ABB GoFa CRB 15000 vs UR30: A Light Cobot Against a Heavy Hauler

The GoFa CRB 15000 has six axes, a 5 kg payload, a 950 mm reach and a weight of 28 kg. Its speed reaches 2.2 m/s and its repeatability is 0.05 mm. Every joint contains torque and position sensors, and a soft, cushioned outer shell lowers the risk of injury on contact. ABB also offers a GoFa 10 variant with a 10 kg payload for heavier tasks.

The UR30 is the highest-payload cobot in Universal Robots’ current range: 30 kg as standard, up to 35 kg under limited conditions. It weighs 63.5 kg, reaches 1,300 mm, has a repeatability of ±0.01 mm and a TCP speed of 4 m/s. The force/torque sensor sits at the tool flange, not in the joints. The numbers are unambiguous: the UR30 has six times the payload, but is more than twice as heavy (63.5 kg against 28 kg) and reaches 350 mm further. The UR30’s repeatability is nominally better according to the manufacturers (0.01 mm against 0.05 mm), but this is not a like-for-like comparison, because measurement methods can differ. How to read such figures is shown in “How to Read a Robot Datasheet”.

We know the GoFa price from a single source: the German distributor Unchained Robotics gives a range of EUR 30,000–37,500 net, which at the rate of 4.3770 from 1 October 2026 works out at roughly PLN 131,300–164,100 (≈ EUR 30,090–37,600) (the midpoint is about PLN 147,700 (≈ EUR 33,840)). That is a trade price, not an ABB price list, and it may differ for Poland. For the UR30 the manufacturer states no price; quotes are individual and depend on gripper, base and configuration. We therefore do not compare costs, because the other side is unknown.

In Poland there is no confirmed official distributor for the GoFa. Among Polish firms listing the ABB brand is Rob Expert, but we have no confirmation that the GoFa is available there, so ask ABB Polska. The UR30 is offered by Elmark Automatyka, which carries Universal Robots collaborative robots. The CP Trade page describes only the older UR3, UR5 and UR10, so the UR30 needs confirming there.

The GoFa aims at electronics, medicine and light-metal machining: assembly, pick&place and loading small machines, where parts weigh less than 5 kg. The soft shell and joint sensors suit cells without guards, for example in a laboratory or beside a person doing manual top-up in a factory. A risk assessment is still required under “Robot Safety Standards”.

The UR30 is for palletizing and machine tending with heavy loads: sacks, cartons, castings and large moulds. It makes sense in a warehouse and beside large machine tools in a factory. For light tasks it would be an oversized and heavy tool. Instead of jumping from one class to the other, consider an intermediate model: the UR12e for medium loads or the UR20 when 30 kg is too much. You will find grippers for both arms at OnRobot.