The freight industry has developed enormously during the digital age, with countless innovations arriving to improve everything from efficiency to security — and robotic automation lies at the heart of this progress. With each passing year, warehouse teams become better at deploying relevant technology. In this post, we’re going to look at a few key ways in which robotics are gaining ground inside warehouses across the globe. Let’s get started.
Machine learning is optimizing inventory management
The rise of machine learning, the most sophisticated form of artificial intelligence we’re currently able to practically implement, has proven hugely impactful across many industries. The healthcare world has ramped up the rate of its medical data analysis, and the financial management in the logistics field has bolstered myriad portfolios — but let’s look at the commerce world.
Though it’s providing many other advantages (powering the DARWIN system for sellers using dropshipping fulfillment, for instance), the biggest benefit lies in the internal systems of shipping companies. Inventory management has always been one of the more challenging aspects of running a warehouse, with stock management being something that’s both essential and incredibly difficult to get right.
Order too much stock and it’ll go to waste, with the excess taking up valuable space and potentially needing to be offloaded at cost. Order too little stock and the supply chain breaks down, leading to unfulfilled contracts, lost sales, and damaged brands. Through analyzing past performance and extrapolating from it, machine learning can find the ideal balance.
AGVs are increasingly combined with AMRs
AGVs, or Automated Guided Vehicles, have been used in warehouses for quite some time — but they’re now being paired with AMRs, or Autonomous Mobile Robots, which are capable (as the name suggests) of getting things done without being manually guided. AMRs are packed with sensors and mapping technology and can be programmed relatively quickly and easily.
Supported by IoT systems (also vital elsewhere in the supply chain) that keep everything synchronized (each product pallet can be given a smart tag, for example, ensuring that the inventory management system can keep track of it), these robots can complete warehouse tasks much more efficiently than ever before.
In addition to Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), there's another type of innovative technology making strides in the warehousing industry — what are Cobots. These collaborative robots, designed to safely interact with human workers, bring unparalleled flexibility and efficiency, contributing significantly to modern automated systems.
Suppose that a particular item needs to be collected: the order can be sent out to an AMR which will then navigate the warehouse (factoring in the presence of other robots and human personnel), identify the item, secure it, and move it to the appropriate location for packaging.
The initial investment costs are significant, of course — technology of this level is far from cheap, requiring further spending on employee training and hardware maintenance — but they’re recouped fairly quickly given how transformational such tools inevitably prove. It’s clear that the future of warehouse work lies in optimally pairing robotics and human resources.
Robotics are vital for increasing safety levels
Lastly, another key reason why robotics are proving so significant in the warehousing world (and why they’re going to be so vital in the future) is that they can achieve unprecedented safety levels. Human warehouse workers have traditionally suffered from various strains due to their physically-challenging workloads, and career-ending injuries have been far too common.
On top of that, we must consider the requirements of the COVID-19 era. Having people working in close proximity (particularly when they’re likely to be breathing heavily due to exertion) isn’t a good idea when you’re trying to slow the spread of a dangerous virus, and huge companies like Amazon have had to adapt. The more broadly robotic automation can be implemented, the safer warehouses will become for the workers who remain.
In the coming years, we’re likely to see the existing robotics solutions adapted to best fit the full range of sensible COVID-19 measures. Oversight systems can be deployed to ensure that employees wash their hands at regular intervals, wear masks, and report any symptoms. They can also space out tasks to minimize personal contact, lowering the threat level.
The addition of robotics technology to global warehousing systems has already proven transformational, and there’s so much more progress to be made. Will the next decade bring more radical improvements in efficiency and safety? Only time will tell.
