Robots: The New Home Helpers

Originally emerging in 1898, KUKA is a German owned company that manufactures industrial robots as well as solutions for factory automation. In 1995, the company split into two divisions: KUKA Robotics and KUKA Systems. The company focuses on the different solutions that could be plausible in the automation or industrial manufacturing.


Last summer, Midea Group, a Chinese household applicant company acquired KUKA for $5 billion. Partnering with KUKA depicts the efforts that the country has regarding automated industries. This will help emphasize the growth of opportunities around the world while helping unlock the potential and benefits that robots have. Paul Fang, the CEO of Midea stated, “KUKA’s global leadership and expertise in the field of robotics and automation, combine with Midea’s exponential global growth, industrial base and logistics operations, and understanding of consumer markets, will enable the creation of intelligent machines and smart factories that usher in a new era of robotics-based manufacturing …,”




The use of robots are on the rise all across the globe. By the time 2019 comes around, it is estimated that 1.4 million new industrial robots will be installed worldwide, with China being the current strongest sector for the drive of the robotics industry. It is also predicted that the personal robotics industry will be growing rapidly within the next few years, having cleaning and caring for the elderly to be the main drivers of growth and development within this sector.  


There are different talks of what specific roll KUKA will be taking in Midea’s company. There were predictions that the orange robots will roboticize the production of domestic hardware, or to help the firm build domestic robots. But KUKA’s CEO explained that Midea "will not be doing any automation or robotics", only KUKA will. But the two will be combining their forces to help the consumer industry and produce consumer robotics. It is unclear as to what exactly these consumer robots will be doing. But because of KUKA’s recent history and experience, they believe that they will not doing small tasks that just roll around. Instead, they believe that these new consumer robots will actually take part in household chores such as unloading the dishwasher, grabbing a glass of water or plate of food, or to even help out the elderly. Although it sounds very ambitious and difficult for the robots to do, with technology constantly developing it is becoming more and more possible for them to take on.