Brussels, 15 November 2012 - The second European Robotics Week is just around the corner (26 Nov-2 Dec, 2012) and the program is already in full swing. So far, more than 80 organisations have registered for participation offering 182 robotics related activities for the general public in 20 European countries. More events are coming in every day, according to EUnited Robotics, the European Robotics Association, serving as the central coordinator of the European Robotics Week.

Many exciting events are planned just for the public: robot demonstrations, workshops about robotics, open labs for students, hands-on activities for kids, robots visiting schools, art exhibitions, media events, just to name a few. This years' European Robotics Week is expected to be as successful as the first European Robotics Week in 2011, where approximately 50.000 people could be reached.

The aim of the European Robotics Week is to show the public what robotics is all about and how it impacts the society. It is also meant to encourage students of all ages to study science, technology and engineering. "This is an opportunity for the public to get a hands-on experience with robots. The European Robotics Week will highlight the growing importance of European robotics in a wide variety of application areas and is a possibility to celebrate the strong and competitive position of robotics in Europe," said Henrik Schunk, EUnited Robotics Chairman and Managing Partner of Schunk GmbH & Co KG.

Events are organised locally by robotics engineers, scientists, robotics companies, labs, schools, and other organisations which offer various possibilities for the public to interact directly with robots.

Robotics is positioned to have a huge impact on next-generation products and applications in various application fields like manufacturing, health-care, national defense, security, agriculture and transportation. Robotics is a key element for dealing with societal challenges: From ageing society, to creation and retention of jobs, growing security threats and increasing worldwide competition for production sites. The use of robotics and automation in the production process ensures quality, as no human being is as precise and fast as a robot. Furthermore, robots carry out dull, dangerous and dirty jobs that are not suited for people, thus ensuring safety and pleasant working conditions for employees.

In 2011 more than 166,000 industrial robots were sold worldwide - the highest level ever recorded for one year. For 2012, the IFR (International Federation of Robotics) forecasts worldwide growth rates of 9%, and approximately 5% in the following 3 years. The service robotics market has also been growing impressively and the outlook is optimistic: In 2011, about 16,400 professional service robots were brought to the market. By 2015, about 93,800 new robots will assume tasks in the areas of defence, security, facility management and medicine. In 2011 approximately 2.5 million service robots for the private sector were sold. Between 2012 and 2015 the IFR forecasts that about 15.6 million units of service robots for personal use will be sold worldwide, mainly in the domestic field and entertainment tasks.

Participating countries in the European Robotics Week: Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary Ireland, Italy, Malta, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Slovakia, Switzerland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom

EUnited Robotics, European Robotics Association, was founded in 2004 by major European robot manufacturers and is the robotics industries' voice in Europe representing the robot suppliers' view on industry issues and R&D policies. The association is also a cooperation platform among all robotics stakeholders. The EUnited Robotics members today are: ABB, COMAU, G??EL, ISRA Vision, KUKA, Reis Robotics, Schunk, Spinea and Sumitomo. Cooperation partners are: DLR (German Aerospace Center), Fraunhofer IPA (Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation) and Technical University M?nchen.

Further information at: http://www.eu-nited.net/robotics/