In the early months of the year, Zhang Jianjian, General Manager of the South China Marketing Center at Huashu Robot, has noticed a distinct acceleration in work pace. The influx of consultation calls and engagement activities has allowed this enterprise to sense the “warming up” of the robot market. Huashu Robot, often referred to as one of the “Guangdong Seven Swordsmen” in the intelligent robotics field, has been rooted in Foshan for nearly a decade. It independently researches and produces a large number of core components, achieving a self-sufficiency rate of over 90%, and boasts an annual production capacity of 20,000 units. More notably, within the崭新的 104-acre space of the Nanhai Intelligent Robot Science Park, a robot industry chain led by Huashu is growing and extending.
Standing at a high point overlooking the production workshop of Huashu Robot, one might恍惚间 feel as if they have误入 a “breeding farm”: within eight large enclosures, robot arms of various colors and sizes stand分布,灵活摆动 their postures, as if赋予生命 by technology. “The greatest significance of our研发 and推广 advanced industrial robots is to help enterprises reduce costs and increase efficiency, effectively ensuring product consistency and process reliability, enabling China manufacturing to gain greater competitiveness on the international stage,” Zhang Jianjian explained. Huashu specializes in the industrial robot sector, focusing on application scenarios in数字化 factories, and has assisted in completing over 10 national-level intelligent manufacturing demonstration factories and more than 100 provincial and ministerial-level intelligent manufacturing demonstration workshops.
The敏锐而强烈的 “market意识” is a助推剂 for Huashu Robot’s steady expansion. Research shows that starting from market demand,攻克关键技术, updating迭代 products, solving industry pain points, and坚持用多矩阵的 “自主原创产品” to open the market—this is Huashu’s “来时路”. Simultaneously, its national layout strategy provides more convenient localized services, quickly responding to non-standard demands from本地 industries such as ceramics and home appliances. It has established “Huashu advantages” in定制化服务 and细分领域 like打磨 and焊接. The company’s sales have maintained double-digit growth over the years, with revenue expected to increase by 30% year-on-year in the first quarter of this year.
One案例体现出 Huashu’s时刻与市场需求接轨的创新意识. Traditionally,工业机器人 that independently complete tasks and协作机器人 that work alongside humans are two mainstream types. Huashu瞄准市场需求,巧妙在二者之间找到 “空白地带”,研发推出 the CR series of industrial协作机器人. Compared to traditional工业机器人 and协作机器人, it combines the speed, precision, and reliability of industrial robots with the safety and convenience of协作机器人, helping enterprises achieve “鱼与熊掌”兼得 at a lower cost.
Now, Huashu robots have been deployed in large numbers. These robots produced in Foshan have been批量化 applied in the digital factory of长安汽车, a major automotive manufacturer, and are also playing a role in flexible production lines in the本地 small home appliance industry. Their market share in China is continuously攀升. Recently, a 3C laptop industry enterprise in the西南 region applied over 100 Huashu robot products to complete the数字化升级 of production line processes such as冲压,机加, and打磨. According to reports, after the completion of various production line改造, it will save over 30% in labor, control product qualification rates above 98%, and reduce energy consumption by 20%.
1. Breaking Through with Nearly 90% Domestic Core Components: A Milestone for China Robot Industry
“接近 90%”—this is a commendable figure. Compared to Europe and America, China’s industrial robot industry started relatively late and was once “受制于人” in key components. Today, outstanding enterprises represented by Huashu Robot have focused on持续攻关 core components such as controllers, drivers, and伺服电机,坚持自主可控, achieving a 90% self-sufficiency rate for整机.
This breakthrough意味着 that Chinese enterprises have shifted from relying on进口的 “组装模式” to自主可控的 “全栈研发” in key areas like the “大脑” (control systems) of industrial robots. In the industrial robot field, “卡脖子” is gradually becoming history, and the 30-year “时间鸿沟” of late起步 is slowly being填平. “Since its诞生之日, Huashu’s定位 has been to ‘make robots of our own brand in China.’ Thanks to多年间对国产替代的能力, we have achieved自主可控 of key components such as control systems, drivers, and伺服电机,” Zhang Jianjian stated.
2. The Backbone of Innovation: A Hundred-Person R&D Team Driving China Robot Advancements
Why does Huashu Robot possess leading自主研发能力 in the industry? A comprehensive hundred-person R&D team plays a决定性支撑作用. In August 2015, Wuhan华中数控股份有限公司 collaborated with the Foshan Municipal Government and华中科技大学 to落地 the “一院两司”协同创新模式. “一院” refers to the Foshan Intelligent Equipment Technology研究院, and “两司” are Foshan Huashu Robot Co., Ltd. and Foshan Dengqi Electromechanical Technology Co., Ltd. Since then, a research innovation platform and two backbone enterprises have joined hands, effectively connecting the落地转化 of scientific research成果 from the laboratory to the market.
Zhou Weina,负责人 of the Industrialization Center at the Foshan Intelligent Equipment Technology研究院, introduced that the研究院 has established 5 national engineering center Foshan centers,下设 8 industrial robot关键技术与应用研究 laboratories, 1智能机器人产品与应用中试 platform, along with 6 provincial innovation platforms and 2产业协同 platforms. Currently, the “1+2+N”生态圈 led by the Intelligent Equipment研究院 has assembled a comprehensive team of over 500 R&D and industrial talents, cultivated 20 mid-to-high-level人才 teams, and formed a全链条创新体系 of “基础研究 – 技术攻关 – 成果转化”.
The研发大楼 of the Intelligent Equipment研究院 is expected to be completed this year. Huashu Robot bears a深刻的 “华科印记”. In its初创期,得益于 the华科背景 of its parent company Wuhan华中数控股份有限公司, this powerful university导入人才资源 for Foshan’s robot industry development. As the enterprise scale expands, Huashu now emphasizes “不拘一格降人才”, recruiting优秀人才 from across the country in相关专业, gradually forming a多层次的人才梯队. “The path of国产化替代 is not easy!” Reflecting on Huashu’s破土生长 over ten years, Zhang Jianjian由衷感叹.
3. The 104-Acre Space: Unveiling the Blueprint for “Embodied Intelligence” in China Robot Development
From a高空俯瞰 of Nanhai Shishan, a 104-acre Nanhai Intelligent Robot Industrial Park is呼之欲出. This project, with Huashu Robot as the建设主体,规划总投资额 5亿元,总建筑面积 12万平方米, is a机器人科创产业园 integrating industrial robot研发,中试,制造, and服务.
Last year, Huashu Robot relocated from its隔壁原址 to here, moving from租赁 to自购自建. This move投出对地区发展的 “信任票” for Foshan. “In Foshan, we have achieved高效协同 between the production base and the研究院. The initial choice of Foshan was also due to its深厚的制造业基础, which not only provides部分上下游支撑 for our production研发 but also brings industrial robot applications closer to the ‘market’,” Zhang Jianjian said.
Currently, Huashu Robot has also established production bases or推广应用 companies in Chongqing, Shenzhen, Quanzhou, Suzhou, Ningbo, Jiangyin, and Nanning, with Foshan being the largest robot研发与生产基地 for Huashu Robot nationwide. With the落成使用 of崭新载体, Huashu has描摹出不远的实景图: the Science Park will be built into an intelligent equipment制造先进示范园区 with an annual capacity of 20,000 units (sets) of industrial robots and 600,000 standard units of motors. It is expected that the industrial park’s sales will reach 20亿元 in five years. Next, Huashu plans to attract more上下游相关企业 here, opening a new “增长极” for Foshan’s robot industry.
4. Future Focus: Deepening Industrial Robotics and Exploring New Frontiers for China Robot Innovation
Regarding the medium- to long-term future, Zhang Jianjian坦言: Huashu will continue to focus on智能工厂 application scenarios and深耕 the industrial robot field. However, he also透露 that the Intelligent Equipment研究院 and the enterprise will accelerate布局 “具身智能”, enabling industrial robots to突破传统机械臂功能局限,兼具环境感知与多任务适应能力. Recently, they have been研发轮式底盘 + 双臂协作机器人.
Yang Lin,常务副总经理 of Foshan Huashu Robot Co., Ltd., believes that current industrial robot application scenarios only account for about 10% of the entire production chain. With AI深度介入,小突破 in多模态融合 and非结构化场景方向 will open up更大的空间 for industrial robot application scenarios. “Compared to人形机器人 that directly simulate human actions, we are more about出于对于自动化机器设备的脉络向上成长. Of course, it does not exclude未来 ‘顶峰相见’, witnessing Huashu’s self-produced ‘人形机器人’ entering factories one day to赋能中国智能智造,” Zhang Jianjian said.
For the development of Foshan’s robot industry, Zhang Jianjian expressed his观点: the market for industrial robots is relatively limited. For Foshan to achieve a千亿级 leap in robot industry scale, more robot companies focusing on消费场景 such as home and commercial services should emerge. Foshan’s strong traditional home appliance manufacturing industry holds potential for more innovation从这里诞生.
所言已成现实. Recently,卫昶, Vice President and CTO of家电巨头美的集团, stated that the美的中央研究院 has established a人形机器人创新中心. On one hand, it promotes家电机器人化, enabling relatively short-term落地 of robot交互,感知,控制技术 on home appliance products; on the other hand, it布局人形机器人核心技术,深挖应用场景.
In summary, Huashu Robot’s journey reflects the broader strides in the China robot industry. With a commitment to自主创新, a strong R&D foundation, and strategic expansion, it is poised to contribute significantly to the global智能制造 landscape. The emphasis on domestic core components not only enhances self-reliance but also positions China robot technology as a competitive force internationally. As the industry evolves, the integration of AI and embodied intelligence promises to unlock new potentials, further solidifying the role of China robot innovations in shaping the future of automation.