While there are some concerns about robots replacing humans and taking their jobs, with U.S. unemployment at about 3.6% ecommerce companies are struggling to find enough workers. Thus companies are seeing robotics as a way to close the gap and augment human labor instead of replacing it. Find out more in a new MCM report.
Israeli firm CommonSense Robotics is building what it says is the world’s first underground automated fulfillment operation for grocery delivery, anticipating a future where facilities like this will occupy abandoned urban spaces above and below ground to fulfill one-hour deliveries for city dwellers.
Ecommerce fulfillment robots are trending up. The entry point for ecommerce companies is now in the hundreds of thousands of dollars instead of multiple millions, and can be scaled up as needed. This report from MCM examines the players, the state of the art, advancing capabilities and results being seen by ecommerce companies.
Locus Robotics, makers of autonomous mobile robots for fulfillment, and RightHand Robotics, creators of a stationary robotic picking arm, have partnered to work on joint solutions that combine batch picking and conveyance with automated sortation.
Andover, MA-based Locus Robotics, spun out of 3PL Quiet Logistics in 2015, has raised $26 million in Series C funding, increasing its total to $66 million. The round was led by the venture arm of mobile scanning and printing technology firm Zebra Technologies and Scale Venture Partners.
By 2025 there will be more than 4 million warehouse robots in use at 50,000 locations globally, up from 5,000 locations in 2018, according to a report from ABI Research, with much of the growth coming from ecommerce fulfillment including demand for same-day delivery. See what experts have to say about the growing trend.
The pressure is on ecommerce merchants to get orders out faster so customers don’t go to competitors when the experience is flawed. This is why more fulfillment centers are implementing warehouse automation, including robotics, to address throughput and efficiency issues. This MCM report covers the latest solutions and trends.
Kroger plans to build the second of 20 automated distribution centers in partnership with UK grocer Ocado for fulfilling ecommerce orders in Groveland, FL. The state-of-the-art FCs, built by Kroger and powered by Ocado’s automation technology, are just part of Kroger’s innovation push including driverless and same-day delivery.
FedEx is planning to test delivery robots this summer for customers including Walmart and Pizza Hut, while Target and AutoZone are looking at the capability, according to Reuters. The 10 mph robots would have to be approved by the city of Memphis. This is one innovative way companies are looking to cut last mile costs.
Somerville, MA-based RightHand Robotics has raised $23 million in a Series B funding round led by Menlo Ventures, joined by GV (formerly Google Ventures) and existing investors Dream Incubator, Matrix Partners and Playground Global. The company, founded in 2014, has raised $34.2 million to date.