The objective sounds relatively simple: On a designated day in a single distribution center, pick, pack, and ship a particular set of SKUs in a range of desired quantities to 24 retail stores. Or 50. Or 100. That’s what a distribution center (DC) does, right? Yes and no. But there’s a problem—all those new robots. Fulfilling orders is not all that simple if several types of robots are involved. That list could well include autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), automated lift trucks, piece-picking and goods-to-person systems, robotic putwalls, and even shuttles in an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS). While they…
We’ve all heard plenty of talk about the possibility of a recession coming our way soon. As a result, we’ve also heard about companies from a range of industries slamming the brakes on capital expenditures. So much for the recent upward trajectory of materials handling automation installs. Well, maybe not. Just ask Bernard Casse, CEO and founder of RIOS Intelligent Machines. A favorite topic of his is robots-as-a-service (RaaS). Instead of purchasing a robotic palletizer outright and upfront, Casse said, users have the option to pay a monthly fee for a set of services including designated throughput levels. “The idea…
“I’ve never seen so much interest, if not desperation, to improve fulfillment,” said James Lawton, vice president and general manager of robotics automation at Zebra Technologies. And that’s true for companies as diverse as FedEx and iHerb. Both companies, and many others in between, have recently turned to piece-picking robotic systems to solve their fulfillment challenges. But we are to a great extent still in the early stages of robotic piece picking. After all, it was only January 2015 that Modern Materials Handling reported on what was probably one of the first robotic piece-picking pilots “The robots are coming –…
The demand for picking robots has reached an inflection point. “I’ve never seen so much interest, if not desperation, to improve fulfillment,” said James Lawton, vice president and general manager of robotics automation at Zebra Technologies. And that’s true for companies as diverse as FedEx and iHerb. They and many others have recently turned to piece-picking automation to solve their fulfillment challenges. But we're still in the early stages of robotic piece picking. After all, it was only January 2015 when Modern Materials Handling (a sibling of Robotics 24/7) reported on early picking pilots in “The robots are coming –…
We both know people who have trouble distinguishing between their wants and needs. You’ve probably got someone in mind already. We do live in a society with options we never realized were possible just a short time ago. Remember, only Steve Jobs knew each of us needed a smart phone before 2007. Kind of makes you smile, doesn’t it? That said, the distinguishing line between wants and needs is starting to blur in the warehouse and distribution center, too. That shift is actually a convergence of several forces. Labor Shortages Yes, the consumer is demanding more of these facilities. And…
“Pain point.” That’s not a bad summary of reverse logistics these days. However, there doesn’t seem to be enough pain in reverse logistics to get many companies to fix their generally inadequate and manual processes. Instead, they continue to receive, review, reallocate, and repeat in the same awkward way. To begin, plenty of returns are out there. Industry estimates for conventional retail is 5% of purchases get returned. That number skyrockets to 25% to 30% for e-commerce. While the former might be manageable, the latter is clearly a deluge. And with a more than 40% increase in e-commerce sales since…
Mobility has long been a prized asset in the distribution center. And, it has typically been best known for its small terminals, tablets, scanners and more that allow DC associates to roam from one end of the facility to the other as the workflow demands. But, there’s a new world emerging as you read this. The devices themselves are evolving and further enhancing ease of use and mobility. Clearly, devices remain an important part of the equation, but there’s more to it. Increasingly, devices are connected to platforms that make data management from the server to the picker and back…