Industrial robots, production machines for welding processes, systems integration and lifecycle services for manufacturing automation
KUKA SE & Co. KGaA
Zugspitzstraße 140, 86165 Augsburg, DE · Shelby Township, MI, USA · Halesowen, UK · Singapore, SGNew on Amplifa
About KUKA
KUKA SE & Co. KGaA, headquartered in Augsburg, is a provider of intelligent industrial robots, production machines, plant and systems engineering, and software for manufacturing automation. The portfolio comprises robots in various configurations with different load capacities and reach, standardized manufacturing cells through to complete production systems, as well as Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR) with fleet management software. Processes include magnetically impelled arc butt welding (Magnetarc), rotary friction welding (Thompson by KUKA in Halesowen, also offered as contract manufacturing) and friction stir welding, among other things for aluminum battery housings. In addition, KUKA offers engineering services such as system planning, simulation, offline programming and safety concepts, as well as worldwide lifecycle services with around 70 service locations. The company operates in industries such as automotive, e-mobility, electronics, metalworking, intralogistics and healthcare, and employs around 14,500 people.
- Site
- Augsburg
- Processes
- Industrial robots (various configurations with different load capacities and reach), Production Systems (system integration from manufacturing cells to complete production systems), Friction Stir Welding (FSW, e.g. for battery housings), Magnetarc welding (magnetically impelled arc butt welding, press welding process developed by KUKA), Rotary Friction Welding (Thompson by KUKA), Contract manufacturing with Thompson friction welding machines, Automated quality inspection with robots and cobots, Robot and PLC programming, offline programming, virtual commissioning
- Materials
- Magnetically impelled arc butt welding (Magnetarc), Rotary friction welding (Thompson by KUKA), Friction Stir Welding (FSW)
- Certificates
- ISO 9001, ISO 45001
- Employees
- ca. 14,500
- Industries
- Automotive, E-Mobility, Electronics, Metalworking, Manufacturing Industry, Retail & E-Commerce
- 01
Engineering & system planning
- 02
Simulation & offline programming
- 03
Robot & machine manufacturing
- 04
System integration & plant assembly
- 05
Commissioning & programming
- 06
Service, maintenance & refurbishment
Materials & Processes
Magnetically impelled arc butt welding (Magnetarc)
Press welding process developed by KUKA with the MagnetAr 620A welding power source (0–620 A) for reproducible welding results.
Rotary friction welding (Thompson by KUKA)
Friction welding process including contract manufacturing on the Thompson machine platform in Halesowen.
Friction Stir Welding (FSW)
Joining process, among other things for aluminum battery housings in the e-mobility sector.
Locations
Augsburg
DEHeadquarters, development and head office
- Industrial robot product range
- iiQWorks engineering suite
- KUKA College training center
Shelby Township
USAKUKA Americas location
- Service and sales network
Halesowen
UKThompson rotary friction welding, contract manufacturing
- Thompson friction welding machines
Singapore
SGSales and service location
- Service and sales network
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial robots (various configurations with different load capacities and reach)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Production Systems (system integration from manufacturing cells to complete production systems)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Friction Stir Welding (FSW, e.g. for battery housings)Joining | – | – | – | – | Aluminum (battery housings, derived) |
| Magnetarc welding (magnetically impelled arc butt welding, press welding process developed by KUKA)Joining | – | – | – | – | – |
| Rotary Friction Welding (Thompson by KUKA)Joining | – | – | – | – | – |
| Contract manufacturing with Thompson friction welding machinesJoining | – | – | – | – | – |
| Automated quality inspection with robots and cobotsTesting | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Robot and PLC programming, offline programming, virtual commissioningEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Safety services (safety concepts, HRC safety verification, KUKA.SafeOperation configuration)Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Robot refurbishment / retrofit (general overhaul, Robot Refresh packages, retrofit projects)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Robot wrist repair (repair and servicing of KR QUANTEC-1 robot wrists)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| System integration of 2D/3D vision, Force Torque Control, special kinematicsEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
6 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial robots (diverse models, various load capacities and reach) | KUKA | – | – | – | worldwide |
| – | KUKA MagnetAr 620A | – | – | – | – |
| Rotary friction welding machine | Thompson by KUKA | – | – | – | Halesowen, UK (KUKA Systems UK Limited, Hereward Rise, B62 8AN) |
| Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR) with fleet management software | KUKA | – | – | – | – |
| Robotic 5-axis cell for switch block production (wood) | KUKA | 1 | – | – | L'Autre Instant (customer) |
| 22 AMRs for internal material logistics | KUKA | 22 | – | – | TPV Displays Polska (customer) |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality & Certificates
KUKA Safety Services develops, tests and documents safety concepts, including HRC safety verification and KUKA.SafeOperation configuration. Quality assurance also includes automated quality inspection based on robots and cobots.
| Evidence | Augsburg |
|---|---|
| ISO 9001 | |
| ISO 45001 |
History
- 2016
Publication of a specialist article on Industry 4.0 on kuka.com (robotics development began in 1978; founding date not documented in the source material)