FANUC invests $90M in U.S. robot manufacturing

A $90 million Michigan plant will manufacture FANUC robots in America, not offshore.

FANUC America unveiled plans to acquire property and build an 840,000-square-foot facility in Pontiac, Michigan, a move designed to boost U.S.-based robot manufacturing capability and shorten lead times for North American customers. The production-ready space is part of a broader push to expand domestic late-stage production, said the company, aiming to satisfy growing demand for automation across industries that depend on fast responsiveness and reliable supply chains. The Rochester Hills, Minn.-based subsidiary of Japan-based FANUC Corp., led the project, with Mike Cicco, president and CEO of FANUC America, emphasizing the strategic footprint. “By expanding its U.S. presence, FANUC America will strengthen domestic manufacturing, improve responsiveness to customer needs, and support industries that rely on automation to stay competitive,” Cicco stated.

The project is slated to wrap up in late 2027 and is expected to add about 225 jobs, a signal that the automation wave continues to provide steady employment opportunities even as factories shift more production onto U.S. soil. The Michigan site builds on FANUC America’s long-standing footprint in the state, including a history of domestically produced robots for paint applications that dates back more than four decades. The new facility is framed as a strategic expansion to meet rising demand across North America while embracing next-generation capabilities, including physical AI, virtual commissioning, and digital-twin technologies.

This is part of a broader industry-moving narrative: despite a massive U.S. market, the bulk of major industrial automation providers have not been headquartered in the United States, making domestic manufacturing capacity a strategic lever for resilience and responsiveness. Production data show that customers increasingly expect shorter cycle times and tighter integration with their existing lines—benchmarks that a new U.S.-based manufacturing hub could help achieve by cutting freight delays and enabling closer collaboration between vendors and end users. In FANUC America’s case, the emphasis on digital-twin and virtual commissioning tools is portrayed as a path to reduce risk during deployment and accelerate time-to-value for complex automation cells.

Industry observers will be watching several practical dimensions as the Pontiac project moves from plan to reality. Integration requirements for a facility of this scale include not only the floor space but also the power and cooling infrastructure, along with a pipeline for training hours to bring local technicians and integration teams up to speed. The plant’s size and scope imply that although a significant portion of automation work will be performed in-house, tasks that still require human specialists—cell design, on-site commissioning, and customer-specific programming—will remain essential. Executives should expect the initial months of ramp-up to reveal soft costs that aren’t always spelled out in press releases, from skilled labor recruitment to the cost of specialized testing equipment and software licenses.

Two practical takeaways for operations leaders: first, this is a reminder that real deployment benefits hinge on more than the robot itself—it's the whole ecosystem: local engineering, training, and vendor collaboration that deliver measurable cycle-time improvements. second, the relocation of manufacturing closer to customers doesn’t erase the need for robust onboarding and support; it shifts the emphasis toward accelerated virtual commissioning and faster on-site knowledge transfer to realize tangible throughput gains.

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FANUC America to invest $90M in U.S. robot manufacturing