Small and mid-sized enterprises (SME) are the backbone in many countries around the globe, what’s more: Many have even grown to become market leaders in their respective niches – they are true “hidden champions”. But even they need to overcome many different challenges such as sustainability, lack of skilled labour, supply bottlenecks and efficiency in a globally interconnected economy. The overwhelming number of small and mid-sized enterprises agree: The digitalisation and automation of production are crucial to succeeding in the market today and in the future.
Potential depends on the industry
The Civey survey institute has asked managers at numerous SMEs in order to learn more about their special needs regarding automation. Small and mid-sized enterprises see the greatest potential in logistics and packaging, as well as in the chemical and the pharmaceutical sector: Nearly 63 percent or 53 percent of respondents of these potential customers believe that they will increasingly use automation solutions. Players in food and consumer goods were a bit more reserved: Only 30 percent in the foodstuff and 17 percent in the consumer goods industry saw growing potential for automation.
Solutions for smaller companies
Why are small and mid-sized enterprises – mainly in some industries – hesitant when it comes to automation? For roughly 45 percent, the main obstacle is the high procurement price. 30 percent regarded the large scepticism among their own employees as a major hindrance. On the contrary, there is usually no lack of concepts for automation: Only about 18 percent of respondents regarded that as a problem.
Today, we can easily dispel many of these concerns. For instance, our versatile cobots in particular provide flexible and scalable solutions for small businesses as well – solutions that quickly pay dividends. These robots, specially designed for man-machine collaboration, are absolutely safe to use and easy to operate and program. According to the survey, it is these aspects – apart from good service – that make up important reasons for many small and mid-sized enterprises to procure robot-assisted automation solutions.
Would you like all the figures, data and facts regarding this matter in one overview? No problem! Here you will find the corresponding infographic on the matter:
*This blog article is based on content kindly provided to us by ABB Robotics.
