Welding (MIG / TIG)
Cobot-welding cells are the application where the bare arm is a small fraction of total cost. Torch + wire feed + safety + fume extraction dominate.
What this application actually is.
Cobot welding has matured fastest in 2024-2026 driven by acute welder shortages — the AWS projects a 320,000-welder gap by 2026. The application fits cobot economics well: short-batch fabrication shops doing repetitive welds where a full robotic welding cell is uneconomic. The structural cost story is different from machine tending though — the bare arm is typically 25-35% of installed cost, not 40-50%. Welding adds torch + power source + wire feeder + fume extraction + safety screens + path-teaching software. A $50K UR10e cell becomes a $90-130K installed welding cell. Where cobot welding pays back fastest is short-run job shops automating their own welding capacity — the cell pays for itself in months on a single shift because the alternative is paying $40-60/hr for skilled welder time that's increasingly hard to find.
Which cobot fits, and why.
The cost most buyers underestimate.
Lincoln Electric Cobot Welder, Miller Auto-Continuum, OTC DTPS — power source + integrated feeder + torch run $15-25K mid-tier, $30-40K for high-amperage or pulsed-TIG. This is non-negotiable and rarely included in cobot-arm quotes.