Brain Corp. and Tennant Co. announced that they will demonstrate Inventory Scan, a new data-capture accessory for Tennant's autonomous floor scrubbers, at Interclean in Amsterdam next week.
“This new product marks the beginning of realizing the next phase in our company's vision and continued growth in Europe as well as the U.S.,” stated Dr. Eugene Izhikevich, CEO of Brain Corp. “We are actively taking BrainOS-powered robots from primarily task-oriented machines to in-store data-acquisition platforms. This delivers critical insights, and this will add significant ROI [return on investment] for European retailers as we continue to expand our activity in Europe and beyond.”
Brain Corp said its artificial intelligence software powers more than 20,000 autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). The company claimed that this is the world's largest AMR fleet operating in commercial public spaces. Global original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partners use the BrainOS cloud-connected platform to create scalable, self-driving robots.
End customers use the robots to clean floors, move and monitor inventory, and sense environmental data, turning manual operations into automated workflows, said Brain Corp. The company added that Fortune 500 brands across multiple verticals can benefit from the growing portfolio of BrainOS-powered robots. It said its industry-leading privacy, safety, and efficiency tools make managing and scaling automation easier.
BrainOS powers inventory/cleaning combo
Brain Corp said the combination of its new scanning accessory and Tennant's floor scrubbers is a “first-of-its-kind, multipurpose design.” The Inventory Scan tower can capture data as the BrainOS-powered AMRs move around a store.
The system then delivers reports to store managers, providing numerous insights including verification of pricing accuracy, planogram compliance, product stock levels, and product localization. Each function negates the need for time-consuming and potentially inaccurate manual processes, said Brain Corp.
Inaccuracies often lead to lost revenue opportunities, waste caused by overordering, and not enough attention given to shoppers, it noted.
“The new integrated inventory analytics accessory is filling a much-needed AI and data process gap for retailers,” said Maggie Koester, global product manager at Tennant. “What makes this solution compelling is the ability to integrate with retailers’ inventory management systems utilizing their existing floor scrubbers. By adding data collection functionality to these machines, we are dramatically improving how stores operate.”
“Inventory Scan allows retailers to be more efficient and effective by reducing the disruption of labor-intensive manual approaches,” she said. “Our vision is that data collection and floor care become fully automated so our customers can focus on managing their businesses.”
Brain Corp marks European milestones
In 2021, BrainOS-powered AMRs autonomously covered 500 million sq. ft. (46.45 million sq. m) across 16 countries in Europe. In total, over 46,000 hours were given back to workers during the year, with the most significant growth coming within retail, logistics, and warehousing sectors, claimed Brain Corp.
The company said it has experienced 100% year-on-year growth in European countries deploying robots using BrainOS. It has partnered with OEMs including Minuteman, Karcher, Nilfisk, and Tennant.
New countries seeing robotic deployments included Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Luxembourg, Norway and Switzerland. Brain Corp said the countries implementing the largest numbers of robots included France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, the U.K., and the Netherlands.
Partners to unveil tech at Interclean
Inventory Scan will have its European introduction at Interclean 2022 from May 10 to 13 at the RAI Centre in Amsterdam. Brain Corp will be exhibiting at Booth 108 in Hall 7.
“By adding Inventory Scan to new or existing robotic scrubber fleets, retailers are immediately able to access critical in-store inventory data in near real-time,” said Dave Ross, vice president of business development at Brain Corp. “Knowing where an item is, if it’s in stock, if it’s in the correct location, if the price is accurate, and more allows managers to operate stores with a new level of efficiency while providing optimal shopping experiences for their customers.”
“Based on the success we’ve seen in the U.S. with the technology, we are excited to get feedback from those in the European market,” he said.
Michel Spruijt, senior vice president for international business at Brain Corp, added: “There’s no doubt that we’re starting to see the tipping point where the integration of robotics with human teams has gone beyond a novelty and become a practical solution for maintaining sustainable operations.”
“We’re seeing significant increases in demand across multiple industry sectors which have been impacted most severely by labor shortages and increased operational strain as a result of the pandemic,” Sprujit said. “Autonomous robotics have proven themselves to be a very effective and welcome solution to these growing problems.”
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