Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 11.45
…supplier provided crate stackers, the conveyor system and a warehouse control system (WCS) to manage the material flows. The robotic solution features eight robots that operate on overhead gantries to combine buffer storage and order picking functions into one operation. The robots handle perishable goods in plastic crates in the refrigerated zones. Although fully integrated with the surrounding manual operations, the system is effectively an island of automation that prepares orders for retail stores, enabling them to be transported to the supermarkets without the need for any further processing. With product pallets going in and store pallets coming out, the…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 10.42
…addition, Honeywell Intelligrated will implement and support the facility’s warehouse control system, which operates the production activities and equipment. This provides The Apparel Logistics Group with direct support from Honeywell Intelligrated’s world-class technical services center and 24/7 access to maintenance technicians to maximize facility uptime. Large retail brands and online-only retailers in the U.S. and Canada turn to The Apparel Logistics Group for warehousing, multi-channel order fulfillment and Foreign Trade Zone services to deliver products to distribution centers, stores or directly to individual consumers’ homes. Honeywell Intelligrated is a leading provider of automation solutions for distribution and fulfillment applications with…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 6.95
…deployed without integration to a warehouse management system or warehouse control system, using bar code scans to trigger a bot to move goods. Even with integration to other systems, says Wise, it’s possible to deploy an AMR solution rapidly, without adding special infrastructure beyond the bots. “We use the term on demand automation, which to us, means rapid deployment, extreme flexibility, no IT overhead and the ability to scale easily,” Wise says. AMR vendors also stress that it’s easy to move units between DCs as needed, or add a new workflows just by adjusting some software or downloading digital map…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 7.12
…solutions—which have only been on the survey three years—and warehouse control system (WCS) software were on the upswing. This year, WCS held steady at 18%, but WES was down 3% to 13%. Still, these two closely related categories of software (they both sit between traditional WMS and machine control) attracted a combined response of more than 30%. When asked about broader areas of spending over the next 18 months, areas that were on the increase included staffing/labor (up by 1%) maintenance services (up 3%), enterprise applications including (up 5%) and outside services/3PLs, up by 3%. There are various reasons why…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 8.92
…meet customer demands. Honeywell Intelligrated Booth: S618 New shuttle, warehouse control system Flexible, scalable and fast, the new OSR Shuttle Evo+ maximizes space utilization and energy savings by merging and managing reserve storage and forward picking as a single dynamic ecosystem. Functionally, it combines a high-performance shuttle system with the agility of an autonomous, flexible path transport system—centrally storing goods, raw materials, overstock and buffered orders in a high-density space. Upon retrieval, items are sequenced and quickly delivered where and when needed with a fleet of Open Shuttle automated mobile robots. Also on display, redPILOT software acts as a control…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 14.02
…warehouse management system (WMS) software and the more real-time warehouse control system (WCS) layer which governs automated materials handling equipment. This “space” has become known as the warehouse execution system (WES) layer. While WES is not new, and a wide range of functions fall under the WES umbrella, there continued to be product announcement from WES vendors, with more focus on advanced monitoring and analytics functions. There was one new company—redPILOT, part of KNAPP Group—that introduced an analytics-enabled control tower that, while not positioned as a WES, offers software for optimizing activity and resource assignments in automated warehouses. You can…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 8.04
…in investments for automated storage & retrieval (AS/RS) systems, warehouse control system (WCS) software, and the closely related category of warehouse execution systems (WES) software as well as robotics. So, after years of the survey reflecting growing investment in systems for distribution centers (DCs), what’s different this year? It may be that a rising stock market and a continued strong economy, when combined with unrelenting operational pressures around e-commerce fulfillment, have many industry participants moving forward with focused investments in automation to help address the challenges. Additionally, after a few years of increasing investment indications for IS solutions, many companies…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 9.43
…times. These e-commerce pressures are driving a need for warehouse control system (WCS) solutions, also known as warehouse execution system (WES) solutions, to orchestrate a DC’s automation and balance the flow of work to crank more orders through a facility in less time. Follow priorities When REI came up with the systems for its new warehouse in Goodyear, Ariz., it followed a set of core goals or “tenets” that centered around sustainability and connection with the REI brand. As part of these tenets, REI wanted an order fulfillment method that was simple and efficient, and that would streamline the number…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 6.77
…has changed. It’s no longer just WMS on top, warehouse control system (WCS) software in the middle, and automated materials handling systems at the floor level. The stack has expanded, and while not every DC needs the same foundation, failure to grasp evolving areas could end up stacking the deck against omni-channel success. What’s more, while automation hardware—including robotic goods-to-person systems, pick-to-light systems and high-end sortation—play a role in the tech stack for e-commerce, even automation providers say the stack is software driven. “The new types of automation hardware are extremely important, but I think it’s a matter of hardware…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 7.77
…retrofit. You might use 15-year-old hardware, but change the warehouse control system (WCS) or warehouse execution system (WES) and you get more productivity. Of course this is much less expensive than building a new building. It’s possible to increase productivity by 25% with the same physical assets, and you can reduce the need to flex the workforce if you can scale. Software can inform facility layout, replacing the old-school view of an execution system in one place and something else managing orders. Today software is order management for all of it, including orders, planning, execution and optimization layers. The line…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 14.66
…Pick-it-Easy Robot, fully integrated with warehouse management system (WMS), warehouse control system (WCS), conveyor and pocket sorter,” he said, noting that KNAPP recently completed a pocket sorter installation for REI. “This exhibit is one of a series workstations we offer, centered around a variety of technologies—including vision, pick-to-light and put-to-light—to support a range of automated or semi-automated solutions for goods-to-person picking,” he added. The company is also sharing a new, cross-platform software user interface specifically to improve operator ergonomics during human/machine interaction, and a remote service and troubleshooting package to help customers diagnose and resolve technical issues quickly. Additionally, KNAPP’s…
Found in Robotics News & Content, with a score of 9.16
…system (WMS) to manage the conventional workflow and a warehouse control system (WCS), which actually executes the workflow that uses automated systems. However, throughout the food and beverage industry, distributors are gravitating toward an alternative: warehouse execution systems (WES), a software solution that controls the order fulfillment process once a WMS creates a batch of orders. Typically, the WMS still manages receiving, putaway and inventory management, acts as the intermediary between the warehouse and the enterprise resource planning (ERP) and order management systems and handles shipping. The WCS then directs picking and synchronizes the flow of goods to the packing…