K-Tig confirms entry into US robotics and engineering market

Home to many of the world’s largest aerospace and defence companies, the United States is the next port of call for welding and robotics company K-TIG (ASX: KTG), which has confirmed their entry through the appointment of their first North American distributor.

Under a non-exclusive distribution agreement, Key Plant Automation will commence offering a range of K-TIG products and services through their network which serves more than 45 countries across a range of pressure vessel, aerospace, defence and oil and gas sectors.

“The agreement with Key Plant helps to build K-TIG’s on the ground sales force as well as our US based spare parts and technical support capability,” said K-TIG Managing Director, Adrian Smith.

“K-TIG’s technology complements Key Plant’s offering to create a turn-key solution for customers. With a demonstration centre located within the United States, we will be able to physically demonstrate the value of our technology to new customers.”

As part of the agreement, a demonstration facility showcasing K-TIG’s capabilities will be built at Key Plant’s head office in Houston, Texas which K-TIG will use as their gateway to acquiring more North American customers where Smith “sees enormous potential for growth in the US market, and our partnership with Key Plant is a way of fast tracking our expansion into the world’s largest economy.”

Using K-TIG’s welding and automation technology, manufacturers are able to weld up to 100 times faster than traditional TIG welding. Much of the tech offered was developed by the CSIRO with K-TIG owning all rights where they apply the technology across a range of corrosion-resistant materials.

In a trading update issued by the Company on 16 December 2020, K-TIG is expecting to report sales revenue around $400k for the December Quarter, a notable increase on the $36k reported in the September Quarter.

Since listing on the ASX in October 2019 with an IPO Offer Price of $0.20, KTG shares have been minimally affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to be now trading around $0.32.