Pakistani Robotics Firm Calls for Joint Labs, Ventures With China
A Pakistani maker of AI-based garment inspection systems believes Chinese partners could help it close a critical gap: access to precision components for industrial robots.
Awais Yasin, founder and CEO of Robionix Technologies, outlined his vision in a written interview with China Economic Net (CEN).
MagicQC: Ensuring Quality Control
The company’s flagship system, MagicQC, checks finished garments against buyer orders. Using a camera and advanced software, it identifies specific measurement points and determines pass or fail. This is crucial in Pakistan’s garment industry, a major exporter, where specifications and tolerances must be met.
While most components for MagicQC are sourced locally, Yasin highlights the challenge of securing high-precision parts for industrial robots, which his company aims to produce indigenously.
A Call for Collaboration
Yasin proposes:
- Joint Laboratories: Tied to industrial projects, these labs could foster research and development.
- Joint Ventures: With defined localization targets, they could drive manufacturing capabilities.
- Long-Term Training: Exchanging knowledge between Chinese and Pakistani engineers.
The Challenge of Precision Manufacturing
Despite achieving significant progress with its inspection systems, Robionix faces a hurdle in building a fully indigenous six-axis industrial robot arm due to a lack of local precision manufacturing capabilities. This ecosystem, including suppliers of servo motors, encoders, gear reducers, and servo drives, is essential for achieving the required accuracy and reliability in industrial robots.
Yasin, who holds a robotics PhD from the Beijing Institute of Technology, recognizes China’s advanced robotics sector, with 295,000 industrial robots installed globally in 2024, compared to Pakistan’s reliance on importing automation equipment.
