According to a company filing, the top Korean collaborative robot supplier, Doosan Robotics Inc., opened the books on an up to $318 million initial public offering. The listing is expected to be the largest for the Seoul-listed company this year, which has a 21% share of the country’s cobot market. The company will offer a total of 16.2 million shares for subscription from Monday, in an indicative range of 21,000 won to 26,000 won per share.
Doosan Robotics, a unit of the Doosan Group that produces aircraft and industrial machinery, has been among the fastest-growing cobot makers in recent years. Its accumulated sales of the robots crossed 1,000 units late last year, propelling Doosan into the world’s top five robotics companies. Sales to North America and Europe, the fastest growth markets for cobots, currently account for more than 70% of its total sales.
Its camera robot system, NINA, which won an Honoree award at the CES 2022 Innovation Awards, is one of Doosans most popular consumer-friendly products. The company has also expanded its cobots lineup to serve various industries. Its flagship A-SERIES robot, introduced in 2019, features four separate models with an average speed of 10% faster than competitors and offers a high return on investment.
To maintain its lead in the global market, Doosan Robotics is expanding its production facilities and enhancing its R&D capabilities. For example, it has built a new factory with an annual production capacity of 10,000-plus M Series robots in the Suwon Industrial Complex in Gosaek-dong, Gyeonggi Province. The facility will start mass production in December and produce the M1013 model, a state-of-the-art premium model featuring advanced torque sensors in every joint.
Doosan Robotics has expanded its presence in the United States by partnering with Industrial Automation Supply, which will distribute its M, H, and A-SERIES cobots throughout the U.S. Northeast. IAS, a distributor of electrical controls and automation components, has served original equipment manufacturers in the region since 1993.
Doosan Robotics has tapped Alex Lee to head its U.S. operation, which will be based in Plano, Texas. Lee joined STXI Motion, a motion control and servo systems maker, as GM of the company’s North American division. Before that, he held management positions at Yaskawa America and Bosch Rexroth. His experience will support Doosan Robotics’ strategy of delivering innovative, high-performance, and cost-effective solutions to a diverse customer base in the logistics, automotive, warehouse, and manufacturing sectors. In addition, the company has launched CVGC carbon vacuum grippers that perfectly match the weight constraints, flexibility, and safety requirements of Doosan Robotics cobot applications. The grippers are available in three standard formats to meet the needs of various industries. They feature an innovative design that enables fast, easy installation. They are based on a compact, ultralight body that can handle various loads, including corrugate, metal/glass plates, and plastics.