Investigating the Impact of Industrial Robots on the Performance of Spanish Manufacturing Firms

Abstract

The majority of companies tries to leverage cutting-edge technology to cultivate a more conducive work environment for their employees and gain a competitive edge. Hence, with the rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence technology and automation, many countries have been investing in the development of automated technologies, recognizing their potential to enhance various production processes and active responses to macroeconomic shocks. This study endeavours to explain the impact of industrial robots, emblematic of automation, within the context of Spanish manufacturing firms. We explore the intricate factors that shape firms' decisions regarding the adoption of robots within the Spanish context. Leveraging the Encuesta sobre Estrategias Empresariales (ESEE) dataset, which encompass a diverse set of industries, we conduct an empirical analysis to uncover the determinants of robot adoption and investigate the associated outcomes on market variables. The focus of the study is on industrial robots that can perform tasks with great accuracy and significantly improve overall performance in various industries and also economic factor accumulation. We conducted a thorough examination to uncover, what factors encourage companies to adopt robots and how this decision affects various aspects of the market. Our study explains several factors that significantly influence whether a firm decides to incorporate robots into its manufacturing process. The motivator of this study is the definition of robot presented by the ISO code 8373, which positions robots as a key component of the digital revolution, capable of alleviating humans from physically demanding and hazardous tasks. In addition, from the first we consider the interplay between robot adoption and Global Value Chains (GVCs). We found such factors namely, firm profitability, whether the firm engages in exporting, and variables like the proportion of resources dedicated to research and development, as well as capital intensity, all play a significant role in the likelihood of robot adoption. Interestingly, while the level of human capital within a firm also factors into this decision, its effects were not positive. This negative effect indicates that firms with more educated workers in Spain do not have an intention to adopt the industrial robots.