Global Robots supplies industrial robot arms from ABB, FANUC and KUKA, used and fully refurbished. Every robotic arm we sell has been inspected, tested and backed by warranty before it leaves our facility. If you’re replacing a worn unit or adding an arm to a new production line, our range covers general handling, welding, palletising and machine tending, across payloads and reach envelopes suited to most industrial applications.
What Is an Industrial Robot Arm?
An industrial robot arm is a multi-axis, programmable manipulator designed for repetitive, high-precision tasks on a production line. Most industrial arms use four to six axes of movement, controlled by a dedicated robot controller rather than a general-purpose computer, and are built to run continuously in a factory environment for years at a time.
This is different from the robotic arms marketed to schools, universities and hobbyists, which are typically desktop-scale kits built for teaching programming and control concepts rather than sustained industrial output. An industrial arm is rated for a specific payload and reach, engineered for repeatability measured in fractions of a millimetre, and designed to integrate with existing production line safety and control systems.
The three main types you’ll encounter are articulated arms (the most common, with rotary joints modelled loosely on a human arm), SCARA arms (faster, built for horizontal pick and place work), and collaborative arms, or cobots (designed to work alongside people without full guarding).
How to Choose the Right Robot Arm for Your Application
Specifying a robot arm comes down to three figures: payload, reach and axis count, matched against what the arm needs to do.
Payload is the maximum weight the arm can carry at full reach, including any gripper or tooling fitted to the end effector. Reach is the maximum horizontal distance the arm can extend from its base. Axis count determines how many directions the arm can move in at once, which affects how complex a task it can perform without repositioning the part.
- Pick and place, light assembly: 3–20kg payload, 500–900mm reach, 4–6 axes
- Machine tending: 20–50kg payload, 1,000–1,800mm reach, 6 axes
- Palletising: 50–200kg+ payload, 2,000–3,200mm reach, 4–6 axes
- Welding: 6–50kg payload, 1,400–2,500mm reach, 6 axes
These figures are a starting point, not a specification. If you’re unsure which combination suits your process, get in touch and our team can work through the requirement with you before you commit to a model.
Robot Arms by Brand
We stock refurbished robot arms from three widely used industrial robot brands, each with a different strength.
ABB robot arms are known for control precision and reliability across general handling, painting and assembly applications, with a range spanning small payload arms to heavy-duty units. Browse the full ABB robot range.
FANUC arms show up most often in machine tending, welding and material handling, valued for straightforward maintenance and long service life. Browse the full FANUC robot range.
In automotive and heavy manufacturing, KUKA is a common choice, particularly for high-payload handling and palletising work. Browse the full KUKA robot range.
Every unit on our website is fully inspected, tested and reconditioned before we put it up for sale.
Robot Arms by Application
Beyond brand, the right arm often comes down to the job it needs to do.
- Welding: Arc and spot welding robot arms built for consistent, repeatable weld quality across production runs. See our welding robots range.
- Palletising: High-payload arms for stacking and depalletising cartons, sacks and mixed loads. See our palletising robots range.
- Pick and place: Fast-cycle arms for sorting, kitting and light assembly work.
- Machine tending: Arms built for loading and unloading CNC machines, presses and injection moulding equipment without operator intervention.
See our machine tending robots range, or our dedicated CNC robots and milling robots pages for those specific applications.
Why Buy a Refurbished Robot Arm from Global Robots
A refurbished industrial robot arm typically costs a fraction of the price of a new unit from the original manufacturer, with a much shorter lead time. For many manufacturers, that difference is the deciding factor between automating now and delaying a project for months.
Every arm we sell goes through inspection and testing before it’s listed, checking mechanical condition, controller function and repeatability against the manufacturer’s original specification. Arms found to need parts are refurbished using tested components from our own stock of ABB, FANUC and KUKA systems taken in for parts or resale. You can read more about our refurbishment process.
Every robot arm comes with a 90-day parts warranty as standard, with an extended 12-month warranty available at extra cost, giving you confidence in the unit’s condition without the price of buying new. See our full warranty policy for details.
If a unit needs attention after delivery, our servicing and maintenance team can support it, and our spare parts range covers most major brands if you’re maintaining an arm yourself. We ship worldwide, so wherever your production line is based, our team can help get the right arm to you.
Not sure which brand or spec is right for you? Our team can help you find the right robot arm for your application.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a robot arm and an industrial robot?
A robot arm is the physical manipulator itself: the jointed arm and end effector. An industrial robot typically refers to the whole system, the arm plus its controller, cabling and any integrated safety equipment. In everyday use, the terms are often used interchangeably.
How much does a used robot arm cost?
The cost depends on brand, payload, condition and application, typically well below the price of the equivalent new unit from the manufacturer. Get in touch for a quote based on your specific requirement.
What warranty comes with a refurbished robot arm?
Every robot arm we sell comes with a 90-day parts warranty as standard, with an extended 12-month warranty available at extra cost. Full terms are on our warranty page.
Can a robot arm be reprogrammed for a new task?
Yes. Industrial robot arms are designed to be reprogrammed for different tasks, which is one reason a refurbished unit can be repurposed rather than replaced when a production line changes. Reprogramming typically requires access to the original manufacturer’s software and some familiarity with the controller.