Metal fabrication shops are under pressure to hire. According to the American Welding Society, the industry needs 300,000 new professionals by 2028. Add to it, about 20% of the current talent pool is approaching retirement. As the talent crunch continues, costs are climbing, and it’s getting harder to maintain quality and productivity. But a revolution is underway: cobot welders are making robotic welding more accessible, flexible, and cost-effective than ever before.
In a recent webinar hosted by Vention and Universal Robots, experts Catherine Lavallée, Steven Vuong , and Will Healy III unpacked what this shift means for the future of metal fabrication—and how cobot welders are helping shops get more done with less
Here are key takeaways from this insightful conversation, outlining the challenges and opportunities in robotic welding for the metal fabrication industry.
Why Cobot Welders Are Becoming Popular
Ageing Workforce, Shrinking Talent Pool
Age isn’t just a number when it comes to finding skilled welders. With the high demand for welding expertise, hiring and training workers — and in turn, producing quality welds — is becoming increasingly difficult. Add to this the geographical challenge of welders relocating from rural areas to urban centers, or even to other countries, and you’re left with rising production costs.
Traditional Automation Falls Short
Traditional robotic welding isn’t always a sustainable solution either, especially in today’s uncertain economic climate. The short supply of specialized talent including custom engineering and advanced programming needed to deploy a traditional solution can increase costs and timelines, making it difficult to automate for a large number of weld shops.
Cobot Simplicity and Predictability
Unlike traditional automation, deploying a collaborative robot is fast and straightforward, with the added benefit of improving output predictability right from the start.
Another area where cobot welders have a clear advantage over manual welding is consistency. Cobot welders don’t get tired, distracted, or affected by external conditions — all of which can lead to variable output in a traditional setup.
“Manual processes have variable output quality based upon multiple factors. Was it hot today or was it cold today? Did the team have a good weekend or not? Things like that affect productivity in the weld shops—making it hard to plan production. So what can we do to overcome that? We do have to think about the way we talk about technology as we bring it in. So I always like to talk about robots as a tool, especially the cobot welders.”
- Will Healy III, Global Segment Leader for Welding, Universal Robots
Cobot Welder Benefits for the Industry
What Makes Cobot Welders the Easiest Way to Automate
One of the biggest challenges in automation has always been programming. Traditional robotic welding systems require highly trained technicians — and finding them can be difficult and costly.
Cobot welders, like those available on Vention’s marketplace, solve this problem with an intuitive ‘Touch to Teach’ interface. This approach allows operators to program the system simply by positioning the torch where they want the weld to occur. It’s a fast, user-friendly method that makes cobot welding accessible to welders of all skill and education levels.
“For operators, just to be able to grab the torch and put it where they want it, and simply say — this is the point I want. That was really huge, and it’s very intuitive for the welders.”
— Will Healy III, Global Segment Leader for Welding, Universal Robots
How Cobot Welders Produce Consistent Quality
When it comes to maintaining consistent quality, especially in processes like TIG welding, robotic welding can make a significant difference. For instance, manual TIG welding is known to be tedious and difficult to repeat consistently across multiple parts—making it a real challenge to uphold high-quality standards.
Cobot welders excel in this area by delivering repeatable precision across not just TIG, MIG, and arc welding, but a growing range of applications.
“Once your cobot welder is set up with the right feed rates and angles, and you’ve validated the output — you get consistent, high quality welds every time. No variation, no fatigue, just predictable quality and performance all day long”.
- Catherine Lavallée, Product Line Manager, Vention
As cobot welders become more accessible, weld shops are using them not just for TIG and MIG, but also for laser welding, spot and stud welding, and even cutting processes like plasma, oxyfuel, and metal cutting. Beyond that, applications such as thermal spraying, surfacing, and hard-facing are gaining momentum—especially as software platforms continue to improve, offering better control and quality monitoring.
Versatility and Mobility of Cobot Welders
One of the standout advantages of cobots is their lightweight design, which opens the door to a wide range of portable and flexible welding applications. The mobility of cobot welders makes it easy to move them between workstations or job sites—something especially valuable in industries like shipbuilding, construction, and mining, where large, complex welds are common.
Cobots can be mounted on mobile carts or integrated with positioners and external axes to expand their reach and handle bigger, more intricate parts. This level of versatility means they’re not limited to high-mix, low-volume scenarios anymore.
Choosing a Cobot Welder: Cheatsheet to Universal Robots Models
| Model | Payload | Reach | Weight | Best Use Cases |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UR3e | 3 kg | 500 mm (19.7 in) | 11.2 kg (24.7 lbs) | Lightweight, portable setups; small part welding; benchtop work |
| UR5e | 5 kg | 850 mm (33.5 in) | 20.6 kg (45.4 lbs) | Mobile welding stations; mid-sized parts |
| UR10e | 12.5 kg | 1300 mm (51.2 in) | 28.9 kg (63.7 lbs) | Most popular for welding; versatile for various shop sizes |
| UR20 | 20 kg | 1750 mm (68.9 in) | 64 kg (141 lbs) | Large, complex welds; mining, construction, shipyards |
Achieving Higher Welding Throughput with Cobot Welders
As the industry continues to face labor shortages, the new way to weld is undoubtedly going to be human welders working in tandem with cobot welders. The biggest benefit for the weld shops to use a cobot? They can significantly increase the number of parts produced per hour. This way, cobot welders take over the dull, repetitive tasks, freeing up skilled welders to focus on the more complex and critical welds that require their expertise.
“One of our clients has three robot welding cells today. When they started manually, with one welder, they were producing about 100 parts per day, and once they purchased their first robot, they increased it to 240 parts for one robot.”
- Catherine Lavallée, Product Line Manager, Vention
One of the key benefits of robotic welding is the boost in arc time, which directly impacts productivity. With manual welding, most of the hour is spent idle—only about 15% of the time is actual welding. The rest is taken up by reading documentation, grinding, rework, quality checks, and setting up jigs or fixtures.
In contrast, when you switch to a cobot welder, arc time jumps to around 67%. That means the majority of the time is spent welding, resulting in a 300%+ increase in active weld time. When the weld shop is set up for more active welds, it also helps reduce the costs per weld job.
How to Get Started On Deploying a Cobot Welder
The best part about deploying a cobot is the faster and easier deployment, especially compared to traditional welding solutions. In fact, it’s possible to deploy the complete robotic welding solution in a few weeks with Vention’s modular ‘Click-and-Customize’ templates. Here is a quick overview of what to expect.
Discovery Call (30 minutes)
– Connect with Vention experts to map your current welding processes and to understand where cobot welders can be more effective.
Click and Customize a Welding Cell (3–5 days)
– Start with a rapidly deployable template to design a custom robotic welding cell with help from experts.
Review & Approval (1-2 days)
– Review the design and place the order on Vention’s Marketplace — the easiest way to procure automation solutions and parts.
Delivery (1–2 weeks)
– Your cobot welding system is shipped to your shop and arrives ready to deploy.
Programming & Setup (1 day)
– With the Touch to Teach tool, you can program the robot and start welding the same day it’s installed
Join in the New Way to Weld
Cobot welders represent a fundamental shift in how welding is approached. They allow skilled human workers to upskill themselves and use their intuition while maintaining consistent quality and higher throughput. The result? Weld shops can get more done with less. And with partners like Vention and Universal Robots making the journey faster and simpler, there’s never been a better time to bring a cobot onto the shop floor.
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Ready to start welding with your new cobot welder? Get in touch to learn more!
