As needs continue to grow in the warehouse, more and more vendors enter the robotics space and bring exciting innovations, says Stanislas Normand, managing director of Exotec.

The number of players in robotics is growing, but don’t jump to the conclusion that only start-ups are in the arena, Normand says. Many legacy companies are contributing as well. “We have different profiles of companies coming out with solutions,” he says. “Some are new players that have been funded over the past five to 10 years. But what we're seeing at the moment, and which is really interesting, is also traditional players — companies that have provided solutions in what we call legacy automations, such as shuttle systems, that are coming out with their own robotic solutions. What they're trying to address is the need for more flexibility, scalability and a shorter return on investment for customers.” 

Innovations include greater speed in robots, which drive higher throughput, and systems that not only manage stock inventory but orders as well, he says.

“Essentially that means that AS/RS [automated storage and retrieval systems] and those robotic systems are taking stronger positions in a warehouse by integrating more features that would've been delegated to other machines, such as sorters, put walls, and so on.”

Reverse stop sequencing is another management innovation that Normand says the warehouse industry is excited about. Trucks arriving at a warehouse can extract orders from the AS/RS in the sequence that allows orders to come out of the vehicle ready to be delivered directly to store shelves — or to another DC. Clearly, management of store operations benefits, Normand says.

“So the key thing is that AS/RS systems do not just manage inventory, they also manage orders. And that's a huge innovation in terms of features for customers.”