With this annual result, the company has exceeded the target it set in 2013 of generating annual turnover of one billion Danish kroner (134 million euros) by the end of 2017. The operating result more than doubled from nine percent in 2016 to 19 percent in 2017.

The great success is due not least to the sales revenue of around 46 million euros in the fourth quarter of 2017: This represents a 61 percent increase in turnover for UR compared to the same period last year, making the final quarter of last year the best for the robot manufacturer. According to Jürgen von Hollen, President of Universal Robots, the 72% increase in turnover compared to the previous year is due to growing market awareness of the economic benefits of UR cobots.

Looking ahead to 2018, von Hollen continues to anticipate sales growth of at least 50% and summarizes: "According to forecasts, the market for cobots will remain one of the key growth drivers of the entire automation market in the coming years. I firmly believe that Universal Robots will grow at the same rate or even faster than the market for collaborative robots itself in 2018 and that we will therefore expand our position as market leader. To achieve this, we will continue to stay one step ahead of our competitors in terms of technology."

With this in mind, Universal Robots will continue to focus heavily on expanding its Universal Robots+ product and developer ecosystem and its online training platform Universal Robots Academy in 2018, which recently exceeded the 20,000 user mark. The company will also focus on the internationalization of its regional sales and service branches and activities.

Global expansion continues

Universal Robots recently opened two repair and service centers in the USA and China - the first of their kind outside Denmark. UR also recently opened another location in Boston, USA, expanding central departments and corporate functions beyond the headquarters in Denmark for the first time. The company has also announced the opening of further offices in Italy, Turkey and Mexico in 2018. A third office in China is also already planned. as