A big deal has just been wrapped up in the robotics field, after processing specialist Sepro Robotique (La Roche-sur-Yon / France; www.sepro-group.com), which only recently opened a subsidiary in Canada, announced a partnership with the world’s largest robot producer Yaskawa (Europe: Yaskawa Europe, Allershausen / Germany; www.yaskawa.eu.com).

Both companies plan to introduce their commonly manufactured parts for the handling and removal of large plastic parts at the upcoming “K” fair (www.k-online.de), held in Düsseldorf / Germany in October. While the Japanese company will be delivering the hardware of the “Sepro-Yaskawa” range, Sepro will supply the steering electronics. Sepro CEO Jean-Michel Renaudeau, who has headed the company since 2006, says the collaboration between the two market leaders – Sepro in plastics processing and Yaskawa in robot technology – is also the result of positive trends in the robotics segment.

The collaboration will reportedly also benefit Sepro’s main plant in Nantes / France, where the robots will initially be assembled. As a result, about 40 new positions will be created – a figure Plasteurope.com was not able to have the company confirm.

The French group, which has benefited in the recent past from the merger of competitor Wittmann with injection moulding machinery maker Battenfeld, recently reported a 17% year-on-year rise in sales. At EUR 92.8m, results for 2015 even exceeded the already quite ambitious expectations. Come 2017, Renaudeau plans to produce 2,300-2,400 robots, up from 2,000 last year. The higher sales levels are to be achieved by a variety of means, including through the new sales office set up in Budapest / Hungary.