Not only do some autonomous mobile robot suppliers see robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) as their go-to way of providing solutions, the model is starting to catch on for other, larger forms of robotic systems with more fixed infrastructure.
RaaS appeal may depend on industry, says Yaxin Guan, chief operating officer of AMR vendor ForwardX Robotics, which offers RaaS. In manufacturing sectors like automotive, she says, operational volumes tend to be a bit more predictable compared with e-commerce or 3PL warehouses, and there’s often capex budget for AMRs, Guan notes, so capital purchase remains popular in manufacturing. By contrast, e-commerce and 3PL fulfillment centers deal with volume peaks and valleys, and so many opt for RaaS.
