Warehousing has been around a long time. It is an old profession, with established processes and accepted practices, with human labor at its core.
Throughout its history, technology revolutions have arrived, been applied, and prospered or failed. While the likes of Google and Amazon are now household names, early tech pioneers such as AOL and MySpace have been assigned to the history books.
Implementing new technology is often a major investment, so it’s vital to assess past successes and failures, take key learnings and put them into practice when considering any new tech by evaluating its value to the business.
I am sucker for a gadget – I can’t help myself. But having the latest gadget to look cool isn’t enough in business. You have to weigh up its value in terms of being useful and delivering a return on investment.
The biggest evolution we are facing in the world of Warehouse 4.0 is the rise of the Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs). As yet, they are not sophisticated enough to replace humans on the warehouse floor, so are they simply a passing gadget or will they become an essential utility forming the future of logistics and fulfillment?
AMRs are here and I believe to stay. But, not in their current form. As mentioned, gadgets are cool – and that is the current design trend. I’d classify them as gadgets for the following traits:
The next wave of AMR technology will move from gadgetry to utility and soon! In the next year, you’ll see:
So what do I think? AMRs are not just the future, they are the here and now. In the current format they are an expensive gadget, but in the next year this is going to change. The technology is being developed and costs will tumble, making them an affordable option for businesses of all sizes and a vital utility for those having to compete in this fast-paced world of e-commerce.