The headquarters of SK AX in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. [Provided by SK AX]
The headquarters of SK AX in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. [Provided by SK AX]

SK AX is rolling out a full-stack robot transformation (RX) service for the manufacturing sector, offering end-to-end support for building autonomous factories — from initial robot deployment through fully self-directed operations — to address chronic industry challenges such as labor shortages and declining productivity.

The company announced Thursday that it will formally launch its "Manufacturing RX Full-Stack Service," a one-stop offering covering every stage from virtual pre-deployment validation to on-site autonomous control and integrated factory-wide operations.

At the digital twin stage, the service recreates a factory's actual floor plan, equipment layout, worker movement patterns, material flow and real-time quality changes under varying process conditions inside a virtual environment. Before any robot is deployed on the floor, thousands of navigation and task scenarios are run through repeated simulations — covering quality-control variables, bottleneck points, collision risks and charging schedules.

This enables real-time optimization of robot control, advance planning for detour routes when unexpected situations arise, and charging schedules based on battery consumption rates.

Once robots are deployed on the factory floor, physical AI based on a Vision-Language-Action (VLA) model is applied — enabling robots to see, understand and act. Unlike conventional robots that simply repeat fixed routines, VLA-based robots can independently recognize and respond to unexpected obstacles and changes in the work environment, maximizing precision and continuity even in unstructured manufacturing settings.

In the integrated operations stage — central to the factory of the future — autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), collaborative robots and humanoid robots from different manufacturers running different operating systems must work together seamlessly.

SK AX addresses this through a heterogeneous robot integration control system that brings robots from various manufacturers under a single operating framework and links them with related systems such as manufacturing execution systems (MES) to oversee the entire production process. The system immediately reflects delays or anomalies in any given process across overall production operations, and optimally adjusts robot task instructions, routes and workflow.

SK AX is currently validating digital twin and robot integration control systems and proof-of-concept models in the semiconductor industry while accumulating on-site data. The company has recently expanded its projects into the shipbuilding sector and plans to continue broadening its service to other industries based on proven models.

"The robot transformation of manufacturing is not simply about purchasing hardware — the key is the capability to ensure robots operate stably on the factory floor and are connected to the factory as a whole," said Kim Gwang-su, head of SK AX's manufacturing services division. "We will support the evolution toward autonomous factories on the strength of our digital twin, physical AI and heterogeneous robot integration control capabilities."


ko@heraldcorp.com