These robots are commodities. The value in automation is not in the robotic systems themselves but the tooling, processes and fixtures of the factory. These are

These robots are commodities. The value in automation is not in the robotic systems themselves but the tooling, processes and fixtures of the factory. These are usually locally (or nationally) sourced. With a bit of work you could pretty much take out any Kuka robot, install a comparable ABB robot or Fanuc and go on with production. (source - I designed a robotic manufacturing plant for consumer electronics and bought dozens of Kuka robots)