Automation in the U.S.
U.S. output is growing through expansions and automation
New factory construction slowed in 2025 and 2026. Demand is being met by expanding existing sites and adding automation, which favors engineering partners who can upgrade and support live plants.
In short
A sourced briefing on U.S. automation demand in 2026: new factory construction has slowed, so output is growing through expansions and automation of existing plants, alongside pharma and data-center capex, rising robot orders beyond automotive, record battery storage installations and a widening skills gap. Each figure links to its published source, such as A3, Wood Mackenzie/ACP and The Manufacturing Institute.
The U.S. picture
U.S. automation in numbers
18.9 GWh
of battery storage installed in Q2 2026, a U.S. record
$469B
of capex plans announced by twenty pharmaceutical companies since early 2025
17,995
robots ordered by North American firms in H1 2026, worth $1.17B
1.9M
U.S. manufacturing jobs could go unfilled by 2033
307
robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees, 8th in the world (preliminary)
29%
growth in data-center infrastructure spending in 2025
Figures come from the published sources linked above; preliminary figures may be revised by the publisher.
What is driving demand
Where U.S. automation work is coming from
- 01
Expansion over new build
New factory construction slowed in 2025 and 2026; demand is being met by expanding existing sites and adding automation, including fast-growing mobile robot fleets.
- 02
Pharma and data centers
Twenty pharmaceutical companies have announced $469 billion of capex plans since early 2025, and data-center infrastructure spending grew 29% in 2025.
- 03
Robots beyond automotive
North American firms ordered 17,995 robots worth $1.17 billion in H1 2026. Collaborative robots made up 43.7% of orders in life sciences and 36.5% in semiconductors and electronics.
- 04
Record battery storage
The U.S. installed a record 18.9 GWh of battery storage in Q2 2026, with cumulative capacity forecast to reach 715 GWh by 2031.
- 05
A skills gap
Up to 1.9 million U.S. manufacturing jobs could go unfilled by 2033.
What we offer
What we offer in the United States
The services we lead with locally, what you get and who they suit best.
Controls engineering for expansions
Lead offerAllen-Bradley Studio 5000 and Siemens TIA Portal programming, HMI and SCADA.
Best fit: Machine builders, plants adding lines
Virtual commissioning and digital twins
Lead offerLine and cell models driven by your PLC program; operational twins with live data and a web 3D viewer.
Best fit: Pharma, semiconductor, packaging, warehousing
Robot cell programming and simulation
Robot and cobot cell programming, offline simulation, PLC-robot interlocking.
Best fit: General industry, life sciences, electronics
Legacy modernization
Migration of aging PLC and SCADA platforms with minimal downtime.
Best fit: Plants running obsolete controls
Battery storage and solar controls
SCADA, monitoring dashboards and controller logic for storage and solar-plus-storage sites.
Best fit: Storage integrators and developers
VR and AR workforce training
VR safety modules, a VR PLC and SCADA digital twin lab and an AR maintenance assistant through iUNI.
Best fit: Plants hiring and upskilling technicians
AI for controls teams
AI assistance for PLC programming through LADX.
Best fit: In-house controls engineering teams
Standards and platforms
U.S. installations follow the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) and industrial machinery follows NFPA 79. Common platforms include Allen-Bradley Studio 5000 and Ignition SCADA.
Local presence
Wartens USA, 1121 Forrest Ave, Dover, DE 19904, with engineering delivered from our India center.
Questions we're asked
U.S. installations follow the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70), and industrial machinery follows NFPA 79, the electrical standard for industrial machinery. We design and document controls to your plant's engineering standards and these codes, and the group's quality management is certified to ISO 9001:2015.
Talk to Wartens USA
Send us your drawings, code or site details. We'll come back with a written scope, schedule and price.
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