B usiness appetites are growing across the entirety of the supply and demand chain , which puts the heart of operations — the warehouse — in a challenging position . Square footage can expand , teams can grow , racks can gain height ; yet , at a certain point , technology needs to enter the picture to safeguard efficiency and management . In the coming years , reluctance to adopt this technology will essentially evaporate , as businesses fight to remain competitive and effective in a crowded market space .
Here are some evolving and interesting technology trends to anticipate in the coming years .
Integrated Robotics
The fear of robots taking jobs is common among human warehouse workers , but unfounded when a great compromise is already available . Mixing robotic assistants into a warehouse team offers benefits for all : less workplace injuries from heavy box-lifting , for example , or faster location of pallets or bins by RFID or GPS-equipped robot guides . By farming out the menial portions of warehouse positions — locating , lifting , transporting — to robot counterparts , human team members are better able to use problem solving and analytical skills . Furthermore , social distancing in warehouse and distribution centers is made easier by having a mix of human and robotic workers .
Automated Vehicles and Lifts
It only takes a single forklift accident to produce wince-worthy disasters in an otherwise well-organized warehouse . With racks growing closer and taller as supply and demand chain volumes increase , the looming threat of these accidents can be easily avoided with the addition of automated guided vehicles or storage / retrieval machines .
Rather than relying on human vision and spatial judgments , these automated carts , cars and lifts transport a load to the designated location ( either for storage or to prepare for shipping ). These systems are not limited by depth , height or width and are designed to cover large horizontal and vertical distances quickly and safely .
All the tech-enriched process improvement in the world can ’ t compensate for a bad warehouse layout , but it can inform re-organization when needed . Where layouts used to be largely influenced by instinct , insight and management observations , certain analysis programs can now aggregate “ traveling ” data to determine worker movements down to feet traveled per hour .
Data is gathered through sensors mounted around the warehouse or worn by individual workers . This data is used to determine which high-use racks , bins or shelves should be moved closer to the starting point . The result is less back and forth as workers ( potentially beside their robotic counterparts ) pick inventory or stock shipments — ultimately freeing more work hours and effort to expend .
Centralized Warehouse Systems
While nearly every warehouse has some sort of warehouse management system in place , it needs to be integrated for maximum benefits . For example , if a warehouse floor worker needs to exit the warehouse management system to refer to the transport management system , and acts as a bridge , that then becomes a “ tech gap ” through which that accuracy can fall .
Expect to see more data , inventory and asset tracking systems put into place that are equipped to communicate with one another — rather than relying on a human translator . Additionally , these systems can be used to harness the Internet of Things , which tracks everything from transport truck temperatures to individual pallet movement on an international supply chain .
Final Thoughts
As tech infuses major industry approaches to warehousing , the days of manual inventories and separate IT workers in the warehouse may be coming to a close . Trends will continue to bolster accurate metrics , as well as equipment and software that allow individual workers to perform efficiently while safeguarding their health and well-being .
Warehouse Redesigns
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