Sepro Robotique and auxiliary equipment maker Conair each owned 50% of the joint venture, formed in August 2007. Conair is exercising its right to sell its equity interest to the French company.

At the end of October, Sepro America became 100% owned and operated by Sepro Robotique, based in La Roche-sur-Yon, France.

The joint venture came after a longtime business relationship between Sepro and Conair, which had been the North American distributor for Sepro robots since 1989.

Today, there are more than 3,000 Sepro robots in operation in North America, at more than 350 customers, company officials said.

Sepro America employs 22 people, based at Conair’s old building in Emsworth, Pennsylvania. Last December, Conair moved out of the Emsworth building when its 10-year-lease expired, leaving the company with the option of buying the building or moving out. Conair moved to a building in another Pittsburgh suburb, in Cranberry Township.

The robot company is leasing part of the Emsworth facility, said Jim Healy, Sepro America’s vice president of sales and marketing.

The robots come from France, but Healy said Sepro America also is doing some robot assembly and makes its end-of-arm tooling in Pennsylvania. Sepro America also is sourcing some components from US suppliers, including guarding, conveyors, feeder bowls and downstream automation, he said. The US location also handles sales, service, parts and engineering.

Sepro makes beam robots and sprue-picker robots. Sepro America also offers six-axis articulating robots through a partnership with Fanuc Robotics in the US.

Conair’s option to sell its 50% share was included in the agreement that set up the joint venture, Healy said.

Sepro Robotique has sales of $67m in sales, about 80% of that from exports.

A news release announcing the move said the long co-operative relationship between Conair and Sepro “will continue based on our common customers and shared distribution channels.”