Sepro America Strengthens North American Footprint with Pittsburgh Assembly Hub and Extensive Robot Suite

At NPE2018, Sepro America highlighted its global reach and its laser focus on the North American market. “We have worldwide capability,” said CEO Jean‑Michel Renaudeau of Sepro Group in France. “Our Group operates 11 subsidiaries and works through 40 distributors across Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. Yet North America accounts for one‑third of our revenue and is the cornerstone of our growth strategy.”

To bring that promise to life, Sepro is expanding its manufacturing footprint with a new, fully equipped plant near Pittsburgh. The first robot built here—a five‑axis 7X‑45 model—already earned a contract with Wilbert Plastic Services. The 7X‑45 is a three‑axis Cartesian system complemented by a two‑axis Stäubli servo wrist, capable of handling injection presses from 770 to 1,430 tons. It represents the first Sepro robot manufactured outside France and one of 40 large‑format machines slated for production this year, which will include the versatile three‑axis Strong line, the high‑speed S7 series, and the five‑axis 7X range.

Beyond robots, Sepro offers comprehensive cell integration solutions. “We don’t just supply machines,” Renaudeau explained. “Our ‘Solution by Sepro’ program delivers end‑to‑end support—from equipment to engineering expertise—helping molders elevate efficiency and quality.” The Pittsburgh team specializes in both simple and complex cell configurations, ensuring seamless integration across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

Technological breadth is a cornerstone of Sepro’s North American strategy. “We boast the widest portfolio in the market, from sprue pickers to the largest automation systems,” Renaudeau said. “Our range spans three‑axis and five‑axis Cartesian robots, as well as six‑axis articulated models from Stäubli and Yaskawa Motoman.” At the show, six of these robots performed live demonstrations while ten more operated within molding cells at partners such as Sumitomo (SHI) Demag, Haitian, Billion, Toshiba, and Maruka Toyo—some in confidential, private‑label arrangements.

Integration is facilitated by Sepro’s “Open 4.0” initiative. The dedicated booth area showcased a single, unified Human‑Machine Interface—Visual Control—that lets operators manage three‑ to six‑axis robots from any model. Two new retrofittable applications, OptiCycle for automated cycle optimization and Live Support for remote troubleshooting, are also part of the Visual suite.

Renaudeau emphasized the company’s commitment to deepening OEM relationships as it seeks to become a North American leader. The next evolution, “Visual 4.0,” will launch later this year at Fakuma 2018 in Germany, developed in partnership with Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute.

To learn more, visit Sepro’s booth W8571 at NPE2018.