the cobots from Kassow Robots, collaborative robots for a wide range of applications in factories have been added to the Rexroth portfolio.
As one of the world’s leading suppliers of drive and control technologies, Bosch Rexroth ensures efficient, powerful and safe movement in machines and systems of any size. The company bundles global application experience in the market segments of Mobile Applications, Machinery Applications and Engineering, and Factory Automation. With its intelligent components, customized system solutions and services, Bosch Rexroth is creating the necessary environment for fully connected applications. Bosch Rexroth offers its customers hydraulics, electric drive and control technology, gear technology and linear motion and assembly technology, including software and interfaces to the Internet of Things. With locations in over 80 countries, more than 31,000 associates generated sales revenue of around 6.2 billion euros in 2021.
Basic Information Bosch
The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 402,600 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2021). The company generated sales of 78.7 billion euros in 2021. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility Solutions, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. As a leading IoT provider, Bosch offers innovative solutions for smart homes, Industry 4.0, and connected mobility. Bosch is pursuing a vision of mobility that is sustainable, safe, and exciting. It uses its expertise in sensor technology, software, and services, as well as its own IoT cloud, to offer its customers connected, cross-domain solutions from a single source. The Bosch Group’s strategic objective is to facilitate connected living with products and solutions that either contain artificial intelligence (AI) or have been developed or manufactured with its help. Bosch improves quality of life worldwide with products and services that are innovative and spark enthusiasm. In short, Bosch creates technology that is “Invented for life.” The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its roughly 440 subsidiary and regional companies in some 60 countries. Including sales and service partners, Bosch’s global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. With its more than 400 locations worldwide, the Bosch Group has been carbon neutral since the first quarter of 2020. The basis for the company’s future growth is its innovative strength. At 128 locations across the globe, Bosch employs some 76,100 associates in research and development, of which more than 38,000 are software engineers.
