Japan’s Hitachi Group has announced that it will merge Hitachi Automation and Kyoto Robotics Corporation, both part of Hitachi's Industrial Digital Business Unit (IDBU), to strengthen its robotic systems integration (SI) business in Japan and the Asean region.
The merger will be effective from April 1, 2023.
Hitachi Automation began operating within the IDBU in April 2022 with a focus on the fusion between digital solutions that analyse and optimise data using what the company calls Lumada – a mix of solutions and technologies.
The company said the merger will improve the company’s ability to automate and digitally transform manufacturing and logistics by combining Hitachi Automation's front engineering capabilities with Kyoto Robotics' differentiating technologies in intelligent robotic vision systems.
A Hitachi spokesperson said the company has been working to solve customer issues in manufacturing by leveraging Lumada and Hitachi's combination of operational technology (OT) and IT products.
Hitachi has been strengthening its global business structure in this field for the last few years. It acquired US-based JR Automation in 2019 and Kyoto Robotics in 2021.
The group will also integrate IDBU’s digital solutions in OT and IT and the development capabilities of Hitachi's Research and Development Group.
Hitachi will also strengthen its collaboration with JR Automation, which operates its robotic SI business mainly in North America and Europe.
