Hanwha Robotics Partners with Dutch Shipyard to Develop Welding Automation Technology

Hanwha Robotics Signs MOU with Royal IHC on July 10

Hanwha Robotics is partnering with Royal IHC, a leading Dutch shipyard, to develop welding automation technology.

On July 10, Hanwha Robotics announced that it had recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Royal IHC for cooperation on collaborative robot-based welding automation technology. The agreement covers a wide range of joint initiatives, including the joint development and promotion of welding automation technology, the exchange of technology and personnel, and the sharing of information and materials.

Stain Festen, Royal IHC Sales Director (left), and Byungchan Jung, CEO of Hanwha Robotics (right), are posing for a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement at "Automatica 2025" held in Munich, Germany, on the 27th of last month. Hanwha Robotics

Royal IHC is one of the leading Dutch shipyards, with annual sales of approximately 700 billion KRW. The company specializes in the construction of special-purpose vessels such as dredgers, naval maintenance support vessels, and cable-laying ships. Recently, Royal IHC has been focusing on process innovation by integrating automation technologies to strengthen its global competitiveness.

This agreement was signed at "Automatica 2025," a robotics and automation exhibition held in Germany last month. At the exhibition, Hanwha Robotics demonstrated its technological capabilities by unveiling its high-payload collaborative robot, the HCR-32, for the first time. After directly observing various collaborative robot demonstrations at the Hanwha booth, Royal IHC decided to pursue this technology partnership.

Royal IHC was particularly impressed by Hanwha Robotics' ultra-lightweight and compact welding robot, the HCR-5W. The HCR-5W features a structure that enables flexible operation even in confined ship interiors, high-precision control performance with a margin of error as low as 0.02 mm, and an axis design that allows free operation from various angles.

Hanwha Robotics plans to use this collaboration as an opportunity to expand its global partnerships across various industries, including shipbuilding.

Byungchan Jung, CEO of Hanwha Robotics, stated, "We have established our first partnership with a Dutch shipyard based on our robotic technology, which can be utilized even in the space-constrained shipbuilding industry. We will continue to strengthen partnerships with a variety of industries, including shipbuilding, in the future."