Amazon has announced it will acquire Belgian firm Cloostermans, which builds robots for warehouses. Purpose of this acquisition is to build ‘next-generation supply chain mechatronics’. Cloostermans is already a supplier for the Amazon-warehouses. Recently Amazon announced another expansion in the robotics-space, by acquiring iRobot.
Based in Belgium, Cloostermans designs and manufactures mechatronics solutions, advanced technology that is used in Amazon operations to help move and stack heavy pallets and totes or package products together for customer delivery. Amazon began working with Cloostermans in 2019.
Cloostermans’s team of approximately 200 employees will be joining Amazon Global Robotics’ growing presence in Europe. Last year, Amazon launched the European Innovation Lab in Italy, which focuses on new ergonomic technologies. Amazon recently announced a series of new robotic technologies, including Proteus, Amazon’s first fully autonomous mobile robot. Since Amazon began introducing robotics into its facilities in 2012, it has deployed more than 520,000 robotic drive units worldwide.
iRobot
Amazon also recently announced it will acquire iRobot, provider of cleaning robots for the home. The FTC will now review this $1.7 billion takeover. The FTC is investigating whether the data generated about a consumer by the Roomba vacuum will give it an unfair advantage over other retailers.
