How many robots are now working out there in industry?
— Worldwide, at least 800,000 units (possibly the real stock could be well over one million units), of which 350,000 in Japan, close to 250,000 in the European Union and about 112,000 in North America. In Europe, Germany is in the lead with 112,700 units, followed by Italy with 50,000, France with 26,000, Spain with 20,000, and the United Kingdom with 14,000. • 2007 forecast — A conservative forecast points about one million units worldwide, of which 350,000 in Japan, 326,000 in the European Union, and 145,000 in North America. • Regarding Japan’s position in automation eroding — Robot business was booming in Japan in the 1980s and early 1990s. The optimism was unlimited. It seemed as if everything that could be robotized was robotized. Since the middle of the 1990s, the momentum in the robot business has moved to Europe and North America. In 2003, their robot stocks increased by 7 percent and 9 percent, respectively. In Japan it has steadily been falling since 1998 but shows now si
