Welcome To The Matrix: Global Competence Centers for Key Applications
Earlier this year, Universal Robots opened 3 Centers of Excellence, each aligned with one of the key application segments the company is emphasizing: welding, palletizing and machine tending. This major investment in physical lab space, cobots, peripheral equipment (including UR+ products) and engineers is part of the Segment Initiative UR established in 2022 and adds another dimension of support for UR partners and end customers.
Universal Robots has traditionally provided support from Application Engineering teams located in our 20+ regional offices, offering advice and guidance to partners and key customers in all application areas, all industries. And this was a very successful strategy – you don’t sell 75,000+ cobots without solid application engineering support! The regional support was backed up by the UR+ team, who guided UR+ partners through software development and product introductions. But partners and customers alike wanted more – deeper knowledge and understanding of their application areas.
The Centers of Excellence grew out of the overall segment strategy. Each CoE is a knowledge hub, focused on a single application segment, able to go deep to provide recommendations and guidance by subject matter experts to UR partners and end users. And back to the Matrix analogy, the CoE’s work with and through the regional support teams and the UR+ teams to ensure partners and end users get the best of both worlds.
How Do I Find a CoE?
The three Centers of Excellence in operation today include:
Machine Tending
Munich, Germany
Welding & Cutting
Novi, MI USA
Packaging & Palletizing
Barcelona, Spain
While each COE is located within a UR regional office, they are built and staffed with dedicated application engineers, software developers and industry segment managers to support partners and customers around the world.
Want to learn more?
Check out the Global Centers of Excellence brochure.
CoE Services fall under 4 key areas:
Project support – feasibility & reach studies, simulations, proof-of-concept testing. Product support – Validation & testing, UR+ product testing, application specific field failure testing Development – Software tools, utilities, system software tools & features Education – workshops & training for all channels
All UR partners with demanding projects that require specialized support can leverage CoE resources:
UR+ Marketplace partners: New product identification and development of supporting features in PolyScope, application specific testing and optimization.
OEM’s: Back-end software features to reduce the OEM’s R&D time and cost, product stress testing, benchmarking performance limits.
Certified Systems Integrators and Solution Partners: Development of new PolyScope and back-end software tools to streamline applications software development, How-To guides and UR+ recommendations to reduce project risk and costs.
Distributors: Segment specific workshops and training, technical applications data and market knowledge.
End User Customers: Identify best-in-class solutions, development and testing of new product features, direct line for customer feedback and requests.
Here are just a few examples of current CoE support projects
Working with an automotive vehicle manufacturer on system design that will sort and palletize 4 models of aluminum engine blocks in a 24/7 manufacturing environment. Helping a UR OEM partner optimize gripper and controls design to increase palletizing cell throughput by 49%. Supporting the development of an Ethernet IP Adaptor for machine tool interfaces. Supporting key partners in their testing of Polyscope X. Testing and validating the new coordinated motion function. Defining best practices for cobot TIG welding. Validating UR20 interfaces to key welding power supplies.
Acquire Knowledge
Increase UR’s knowledge and deep understanding of customer needs and market trends in the application segments.
Communicate & Educate
Share industry, application and technology learnings across the entire UR partner ecosystem and customer base.
Accelerate Product Development
Remove friction in design, engineering and programming of UR cobots to accelerate the development and launch of application solutions by UR partners.
Getting Started with a Center of Excellence – It’s Easy!
Option 1
Talk to your UR account manager or UR Ecosystem product manager.
Option 2
Simply go to www.universal-robots.com/centers-of-excellence to request support for your project
- Universal Robots USA, Inc
- 27175 Haggerty Road, Suite 160
- 48377 Novi, MI