Teradyne, Inc. recently announced that Kim Povlsen has been appointed President of Universal Robots. Povlsen, a Danish native, brings global executive leadership from a high-tech and commercial perspective and will lead Universal Robots’ next stage of growth and innovation. His appointment reinforces Teradyne´s commitment to Universal Robots’ Danish origin and its role in further developing the local robotics community. Kim begins his new role at Universal Robots on March 1, 2021.
“I am delighted to introduce Kim Povlsen as the new President of Universal Robots,” said Greg Smith, President of Teradyne’s Industrial Automation Group, and acting President of Universal Robots. “Kim combines a fantastic track record as a dynamic executive with a background in and a tremendous passion for robotics. With Kim onboard, Universal Robots is poised to strengthen its leadership in the global market for collaborative robotics. With Kim’s leadership, we can accelerate the growth in new applications and market growth for cobots. Universal Robots was one of the original companies at the core of the Odense innovation hub for robotics, and our global customers recognize the innovation and quality of that Danish heritage. I’m thrilled to have a Danish executive who can build on our achievements and support the further development of our robotics hub and headquarters in Odense.”
Kim has held various executive business and technology leadership roles at Schneider Electric, a global energy management and automation company. Most recently, he served as Vice President, Strategy & Technology, responsible for the technology strategy and execution within a multi-billion-dollar global organization. Kim lives in Aarhus, Denmark, and holds a master’s degree in Computer Science & Embedded Engineering from the University of Southern Denmark. The University’s graduates include many of the innovators and business leaders from the renowned Odense robotics community.
“I have been impressed with Universal Robots for some time,” said Kim. “To me, the company represents the pinnacle of innovation and potential and I was thrilled to be approached for this unique leadership role. The company not only pioneered the category of collaborative robots, created an ecosystem of partner technology solutions and a vast global distribution network to serve customers in their varied industrial automation needs, it also has the potential to fundamentally reshape automation across the global economy. I really look forward to working with, learning from and being part of the great people at Universal Robots.”
Collaborative robots (cobots) remain the fastest-growing segment of industrial automation, projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 30.37% during 2020–2025.
Universal Robots is the leading collaborative robots (cobots) company today, with more than 50,000 cobots sold worldwide. The company is a frontrunner in India, with customers such as Bajaj Auto & L’Oreal in Pune, Aurolab in Madurai, Carl Zeiss in Bangalore benefitting in productivity and gaining increased competitiveness with the close collaboration between human and UR cobots.