HD Hyundai Robotics plans to release the HDT1000-33, an industrial robot capable of lifting up to one ton, in January, according to industry sources cited by Seoul Economic Daily1. The model is the largest of 14 new HDT series robots and has a working radius of 3.3 meters.
The HDT1000-33 is designed for heavy-payload processes at large manufacturing sites such as automotive and battery plants, where handling bulky materials has been difficult for human workers or small and midsize robots. A performance test was conducted at HD Hyundai Robotics' Reliability Center in Yongin on November 16.
The one-ton class is described as requiring the highest level of engineering among industrial robots. Kuka and Fanuc, long-established global leaders, have dominated the segment, and Estun recently unveiled a competing product. HD Hyundai Robotics, identified as the top industrial robot maker in South Korea, will challenge those players in the ultra-large category with the HDT1000-33.
The launch caps a broader lineup expansion. HD Hyundai Robotics' industrial robot range will grow roughly 69% to 54 models next year from 32 in 2024. The company released three collaborative robot models in July — the HDC25-18, HDC35-18, and HDC 50-17 — its first new collaborative robot lineup in about six years. HD Hyundai Robotics had pulled an earlier collaborative robot model from catalogs and recalled delivered units in 2021.
Separately, HD Hyundai Robotics invested 13 billion won in AIDIN Robotics.
ANALYSIS By spanning from collaborative robots to one-ton heavy-duty units, HD Hyundai Robotics is positioning a full-spectrum industrial robotics portfolio against incumbents Kuka and Fanuc while a new Chinese competitor, Estun, also enters the ultra-large segment.