whirrwork

Insights · public buyer receipts

What airports pay for robots: the public receipts

9 airport and airline buyers in 6 countries have published what they pay for robots: 13 contracts for terminal cleaning, baggage tractors, autonomous wheelchairs and bomb-squad robots, each linked to the document. 10 are firm figures; 3 are ceilings or ranked bids, and we label them that way.

  • 13public receipts
  • 9airport & airline buyers
  • 6countries
  • 10firm figures (rest are ceilings)

Why this page: sellers rarely publish robot prices, but public buyers have to. Each card below is one airport or airline contract, taken from the buyer's own board papers, a public procurement notice (sometimes via a tender-aggregator site), the seller's stock-exchange notice, or trade press. Each card names its source. Amounts are in the buyer's currency; we do not convert them. Newest receipt Oct 19, 2026.

When they bought

  1. US 🧽 Oct 22
  2. US 🧽 Mar 30
  3. US 🧽 Feb 27
  4. US 🧽 Feb 27
  5. GB 🧳 Aug 13
  6. KR 🧽 Mar 10
  7. US 🧽 Mar 26
  8. CN 🧽 Jun 18
  9. CH 🧽 Aug 7
  10. RU 🧽 Aug 27
  11. US ♿ Sep 3
  12. US 🛡️ Oct 1
  13. CN 🧳 Oct 19
One pin per receipt, by date. Filled = a firm figure (award, winning bid, seller announcement); hollow = a ceiling or a ranked bid, not a final price.

Keeping terminals clean 9 receipts

RU

Pulkovo Airport

St Petersburg, Russia · Aug 27, 2026

Ceiling, not a price

up to 27.8M RUB · whole contract

13 robotic sweeper-scrubbers (7 up to 65 kg, 6 up to 130 kg) incl. delivery, fleet-system integration, mapping and staff training

  • at most ≈ 2.1M RUB per robot (27.8M RUB ÷ 13, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Air Gates of the Northern Capital LLC
Seller
not yet awarded

Receipt: sanktpeterburg.bezformata.com · the job

CH

Zurich Airport

Zurich, Switzerland · Aug 7, 2026

Award

CHF 297,253 · whole contract

17 autonomous service robots: 15 waste-collection robots passengers drop rubbish into, 2 catering service stations. Rented for at least a year, with an option to take them over

  • ≈ CHF 17,485 per robot (CHF 297,253 ÷ 17, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Flughafen Zürich AG
Seller
Robonnement AG

Receipt: airport-information.com · the job

CN

Yinchuan Hedong Airport

Ningxia, China · Jun 18, 2026

Award

CN¥244,720 · whole contract

One autonomous floor scrubber (model not shown); incl. tax. The result notice confirms the amount; the earlier candidate notice ranked this bid first

  • highest other bid 0.9% above (other bids CN¥245,600, CN¥246,930, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Western Airport Group Ningxia property services
Seller
Ningxia Shengke New Energy Technology (first-ranked candidate; the result page masks the name)
Status
result notice 18 Jun 2026; other bids from the candidate notice

Receipt: qianlima.com · the job

US

Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport

Georgia, USA · Mar 26, 2026

Winning bid

$34,620 · whole contract

One autonomous vacuum with a charging station, to match the CenoBots autonomous vacuums it already runs

  • highest other bid 64.9% above (other bids $37,800, $40,774, $43,981, $48,439, $49,005, $57,075, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Savannah Airport Commission
Seller
Southeastern Paper Group (distributor)
Status
lowest of 7 responsive bids; approved by Savannah City Council 26 Mar 2026, 9-0-0

Receipt: agenda.savannahga.gov · the job

KR

Incheon International Airport

Seoul, South Korea · Mar 10, 2026

Winning bid

₩781M · whole contract

Autonomous cleaning robot introduction project (number of robots not shown)

  • 12.7% under the buyer's estimate (estimate ₩894.7M, our arithmetic)
  • highest other bid 23.4% above (other bids ₩794.4M, ₩963.6M, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Incheon International Airport Corporation
Seller
CleanTech Co. (크린텍)

Receipt: kjebi.com · the job

US

Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport

Georgia, USA · Feb 27, 2025

Winning bid

$42,500 · whole contract

One autonomous floor scrubber, replacing a 15-year-old walk-behind machine (model not stated)

  • highest other bid 96.2% above (other bids $45,439, $46,217, $46,700, $47,350, $47,500, $48,600, $83,385, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Savannah Airport Commission
Seller
Southeastern Paper Group (distributor)
Status
lowest of 11 bids; approved by Savannah City Council 27 Feb 2025, 9-0-0

Receipt: agenda.savannahga.gov · the job

US

Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport

Georgia, USA · Feb 27, 2025

Winning bid

$35,675 · whole contract

One autonomous vacuum, replacing two 8-year-old stand-on vacuums (model not stated)

  • highest other bid 133.7% above (other bids $37,639, $38,200, $39,605, $41,092, $43,500, $48,200, $83,385, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Savannah Airport Commission
Seller
Southeastern Paper Group (distributor)
Status
lowest of 10 bids; approved by Savannah City Council 27 Feb 2025, 9-0-0

Receipt: agenda.savannahga.gov · the job

US

Houston Bush Intercontinental & Hobby airports

Texas, USA · Mar 30, 2021

Award

$258,740 · whole contract

5 Nilfisk Liberty SC50 autonomous scrubber-dryers with a 3-year service plan, for over 500,000 sq ft of terrazzo cleaned nightly; bought through the H-GAC cooperative contract, so no bids

  • ≈ $51,748 per robot ($258,740 ÷ 5, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Houston Airport System (City of Houston)
Seller
Nilfisk
Status
Houston City Council Motion 2021-0148, adopted 30 Mar 2021

Receipt: houston.novusagenda.com · the job

US

Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport

Georgia, USA · Oct 22, 2020

Winning bid

$60,684 · whole contract

One Tennant T7AMR robotic disk scrubber with a 3-year warranty and software upgrades

  • highest other bid 26.6% above (other bids $61,993, $76,855, our arithmetic)
Buyer
Savannah Airport Commission
Seller
W.W. Grainger (reseller)
Status
lowest of 3 quotes; approved by Savannah City Council 22 Oct 2020

Receipt: agenda.savannahga.gov · the job

Moving bags 2 receipts

CN

Beijing (China Southern Airlines ground services)

Beijing, China · Oct 19, 2026

Award

CN¥7.5M · whole contract

Driverless baggage tractors, UISEE T30AL (number not stated); incl. VAT

Buyer
China Southern Airlines, Beijing ground services (an airline, not an airport)
Seller
UISEE Technology (Zhejiang)

Receipt: gdebidding.com · the job

GB

Teesside International Airport

Teesside, UK · Aug 13, 2025

Seller announcement

£900,000 · whole contract

Autonomous baggage and passenger moving system (Auto-DollyTug and Auto-Shuttle), multi-year

Buyer
Tees Valley Combined Authority
Seller
Aurrigo

Receipt: investegate.co.uk · the job

Moving passengers 1 receipt

US

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport

Texas, USA · Sep 3, 2026

Ceiling, not a price

up to $2.5M · whole contract

Autonomous wheelchair service, Terminal D arrival gates D1–D16 to customs, 5-year contract PA2112 from Sept 2026; five proposals received

  • ≈ $496,320 a year at most ($2.5M ÷ 5 years, our arithmetic)
Buyer
DFW Airport Board
Seller
Alba-Robots Srl (Torino)
Status
board agenda and draft resolution for 3 Sep 2026; final vote not seen

Receipt: apps.dfwairport.com · the job

Security 1 receipt

US

Dallas Fort Worth International Airport

Texas, USA · Oct 1, 2026

Ceiling, not a price

up to $734,574 · whole contract

6 ICOR Caliber MINI R1.5 bomb-squad robots with a 3-year warranty, bought through GSA contract GS-07-0430V; replaces an "aged out" fleet the vendor no longer services

  • at most ≈ $122,429 per robot ($734,574 ÷ 6, our arithmetic)
Buyer
DFW Airport Department of Public Safety
Seller
ICOR Technology
Status
board agenda and draft resolution for 1 Oct 2026; final vote not seen

Receipt: apps.dfwairport.com · the job

What the paperwork shows

  1. Bids can be 1% apart or 134% apart. Get more than one.

    At Incheon the winning bid was 12.7% under the buyer's estimate and the highest other bid 23.4% above. At Yinchuan the next two bids were within 0.9%. For one autonomous cleaning machine at Savannah (Feb 27, 2025), the highest other bid was 133.7% above the winning bid.

    Receipts: kjebi.com · qianlima.com · agenda.savannahga.gov

  2. Start small, then scale.

    Zurich ran a 5-robot pilot from late 2025, then a public tender in May 2026. Pulkovo already runs 3 Gausium Phantas; the tender adds 13.

    Receipts: airport-information.com · sanktpeterburg.bezformata.com

  3. Paying for the service is normal.

    Zurich rents its robots for at least a year, with an option to take them over. The wheelchair contract on DFW's board agenda is a 5-year service, not a purchase.

    Receipts: airport-information.com · apps.dfwairport.com

  4. Ask how long the seller will keep fixing it.

    DFW's board papers say its bomb-squad robots "aged out" and the vendor no longer services them. The replacement order includes a 3-year warranty and is bought through an existing GSA contract (GS-07-0430V). Houston's five autonomous scrubbers came with a 3-year service plan, and Savannah's 2020 robotic scrubber with a 3-year warranty and software upgrades.

    Receipts: apps.dfwairport.com · houston.novusagenda.com · agenda.savannahga.gov

  5. A ceiling is not a price.

    3 of these 13 receipts are a maximum or a ranked bid, not the final amount. We label every one, and we update the row when the final figure is published.

    Receipts: sanktpeterburg.bezformata.com · apps.dfwairport.com · apps.dfwairport.com

Before you sign: five questions

  1. Is this the award or the ceiling? A board agenda or tender maximum is what the buyer may spend, not what it paid. Ask for the award notice or the signed amount.
  2. How many robots, and for how long? Some of these notices leave out the number of robots. A contract total with no count tells you little about a unit price.
  3. Who services it in year 4? Ask the seller for a written service and parts period. DFW is replacing a fleet its vendor stopped servicing.
  4. Can we pilot first? Zurich ran 5 robots before it rented 17. Ask for a short paid pilot with exit terms.
  5. Rent, buy, or buy the outcome? Rent with an option to take over (Zurich), a multi-year service (DFW wheelchairs) or a purchase with warranty (DFW bomb squad) are all on this page. Price each the same way: total over the term.

Who this page is not for: a small airfield that needs one floor cleaned. A contract total for a whole terminal is not your price; start with cleaning robot prices or the quote check. Buying for an airport? How to write a robot quote request · RaaS contract red flags.

How this page is built

  • Rows: contract values in our price dataset where the buyer is an airport, an airport operator or an airline's airport ground unit. Each row is tagged by hand (buyer, status, units) after reading the source.
  • Status is what the document says: an award, a winning bid, a seller's stock-exchange notice, a not-to-exceed ceiling, or a ranked bid. A board agenda is not a vote; we say "final vote not seen" until we read the minutes.
  • Per-robot, per-year and percentage figures are one number from the source divided by another from the same source, marked "our arithmetic". Nothing is converted between currencies or estimated.
  • Our price history is append-only: when a final figure is published we add a row and keep the old one.
  • Know a public airport robot contract we missed? Send the link.

Cite this page

Whirrwork (2026). What airports pay for robots: the public receipts. https://whirrwork.com/insights/airport-robot-receipts/ (CC BY 4.0)

Data: /insights/airport-robot-receipts.json · CC BY 4.0 · Insights feed