Overcoming the Barriers to Robotics Adoption
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According to a 2025 International Federation of Robotics report, global installs of robotic systems have maintained record highs for the past five years. 2024 alone saw more than 500,000 robots installed, approximately double the number from a decade ago.
However, in that year, Asia accounted for 70 percent of those new installs, the lion share of which were in China. In contrast, North American deployments added 9% to the worldwide total in 2024 and Europe 14%, the report states.
While the introduction of the user-friendly cobot 10 years ago, plus the market pressures introduced by the COVID pandemic, did accelerate adoption, robotics still struggles to find a place in western manufacturing environments. Persistent confounders include uncertain ROI, skilled workforce deficits, legacy system incompatibility and manufacturing task variability, among other challenges.
In this webinar, panelists will discuss how integration best practices and recent technical advancements look to address the technical and financial barriers to robotics adoption.
Speakers:
Ben Perlson
Segment Manager, Robotics for Logistics and Consumer Industries
ABB Robotics US
Ben Perlson is the Director of Consumer Industries at ABB Robotics, United States. Ben is responsible for driving front-end growth in the logistics, warehousing, and consumer packaged goods industry through managing the go to market strategy and ever-expanding portfolio of solutions that enable customers of all sizes to sustainably scale profitable automation.
Before joining ABB, he worked at the DHL Americas Innovation Center in Chicago, where he led early-stage robotics proof-of-concept projects, solution scouting, and trend re#search.
Ben also holds master’s degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Iowa.
Aaron Prather
Director, Robotics & Autonomous Systems Programs
ASTM International
Aaron Prather is Director of Robotics and Autonomous Systems at ASTM International, where he leads global efforts to develop standards that enable the safe, scalable deployment of robotics across industries. He works at the intersection of technology, policy, and real-world adoption, helping bridge the gap between innovation and implementation.
Aaron is also the founder of Six Degrees of Robotics, a platform focused on market intelligence, governance, and emerging trends in automation and embodied AI. A frequent speaker and writer, he brings a deployment-first perspective to robotics, emphasizing standards, safety, and systems-level thinking as critical enablers of the next wave of automation.