For Ocado Intelligent Automation (OIA), the story is less about replacing people with robots and more about redefining how the two can work together, reports Peter MacLeod.
According to Jamie Spencer, VP of Sales – EMEA for Ocado Intelligent Automation, the forces driving transformation inside the warehouse are as much human as they are technical.
“There’s such a vast challenge right now for a lot of businesses… Traditionally, there was a large pool of labour available to support operations through growth and seasonal demand, but those pools have become much smaller. People’s interest in working in warehousing probably isn’t as attractive as some of the other roles they could do.”
That shrinking labour pool is reshaping how companies think about automation. Where once the business case didn’t quite add up, rising wages and tighter labour markets have tipped the balance.
“Now, companies can’t just throw people at a problem during peak periods… They’re looking for solutions that form part of a long-term strategy, not just a quick fix.”
Says Jamie Spencer.
Scalable Approach
That long-term strategy increasingly means flexibility, a tenet which OIA has made central to its offering. The company’s range of automation tools allows customers to scale from a handful of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to fully automated fulfilment centres, all underpinned by the same software intelligence.
“Our AMR system is software-directed and actually works in conjunction with people,” Spencer explains. “It’s never about just removing the people. A lot of the time, it’s about retaining the headcount we have and empowering them to work more efficiently.”
The concept of ‘robots as a colleague’ rather than a replacement is gaining traction across the sector, and Spencer believes that attitude shift is essential. “Behind all technologies, there are the people, whether that’s the designers, the manufacturers or the users,” he says. “It’s about making sure automation happens at the right time for the business.”
That people-first approach is visible in OIA’s AMR systems such as Chuck, which combine performance tracking with gamification, whereby operators can earn bonuses for higher productivity while spending less time on repetitive walking and lifting. “If you can find technologies that empower people to earn more or be more efficient – and give them a little more fun through gamification – it can make the process much better,” Spencer adds. “It’s never just removing headcount. It’s amplifying it.”
Ocado’s history in online grocery fulfilment has given OIA a unique testbed for its technology, allowing it to refine systems that now have applications far beyond food retail. The best example is Ocadex, its robotic picking platform that removes much of the peripheral infrastructure on which many other systems rely.
“Traditionally, robotic pick technology has required expensive equipment like pick stations and conveyor networks,” Spencer (pictured, below) says. “We’ve developed a system mounted directly on top of our grid, removing the need for those peripherals. It drives fantastic unit economics and brilliant returns for businesses.”
The platform is already proven at scale: where installations are most mature, such as Ocado’s own grocery CFC in Luton in the UK, OGRP is now picking almost 40% of site volumes. The same system adapted for different items has handled more than one billion products in the wider retail sector.
“Picking is very challenging,” Spencer admits. “You might have a T-shirt one moment and a tube of toothpaste the next. But we’ve successfully deployed technology that can handle that diversity. We believe we’re an industry leader in item-picking technology, and we’re now taking what we’ve learned in grocery and applying it to sectors like healthcare, cosmetics, fashion and FMCG.”
Rising Expectations
Across EMEA, automation is being shaped as much by geography as by economics. Labour may be the starting point, but Spencer notes that the cost of space and the expectations of consumers are now just as important.
“We have to evaluate the cost of space as well as the cost of labour… Reducing the footprint of an operation can be critical to the business case. But we’re also seeing a big shift in customer expectations. Same-day delivery is becoming more common, and that’s forcing businesses to think about getting local to their customers.”
That shift towards micro-fulfilment and dark stores is particularly visible in urban areas across the Middle East, Europe and the UK. For companies responding to these trends, OIA’s heritage in grocery logistics – where speed and density are paramount – appears to offer a significant advantage.
“We can model where a business should locate a new site based on its order data and customer geography,” says Spencer. “We’re even seeing growing interest in locker-based delivery networks, where we can help customers optimise routes dynamically. It’s about creating flexibility. Not every order can go to a locker, but combining those drops with home deliveries creates much more cohesive fulfilment.”
Power of Data
The more complex automation becomes, the more critical data becomes to its success. OIA starts every project by mapping a customer’s fulfilment patterns through data analysis, which then feeds into its AI-driven design tools and digital twin environments.
“With any customer, the first thing we do is obtain their data,” Spencer explains. “That tells us the patterns and behaviours of their fulfilment strategy.” Those digital twins allow OIA to model and test systems before they’re built, and to continue refining them once they’re live. “Whenever we launch new software or innovations, we model them in the digital twin first,” Spencer says. “At one of our own sites, new software meant we didn’t need to add more robots as planned. We achieved all the efficiency gains without further capital investment. It shows our platforms don’t stagnate, they only get more efficient over time.”
It’s an approach that clearly helps illustrate the company’s broader philosophy to use intelligence to reduce complexity and risk for its customers.
Given Ocado’s own retail operations, I ask whether OIA’s work with its competitors creates tension around data. Spencer is quick to address that point: “Across OIA, we don’t do any direct fulfilment,” he says. “We work with multiple customers who compete in the same sectors, and they entrust Ocado with their data. We’re SOC 2 certified, governed by the highest standards of data privacy, so customers can have full confidence in how their information is handled.”
That emphasis on trust, he adds, is essential if automation is to continue expanding across sectors where collaboration and data-sharing are becoming the norm.
Looking Ahead
For OIA, growth is global but its ethos remains pragmatic. “We’re seeing adoption of our AMRs across Europe,” Spencer says. “In North America, where there’s more space, the systems are even larger. But in Europe, we’re focusing on density and vertical growth. Businesses that once found automation uneconomical are now reevaluating.”
Part of that appeal lies in scalability. “We understand what it means to start small,” Spencer notes. “We have customers with six Chucks and others operating fulfilment centres with thousands of robots. We can take you on that journey.”
That journey increasingly includes palletised and case-handling systems, another sign that OIA’s focus is shifting from standalone technologies to integrated ecosystems. “It’s not just about point-to-point solutions anymore,” Spencer concludes. “It’s about providing complete, integrated systems that help businesses scale sustainably.”
