New West Midlands RAS cluster aims to propel UK up the global robotics rankings
25 July 2024
The MTC has teamed up with the University of Birmingham to launch the West Midlands RAS Cluster, a groundbreaking initiative set to elevate the UK's global position in robot density and significantly enhance the adoption of robotics and autonomous systems (RAS) in the manufacturing sector.
The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) and the University of Birmingham have founded a West Midlands RAS cluster as a catalyst to unlock the robotics and automation capabilities of the UK. Its intention is to connect various communities and lead to much greater utilisation of Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) throughout industry.
Professor Mike Wilson, Chief Automation Officer, MTC said: “Creating the first UK Robotics and Autonomous Systems regional cluster will strengthen the presence of crucial technology and support growth potential.
“We aim to raise productivity and competitiveness in the West Midlands region while creating highly skilled and well-paid employment.
“The work we are doing with the University of Birmingham will attract other related businesses as well as universities to engage and enthuse younger generations, supporting the deployment of RAS and raising the UK’s global rankings in robot use.”
Robotics is widely recognised as a key underpinning technology that supports productivity growth and sustainability, while also delivering security by reducing reliance on overseas supply chains.
Based on the IFR World Robotics 2023 report, the UK ranks 25th on the global scale of robot density in the manufacturing industry.
The Made Smarter Review report (BEIS 2017) identified the value of robotics adoption in UK manufacturing to be £184Bn over 10 years.
What these statistics show is a lack of scale within the robotics supply chain, particularly in the system integration community, and although large investments are being made there is still a huge amount of untapped value.
If UK automation levels matched the most automated country, productivity would increase by a staggering 22.3 percent[1].
RAS technologies represent a major contributor to the future prosperity of UK industry.
While the UK is not progressing as effectively as competing nations, investments are being made to exploit the developments from academia to align with the implementation of industrial robotics and realise the true benefits of RAS.
With an urgent focus on deploying RAS technologies, that value could be worth up to £150Bn for UK industries[2].
The original RAS cluster was created in Odense, Denmark, one of the world’s leading nations for robotics adoption despite having no automotive or electronics sectors.
Denmark is currently ranked 12th in robotic density, more than double what is seen in the UK.
Denmark’s sector comprises over 300 companies, employing 8,500 people with €2.4bn turnover, and a pipeline of start-ups and skilled personnel which is feeding the successful robotics sector acting as a strong case study for what’s possible in the UK.
By following the approach set out in other countries with a regional cluster approach, the West Midlands RAS cluster is a starting point to set up a network of clusters based on existing resources and facilities.
The MTC and University of Birmingham represent the start of this initiative, in a region that already has a strong concentration of RAS expertise with multiple leading universities, two High Value Manufacturing Catapult Centres, and leading robot suppliers, integrators and major users.
The cluster will connect all parties who have an interest in RAS and share the ambition of increasing the development of these technologies for the benefit of the West Midlands region.
Businesses both inside the West Midlands region and beyond can collaborate with The MTC to leverage the potential value of Robotics and Autonomous Systems.
[1] Copenhagen Business School, Automation and Productivity: A Cross-country, Cross-industry comparison 2020
[2] BEIS, The economic impact of robotics & autonomous systems across UK sectors 2021
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