German automation sales set to drop by 9% in 2025, after a 6% fall in 2024
28 January 2025 
Revenues in Germany’s robotics and automation industry will plummet by 9% this year to a total of €13.8bn, according to the trade body that represents the sector, VDMA Robotics + Automation. This predicted fall is even worse than the 6% drop in turnover last year, to a total of €15.2bn.
VDMA believes that the sector has “lost competitiveness”.
“The sales trend in the robotics and automation industry calls for action,” says Dr Dietmar Ley, the trade body’s chairman. “The current downward trend is not based solely on cyclical fluctuations in demand, but has very tangible structural causes. These include, for example, the excessive dependence of the robotics and automation industry on the German automotive industry. In addition, there are weaknesses in competitiveness that business and politics must address with consistent reforms.”
The German home market has been particularly hard-hit by the downturn, with orders falling by 16% during 2024, compared to 2023. Orders from abroad dropped by 2%, and the only bright spot for the German robotics and automation industry was exports to the eurozone, where orders soared by 44%. Foreign demand excluding the eurozone countries was 13% down on 2023.
“Companies in the German robotics and automation industry need to focus on their own competitiveness,” Ley suggests. “The priority is to accelerate innovation. More agility is also needed to respond more quickly to customer demands and to set ourselves apart from competitors abroad. Finally, we also need to bring costs down to a competitive level.”
Dr Ley is also calling for politicians to introduce reforms. “With a view to fierce global competition, Germany can no longer afford disadvantages such as disproportionate regulation and excessive costs,” he says. “The economy needs reliable framework conditions in Germany that support, not hamper, growth. Only then can robotics and automation thrive again.
“All long-term growth trends for our innovative industry remain intact,” Ley states. “We now have to set the right course.”
The VDMA Robotics + Automation Association has more than 420 member companies that supply components and systems for robotics, automated systems and machine vision. It falls under the umbrella of the wider VDMA association, which represents 3,600 mechanical and plant engineering companies in Germany and the rest of Europe. Together these companies employ around 3 million people – more than 1.2 million of them in Germany. This makes mechanical and plant engineering the largest employer in the capital goods industries, both in the EU-27 countries and in Germany. Across the EU, it represents an estimated turnover of €910bn. Around 80% of the machinery sold in the EU comes from manufacturing plants in the Single Market.
