The company has a comprehensive product portfolio of automated guided vehicles for all major applications, supported by its own software suite. ABB is thus expanding its range of robot-based automation solutions and is the only company to offer a complete portfolio for the next generation of flexible automation.

The acquisition is part of ABB's growth strategy. The purchase agreement was signed on July 19 and the transaction is expected to be completed in the course of the summer. Both parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

Asti was founded in 1982, is headquartered in Burgos, Spain, and employs more than 300 people in Spain, France and Germany. The company is majority-owned by CEO Veronica Pascual Boé. Other shareholders include the European growth investor Keensight Capital. Today, the company supports one of the largest AMR fleets in Europe and has a broad customer base in 20 countries in the automotive, logistics, food and beverage, pharmaceutical and cosmetics sectors. Since 2015, the company has recorded annual growth of almost 30 percent. For 2021, Asti expects a turnover of around 50 million US dollars.

"With its industry-leading portfolio, comprehensive software suite and deep expertise in key growth segments, Asti is the perfect company for us to support our customers with the next generation of flexible automation," said Sami Atiya, head of ABB's Robotics & Factory Automation business. "ABB is now the only company with a complete automation portfolio of AMR, robots and machine automation solutions - from production to logistics to the end user. With our offering, we create great added value for our customers: they can adapt to individual consumer wishes and take advantage of the opportunities arising from the fundamental changes in consumer behavior."

AMRs offer maximum flexibility, from production, logistics, intralogistics and order fulfillment to retail and healthcare. ABB and ASTI have a shared vision to help companies replace today's linear production lines with fully flexible networks. In these networks, intelligent AMRs autonomously navigate materials, components and end products between smart, networked workstations in factories, logistics centers, laboratories, stores or hospitals.

Veronica Pascual Boé, CEO of Asti, says: "The visions of ABB and ASTI are a perfect match. Both companies have set themselves the goal of increasing the flexibility and competitiveness of their customers through increased automation in the workplace. This is the next exciting stage in our journey. Together we will drive forward our innovation plans, expand our global customer service, partner network, production and manufacturing capabilities, and leverage ABB's global market access, particularly in China. I look forward to becoming part of the extended Robotics management team and continuing to lead the AMR business to deliver on this ambitious growth plan."

Asti's industry-leading AMR portfolio includes autonomous vehicles including tractor units, goods-to-person solutions and forklift trucks, as well as a comprehensive software offering ranging from vehicle navigation and control to fleet and order management and cloud-based systems for end-to-end tracking and tracing.

This offering will be integrated into ABB's portfolio, which includes robots, machine automation, modular solutions and software applications, including RobotStudio, a simulation and programming tool from ABB Robotics. This creates a unique and comprehensive automation portfolio for ABB's customers.

ABB and Asti have deep industry expertise in the manufacturing industry, including automotive, food and beverage, consumer goods and new growth segments such as logistics, e-commerce, retail and healthcare.

Global sales of autonomous mobile robots are expected to reach around 14 billion US dollars by 2025, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 20 percent. ABB intends to expand sales and service of autonomous robots to 53 countries worldwide.

ASTI's headquarters in Burgos will become the headquarters of ABB's AMR business unit, headed by Veronica Pascual Boé. The core functions, which include R&D, engineering and production, will continue to operate at ASTI's sites. ABB will significantly expand production capacity at the headquarters of the AMR business to support the planned increase in sales in Europe and the Americas. In addition, ABB will establish an AMR center for Asia at its new robot factory, which will open in Shanghai in 2022, covering the entire value chain including manufacturing, to unlock the growth potential for AMR in China and Asia. In China, the world's largest robotics market, the market for AMR is expected to reach USD 1.8 billion annually by 2025.

The acquisition by ABB Robotics comes shortly after the company announced its intention to enter new sectors and early adopters with its automation solutions. ABB Robotics recently introduced the new GoFa and Swifti collaborative robot families and announced automation solutions in the construction industry.