The demand, for both industrial and service robots, is projected to grow at a brisk pace. The time is ripe for you to make a quick entry into this sector

Driven by his “passion” for robotics and a tiny sum of Rs 10 lacs, Pulkit Gaur started a robot manufacturing company, Gridbots, in March last year.

The idea was to manufacture and bring to market a series of consumer, industrial and military robots.

The challenges were many for the Ahmedabad-based startup. “Absence of resources, talent and funding were the main challenges,” says Gaur. But one year down the line, Gaur and his team seem to be much on track. Having done some work for the National Institute of Design, Central Bureau of Investigation and the Home Ministry, they are now preparing to launch autoGRID, out of their gBOT series of consumer robots, which can perform functions like home cleaning, surveillance and telepresence. The robot could be priced at just Rs 15,000!

Gaur is among a small group of Indian entrepreneurs who are betting big on the growth of the robot market in India. “Robotics and automation are not very developed domains in the Indian market and most of the market is occupied with imported products and there is a lack of native solutions and products that suit Indian needs,” says Gaur, who wants to bridge the gap. “We took this challenge as an opportunity to come up with something innovative in Indian markets, which would be Indian from bottom to top, and hence this company came into existence,” says Gaur.

The growing interest in robotics by Indian players was evident at the first Robo Expo 2008, organized by the business chamber CII in January this year. The event witnessed several new launches and participation by 11 robotics companies. These included ABB, Hi-Tech Robotics Systemz, Rhythmsoft, Rockwell, Kuka, Motoman Motherson Robotics, Panasonic, and Precision Automation and Robotics India (PARI).

Kinds of bots
The robotics business is broadly divided into two sectors—industrial and service. Industrial robots find application in manufacturing industries and are used for purposes as diverse as welding, painting, packaging, assembly, ironing etc. The automobile segment is one of the biggest employers of such robots. “The automotive industry is still the predominant user of industrial robots, but the rubber and plastics industry and the electrical/electronics industry are gaining in importance,” says the World Robotics 2007 report. According to its estimates, the world's total stock of operational industrial robots in 2006 was 951,000 units, 3% greater than 2005.

Service robots, on the other hand, are used mostly for defense, rescue, security and surgical applications. These are also used in unmanned aerial and ground-based vehicles by the military for reconnaissance operations. Service robots are of two types—professional and personal. Personal robots are involved in functions such as vacuum cleaning and lawn mowing. By the end of 2006 about 40,000 service robots were installed worldwide for professional use. “There lies a lot of scope for home and industrial robots in India as well as international markets. Industrial robots are replacing humans in achieving specific and repetitive tasks in a better way and with more efficiency,” opines Gaur. According to some estimates, around 3.5 million personal robots are in use around the world.

Globally the robotics business has always been a lucrative one with industrial robots having the biggest share in the manufacturing world. Under pressure to increase productivity and cut costs, industrial houses across the world have employed robots to not only reduce turnaround time, but also achieve precision. According to the International Federation of Robotics, many simple manual operations are no longer cost-effective in high-wage countries. Therefore some production has been shifted to low-wage countries. However, even then, more demand in terms of product quality can only be satisfied by automation.

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