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IFOY FINALIST FOCUS: Locus Robotics’ AMR Solution

Posted on by David Priestman

Continuing with our run-through of each of the IFOY Award nominated finalists ahead of the winners announcement on 30th June at BMW World, we look at Locus Robotics’ AMR Solution, the first of two entries in the Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV/AMR) category.

IFOY category: Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV/AMR)

Locus Robotics is a leading provider of intelligent autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) that operate collaboratively with human workers to improve productivity and throughput within the warehouse and manufacturing facilities. The solution helps retailers, 3PLs, specialty warehouses, and manufacturers meet and exceed increasingly complex and demanding requirements, integrating into existing infrastructures without disrupting workflows, and enabling customers full ROI within six to eight months.

The solution consists of an integrated execution platform that uses proprietary optimization algorithms and real-time operational performance data to coordinate labor and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to deliver two to three times more productivity and throughput. In addition, Locus provides a variety of AMR form factors to apply the right robot to the right job, at the right time. A purpose-built, integrated robotics solution designed to automate all material flow within the warehouse and manufacturing facilities.

Description

Locus’s strength lies in the maturity and optionality of our execution platform which provides real-time optimization of all tasks to be completed within the four walls and across multiple levels in warehousing and manufacturing environments. The software acts as a fleet manager, managing complex workflows that support a variety of use cases and clustering work to build optimal robot missions.

The unique multi-bot approach decouples workers from orders and tasks, minimizing unproductive associate time and assigning the right robot form factor to meet the right human at the right time to collaboratively perform the next most efficient task. Proven at scale, the system can seamlessly add robots to add capacity to any operation within minutes.

Locus also improves the overall workplace quality and ergonomics. Workers no longer need to push heavy carts and walk long distances to keep up with growing order fulfilment demands. Workers stay in zones while the bots bring the work to them. This significantly lowers worker fatigue, and improves workplace safety to deliver higher productivity and lower overall labour costs for recruitment, training, and retention. Locus customers are seeing documented double or triple increases in their fulfilment productivity and fulfilment cycle times, while significantly lowering labour recruitment, training, and retention costs for  both full time and seasonal positions.

CLICK HERE to watch three case studies.

IFOY TEST REPORT

The US provider Locus Robotics offers its autonomous robots, which work collaboratively with warehouse staff, exclusively in a packaged rental model. After the set-up with a one-time “start-up fee”, a “core fleet” is available to the customer for his tasks. This is an average of between 45 and 50 vehicles per customer, with fluctuations (rather) upwards and less downwards not excluded, of course. The robot manufacturer from Wilmington in the Greater Boston metropolitan region (Massachusetts/USA) has been active in Europe since 2019.

At the moment, Locus serves around 80 customers in about 200 warehouses with its picking system. The customers come not only from retail, but also from pharmaceuticals and industry (ABB). Picking into the 45-kilogram moving robot is extremely easy: the type and quantity of the products to be picked at the location and placed into the small load carrier on the Locus robot are very clearly displayed on the clear touchscreen. Picked, confirmed, and the fast journey continues. The tester has never found this so easy, intuitive and without a single second of “learning the ropes”.

The peak season for Locus is November/December, because the Christmas business easily burdens retailers with four to five times as much picking work as during the year. According to a survey by Material Handling Industry (MHI) and Deloitte, 56% of respondents have “extreme problems” finding suitable staff. No wonder: up to now, about 40 to 60% in the warehouse are determined by walking, with an average age in Germany of 40 to 55 years.

Locus solves this problem pragmatically and effectively by separating the employees from the picking trolleys: the work comes to the pickers, i.e. a classic goods-to-person principle. However, not stoically standing only at a fixed workstation, but “flowing” in a certain area, which normally, however, does not go beyond the warehouse aisle. This not only saves a lot of energy, but also makes the work far more effective and productive than picking along. Locus does not replace the customer’s inventory management system, but obtains its information about the product and the number of units to be picked from it. The Locus software clusters the orders for the optimal picking route – of the roving units, mind you, not of the individual pickers – and which orders are connected on a container. In the field, the system works with high-quality Lidar sensors (“Light Detection and Ranging”). Irrespective of the time saved by short distances for the pickers: the picking system also increases productivity by the fact that the human at a single picking position, for example, spends only 8 instead of 12 seconds – that adds up. When picking, both hands are free for the products to be picked.

If necessary, a seasonal fleet can easily be added to the core fleet mentioned at the beginning, for example for two to three months for the Christmas business. The robots themselves are produced between May and November and are maintained quickly and leanly. A total of around 8,000 of these robots are currently in use, 2,000 of them in Europe. When the going gets tough, 100 to 500 f the robots can easily be produced – per week. The “package” also mentioned above consists of the uncomplaining replacement of the robots during maintenance; in the event of malfunctions, the customer does not incur any additional costs. Every three months, the so-called “field service” comes to the customer’s premises to check on things. It also takes three months for the customer to implement such a system.

IFOY Test Verdict

With collaborative AMR, retailers, 3PLs, but also operators of special warehouses or manufacturers can greatly improve their effectiveness with an ROI of six to eight months. In doing so, an integrated execution platform uses proprietary optimisation algorithms and operational performance data to coordinate “man and machine”. On the subject of innovation, Locus has 33 patents in the US and seven in Europe. An additional 23 patents have been filed in Europe.

IFOY INNOVATION CHECK

Market relevance: In terms of market relevance, Locus’ AMR Solution hits the head. The massive increase in e-commerce requires cost-effective solutions to increase throughput, which has been impressively realised with Locus’ all-in-one solution. The business concept makes the solution affordable also for smaller companies. Therefore, the market relevance is considered to be very high. In addition, the sustainable handling of the equipment through reuse and refurbishment meets the demand of today’s trend, which makes the solution even more interesting.

Customer benefit: Customers benefit in many ways and to a great extent from the AMR Solution. An enormous increase in productivity can be expected with a simultaneous reduction in the workload of the employees. In addition, customers enjoy a full service if required, can monitor internal performance data and use the software system to optimise workflow. The presentation based on reference projects is fully convincing and shows the benefits for the current boom in e-commerce. Enormous customer interest is also seen in the flexibility. An uncomplicated expansion or reduction of the machinery fleet in the case of fluctuating seasonal business is possible without financial risk and thus meets the modern requirements in this area.

Novelty: The overall system impresses in many ways and can be considered highly innovative. Without complex technology, the robots are used efficiently to increase productivity and can also be operated intuitively. The human-machine interaction is limited to the essentials for a practical application and has been implemented very well. This is where innovation meets real practical benefit. An innovative convenience is working with individual personal tags, which, for example, immediately adapts the user interface to the correct language of the employee.

Functionality / type of implementation: Due to a professional presentation of all aspects, the AMR solution from Locus could be comprehended very well. The handling of the devices during order picking is very easy and the flexible reaction to obstacles is done without any problems. The devices themselves are limited to the most essential things and make it clear that an efficient use of hardware and software can have a huge effect.

Verdict: Locus’ extraordinary AMR solution is an excellent response to current market demands.

market relevance ++
customer benefit ++
novelty ++
functionality / type of implementation +
[++ very good / + good / Ø balanced / – less / – – not available]

For an overview of all the finalists, visit www.ifoy.org

CLICK HERE to find out more about Locus Robotics’ AMR Solution.

 

 

RangePlus DC achieves significant efficiency improvement

Posted on by David Priestman

Geek+, a global leader in AMR technology, has announced the successful implementation of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) at independent British online retailer RangePlus’s fulfilment centre. The new automated storage and retrieval system was designed and delivered in collaboration with warehouse automation specialist and Geek+ strategic delivery partner Breathe Technologies. The modernisation provides RangePlus the firepower to compete with larger actors in the growing e-commerce sector.

Lit Fung, VP and Managing Director, Overseas Business at Geek+, said: “We are delighted to see our smart picking solution enable RangePlus to achieve efficient, flexible, and accurate operations. This digital transformation helps them greatly increase their competitiveness and chart their own course as an independent ecommerce provider.”

Due to the change in customers’ shopping behaviour from buying in brick-and-mortar shops to online purchasing, RangePlus has seen rapidly growing order demand, and its original manual order picking was holding the business back. With a high number of small and irregular goods, manual order picking processes were time-consuming and prone to error. RangePlus began looking at automation solutions to boost warehouse capacity and throughput. After comparing different order picking options, Geek+’s cost-effective, flexible, automated warehouse picking system was the best choice to help them handle a 25% increase in order volumes and 40% in SKUs.

Marcus Uprichard, Head of Business Development & Partnerships at Breathe Technologies, said: “Working closely with RangePlus and Geek+, we’ve created an automated warehouse picking system that’s incredibly flexible, modular, and perfectly suited to high-growth e-commerce environments.”

The Geek+ goods-to-person solution is running 24/7 in RangePlus’s fulfilment centre with 243,000 SKUs and handles over 250,000 orders per year. After automating its picking process, RangePlus achieved a 300% improvement in picking rate and order picking time, as well as a 25% reduction in operating costs. They also maximised their warehouse capacity by stocking 50% more SKUs in the same space while reducing error rates and minimising waste. Their ROI is 100% under two years, proving that investing in AMRs is a sound investment.

Shabbab Al-Ghamdi, co-founder of RangePlus, said: “This automated warehouse picking system has been a wise financial decision. We can now significantly increase the amount we pick, pack, and ship… the system is paying for itself.”

Geek+ picking AMRs automate the picking process by bringing the inventory shelves to the warehouse operator at the picking station. The solution reduces the time spent finding and moving goods around manually and improves not only picking accuracy but also employee productivity and comfort. Empowered by artificial intelligence, inventory shelves are arranged according to demand in real time; the most in-demand items are close to the operator to ensure a fast and efficient picking process.

Geek+’s solutions offer valuable flexibility to companies navigating the rapid changes inherent to e-commerce. The sudden rises in demand that accompany peak seasons like Black Friday and Christmas can be met by quickly adding AMRs to the system. Geek+ will continue creating and applying smart logistics technology to support independent e-commerce merchants’ transition to smart logistics operations.

 

 

Berkshire Grey and Logistex partner to deliver robotic solutions

Posted on by David Priestman

Berkshire Grey Inc., a leader in AI-enabled robotic solutions that automate supply chain processes, is partnering with Logistex, a leading system integrator and warehouse management system provider, to help companies grow despite the labour shortages and logistics challenges that are straining global supply chains.

This partnership combines proven AI-enabled robotic automation from Berkshire Grey with experienced system design and integration services from Logistex to deliver world-class warehouse robotics to Europe’s premier pure-play eCommerce companies, retailers, and 3PL providers.

“Berkshire Grey’s robotic solution portfolio is incredibly robust.  By addressing some of the most labour-intensive warehouse processes and handling the broadest range of SKUs, their systems can solve operational challenges across our customer base,” said Andy Branch, COO at Logistex. “Logistex has a long history of delivering transformative solutions, and across industries we are seeing more customers ready to leverage intelligent robotic automation. That’s why we’re partnering with Berkshire Grey – to solve real challenges with robotic solutions that deliver value at our customers’ warehouses and facilities today.”

As more companies feel the pressures of eCommerce growth, enhanced consumer expectations, and the evolving labour shortage, Berkshire Grey’s AI-powered robotic solutions fill the gap. The company offers a wide range of robotic automation solutions that can increase fulfilment throughput by up to 3X and improve labour efficiency by up to 70%. Logistex, an established leader in traditional material handling and warehouse management systems, is evolving their innovation portfolio through this partnership to help companies streamline processes, improve employee productivity, and deliver flexible solutions that scale.

“The demand for innovation to address operational challenges plaguing supply chains brought on by new connected consumer buying behaviours for eCommerce and omnichannel purchasing is very strong in the UK, and Berkshire Grey has the solutions the market needs to compete,” said Neil Berry, SVP and General Manager for EMEA at Berkshire Grey. “Partnering with Logistex allows us to deliver a comprehensive robotic automation portfolio to more customers faster, accelerate the adoption of AI and robotics across the UK market, and enable joint customers to rapidly realise the value of robotic automation.”

Berkshire Grey’s Partner Alliance programme works with a select group of strategic partners to provide customers across Retail, eCommerce, 3PL, Grocery and Package Handling industries with scalable robotic solutions developed to improve fulfilment throughput while driving down operational costs. Berkshire Grey solutions deliver faster ROI than other providers in the industry and their partner programme enables them to team up with the best consultants, integrators, technology providers, and material handling leaders to extend its value-added solutions to customers.

 

Fulfyld selects inVia Robotics for fast order fulfilment

Posted on by David Priestman

inVia Robotics – a leader in eCommerce fulfilment automation systems – has been selected by Fulfyld, a 3PL provider specialising in eCommerce fulfilment, to integrate a full WES (warehouse execution system) and AMR (autonomous mobile robots) solution into its Huntsville, Alabama (US) warehouse.

Built specifically to address the unique challenge of random access to inventory required with eCommerce fulfilment, inVia’s robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) suite integration will be deployed into Fulfyld’s existing facilities while it continues fulfilling orders without disruption to daily operations.

The system will include:

  • inVia PickerWall system including a fleet of inVia Picker AMRs
  • inVia Logic, the AI-powered WES software
  • inVia’s Robotics Operation Center (ROC) for 24/7 monitoring and support

Fufyld will benefit from a reliable workforce of inVia Picker robots to do all of the non-stop travelling to retrieve each day’s ordered SKUs and deliver it to inVia’s dynamic put and pick wall where people pick individual items. The result is people walking only inches between picks versus miles, and pick rates increasing 4-5x.

As eCommerce businesses continue to flourish, the needs of 3PLs have rapidly evolved. Traditionally, retail store fulfilment took less labour because full cases and pallets of like SKUs were being shipped. In contrast, eCommerce orders are made up of an ever-changing combination of SKUs, all in small quantities and headed to different locations. This has created the need for more labour, all during a time when labour has never been scarcer.

“We’ve specifically designed our system to increase productivity in eCommerce operations where more labour is required to ship directly to consumers,” says Lior Elazary, CEO and Co-Founder of inVia Robotics. “As consumer demands for next- or same-day delivery increase and labour supplies decrease, we’re able to help 3PLs keep up and meet their SLAs. We are honoured to have been chosen by Fulfyld to automate their fulfilment operations and look forward to helping to strengthen their business.”

inVia’s systems are offered on a subscription basis, where customers pay only for the productivity of the system. There are no big capital outlays or burdens of equipment ownership and maintenance, and technology updates are included in the price of the system. So, as new features and performance enhancements are added, customers seamlessly benefit from the updates. inVia operates the robotics system with 24/7 monitoring and support and ensures labour – both people and robots – is managed throughout the day to get orders out on time.

“inVia’s RaaS model is ideal for eCommerce fulfilment 3PLs like ours, because it allows us to avoid large CapEx, which ultimately helps Fulfyld deliver better pricing to customers,” says AJ Khanijow, CEO of Fulfyld.

“It also extends our operations resources, not only by supplementing our workforce with robots, but also by finding greater efficiencies in our workflows so our teams can work smarter,” says Spencer Mundt, Chief Operating Officer of Fulfyld. “We looked at all of the automation solutions on the market, and only inVia delivered the level of flexibility and productivity increases we needed for the level of service we’re committed to giving our customers.”

Geek+ implements first moving solutions project in Italy

Posted on by David Priestman

Geek+, a global AMR leader, and Italian third-party logistics provider Life365 have announced the deployment of moving robots to expedite operations. Based in Forlì, an important logistics hub in the heart of Romagna, Life365 has more than 20 years’ experience in the field. The company has chosen Geek+’s automation to advance its business and take on larger competitors.

The solution Geek+ developed to handle operations in Life365’s warehouse revolves around a fleet of M200C moving robots that transfer office supplies smartphones, and other high-tech products through the facility and on their way to customers around Italy. The M-series moving robots serve largely the same purpose as old conveyor systems, but have made these obsolete thanks to the far superior flexibility that AMRs provide.

Summer Su, project manager at Life365, said: “We are devoted to the best technology available and using it to the fullest. Geek+’s moving robots represent the leading-edge in their field and allow us to continue to provide top-level service to our clients. We believe warehouse automation is the logical next step for Life365.”

Xin Yang, Sales Manager Southern Europe at Geek+, said: “This set-up, involving so many of our moving robots, is the first of its kind in Italy and demonstrates the versatility of our AMRs. The rapid implementation and fast return on investment of our AMR solutions provide a useful leg up in booming industries like e-commerce, and we are delighted to help independent retailers like Life365.”

Life365’s success comes from building a bridge between Asia and Europe to furnish their clients with the most advanced technological products. Geek+ considers itself a natural partner in this mission and is proud to be part of that story and serve that purpose. Geek+ looks forward to pursuing its own mission of moving the world intelligently and helping Life365 and others like them achieve their goals.

HAI displays warehouse automation technology

Posted on by David Priestman

HAI ROBOTICS, a pioneer in Autonomous Case-handling Robot (ACR) systems for warehouse logistics, will for the first time display its technology in Italy, at the upcoming Intralogistica Italia 2022 from 3rd-6th May in Fiera Milano.

The company, with European headquarters in the Netherlands, will run live demos of its solution with HAIPICK A42 robot at the tradeshow in Italy (Booth C11/D12 Hall 10), which sees rising demand for more flexible and cost-efficient Goods-to-Person order-picking solutions as e-commerce grows fast in recent years.

Davide Tuzi, HAI ROBOTICS‘ Country Manager Italy, said: “Our ACR system is an excellent solution for the challenges the Italian warehousing/logistics market is facing, and an excellent solution deserves a team of excellent people to support it. This is the kind of team we are building up in Europe, and in Italy in particular.

“We aim to create a local network of system integrator, installation and service partners, so that any user of ACR systems can expect rapid and high-quality service wherever they are in Italy.”

The second-largest manufacturing country in Europe, Italy has strong curiosity for automation, including automating warehouses and distribution centres, as the government is pushing forward to develop Industry 4.0, Tuzi said.

As the EU’s third-largest economy, Italy registers solid growth in e-commerce, catalysed by Covid-19 lockdown. The country is the 14th-largest market for eCommerce with a revenue of US$26bn in 2021, according to Statista Digital Market Outlook.

Also, as fewer people want to do hard manual labour, the lack of enough qualified workers is another driver for warehouses in Italy to turn their eyes on automation, Tuzi said, noting robots will improve the work environment in warehouses.

HAI ROBOTICS‘ ACR systems, using HAIPICK robots doing picking and sorting, offer a warehousing efficiency of three to four times faster than manual work and allow maximum space utilisation. The HAIPICK A42 robot can reach as high as 8m and carry eight loads of totes/cartons in one movement to continuously feed Goods-to-Person stations. The robot, supported by AI algorithms and equipped with high-precision cameras, boasts 99.99% picking and sorting accuracy, thus eliminating the risk of returns due to errors.

The ACR systems can be implemented in a very short time and are easily scalable. Clients can scale the project according to their growth curves with little disruption to operation. Hence, they are ideal for existing warehouses.

The systems have been implemented in more than 500 projects around the world, including leading brands of e-commerce, 3PL, manufacturing and apparels, many of which have faced strong seasonal peaks.

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Honeywell and Hai Robotics Collaborate

 

AI makes zero-error logistics a reality

Posted on by David Priestman

In just under a decade, the number of business premises used for transport, logistics and warehousing in the UK has almost doubled. As new analysis by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows, transport and storage is the fastest-growing broad industry group in the UK, both in recent years and over the longer term.

This meteoric rise in transport and storage is an acknowledgement of the recent accelerated demand created in supply chains following the EU exit and the onset of the pandemic and ensuing economic challenges. Investments in the construction of warehouses rose sharply, topping £5.6bn in 2021, higher than in any year since 1985.

The growth is spread over many sectors, rising hand-in-hand with ecommerce and an expectation of speed and reliability in supply being created in sectors such as food and drink, fashion and electronics. This accelerated growth also put pressure on day-to-day operations as the sector grappled with human resources, available space and speed of execution to meet the expected speedy deliveries to retail and consumers. The ongoing disruptions compounded the situation – and logistics and warehouses have been left to pick up the strain, maximise their efficiencies and fuel the supply chains.

Against such a backdrop, it is easy to see why the sector is poised to become a technology success story, with real-time data and zero error logistics at the core of its commercial success.  Headline industry statements clearly show that at least 6,000 hours are wasted annually, measuring, weighing and finding pallets in warehouses. 20% of warehouse space is tied up with obsolete stock or empty boxes, and warehouses lose on average £1m every year due to wrongly reported assets. The common thread running throughout all of these statistics is the need for real-time data to maximise efficiencies, improve performance and increase productivity, bringing the sector into a zero error logistics mode. Interestingly, they will also be saving 20,000 tons of CO2e emissions, with better inventory management and operational data.

Zero-error logistics may have been once the holy grail of logistic and warehouses – it is now a reality. With machine automation and robotics capturing automated real-time insights, robots can digitise any physical space to delivery zero error logistics. From warehouse storage to dispatch, systems and robotics such as British robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) company BotsAndUs capture invaluable data at points that maximise efficiency and squeeze that extra performance required to save millions lost and to gain in revenue.

Automation increases productivity and reduces costs by providing real-time data that provides full control of the inventory and flow of goods while driving efficiencies across space utilisation. Robotics and AI can handle the repetitive jobs and learn how to deal with unusual situations. Together, they free companies to focus on prioritising business initiatives and optimise operations by creating more opportunities and retraining the workforce for higher-level jobs.

Real-time data helps reconciliation, damage control, evidence for insurance and ultimately, full customer satisfaction.

As Oana Jinga (pictured), BotsAndUs Co-Founder, said: “The value of real-time data kicks in right at the start of the acceptance process, as goods come off a truck, are checked and assessed. Our fully autonomous state-of-the-art robotic system twins and optimises operations. There is a continuous feed of real-time insights across the process, allowing for instant and informed business decisions. Instant access to real-time data helps optimise the present, de-risk the future and discover the intractable in each location and at every stage of the product journey through the warehouse and onto dispatch.”

Research by Forrester has found that automation – including robotics, AI and Machine Learning (ML) – is already a defining industry trend that will continue to expand over the next two decades.  It is also one of the most popular choices for improving operational efficiency with tactical automation. This ties into the trends shown in the latest analysis by ONS and provides solid evidence for the industry to invest now in AI and robotic solutions such as those provided by BotsAndUs.

BotsAndUs develops robotics and AI logistics solutions to drive better business decisions across operations. MIM, their fully autonomous mobile and modular robot measures, tracks and finds goods across storage and warehouses without workflow disruption and provides real-time data at every stage of the process. The data is fed into digital twins, allowing logistics and warehouses to quickly respond to all the challenges they face on a daily basis.

Geek+’s RoboShuttle 8 wins SITL Innovation Award

Posted on by David Priestman

Geek+, a global leader in robotics technology, has seen its commitment to innovation recognised yet again in the form of the prestigious Innovation Award from SITL (Semaine de l’Innovation du Transport & de la Logistique), France’s premier logistics technology exhibition.

Geek+ won the award in the Intralogistics, Robotics and Automation category for its next-generation goods-to-person solution, RoboShuttle 8, which makes possible high-density storage at heights of up to 8m.

At the awards ceremony, RoboShuttle 8 was singled out for praise due to the literal new heights of storage density that the AMR makes attainable. Geek+ continues to invest in innovation to stay ahead of the logistics challenges of tomorrow and develop cutting-edge solutions for customers today.

Jean-Daniel Cohen, Business Development Director France at Geek+ in Europe, said: “As innovation is one of the pillars of Geek+’s philosophy and our success, we are very proud and happy to have been recognised by the SITL jury. Geek+ would like to thank the jury and the organisers of SITL, and congratulate the other winners and nominees.”

In recent months, Geek+ has presented several new innovations including PopPick, a picking solution that can pick up to 650 totes per hour; a new cross-docking solution aimed at supermarkets; and Sky-Storage & Ground-Pick, a combined high-density storage and picking solution that allows pallet storage without sacrificing picking speed.

Geek+ will be at LogiMAT, Europe’s largest logistics trade fair (Hall 7 Stand D51, Stuttgart Messe, 31st  May – 2nd June), and will show the PopPick solution, as well as the RoboShuttle 8.

 

Tompkins-GRS partnership yields RaaS model

Posted on by David Priestman

Tompkins Robotics, a global leader in the robotic automation of distribution and fulfilment operations, has partnered with Global Robotics Services (GRS), a GLP backed platform that provides financial backing for collaborative robots as a service (RaaS) solutions.

The Tompkins Robotics – GRS RaaS solution provides customers with the ability to pay for what they consume including equipment, installation, commissioning, and support costs, all of which are included in the service level agreement (SLA). This innovative model gives customers the flexibility of a subscription-based pricing and service option instead of traditional capital equipment purchase and support model. This conserves capital, converts investment to an operating cost, and allows a customer to “pay as they go” for the use of the system.

RaaS also provides customers with the ability to scale up and down rapidly and easily in response to changing market conditions or seasonal demand such as the Holiday season, Back to School, January returns, and other seasonal events.

Tompkins Robotics, with its tSort robotic solution, has developed a reputation for execution of projects, rapid deployment, scalable layout design, understanding of US building codes, and knowledge of logistics operations. GRS brings the financial strength and resources of a global logistics real estate investor, developer, and operator. Together, Tompkins Robotics and GRS will bring new opportunities for US companies easy entry into automation and robotics.

Mike Futch, CEO of Tompkins Robotics, said: “The asset services support from our partnership with GRS will position Tompkins Robotics to implement a RaaS deployment for customers that prefer this model versus our existing capital procurement business model. In addition, our solutions have always had a reputation for being flexible, now we have the opportunity to allow financial flexibility as well.”

Hongming Chen, CEO of GRS, added: “Our vision is to accelerate the adoption of automation while lowering the barrier to entry for businesses when it comes to robotics technology. The subscription-based model of RaaS creates lower upfront capital requirements, reduced fixed costs and flexible lease terms which helps bridge the automation gap for many small to mid-size enterprises.

“A full package of services including consulting, implementation, maintenance, systems and robotics upgrading can all be provided as part of this service. With both parties expertise and resources, we look forward to expanding our cooperation with Tompkins in greater depth and breadth to provide a more holistic solution to our customers.”

 

Locus Robotics expands range with new AMRs

Posted on by David Priestman

Locus Robotics, a leader in autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) for fulfilment warehouses, announced at MODEX that it has expanded its line of warehouse AMRs with the introduction of Locus Vector and Locus Max.

These new form factors join the Locus Origin robot to form a comprehensive family of AMRs for a broad range of warehouse use cases. The new line addresses use cases from ecommerce, case-picking, and pallet-picking to scenarios requiring larger, heavier payloads to support the full range of product movement needs in today’s fulfilment and distribution warehouses.

“With these new LocusBots, we’re able to help our clients alleviate significant labour challenges and achieve optimal productivity by using the right bot for the job,” said Rick Faulk, CEO of Locus Robotics. “Locus is the proven leader in developing highly productive and innovative AMR technology that efficiently solves our customers’ needs for total warehouse optimisation, while delivering a fast time to value.”

“Locus’s innovative multi-bot solution has helped DHL to consistently double our workers’ productivity all around the world,” added Adrian Kumar, Global Head of Operations Science & Analytics at DHL Supply Chain. “This new robot line-up – with the different form factors all working together as a coordinated fleet – means we always assign the right robot, even as our needs change dynamically throughout the workday.”

The LocusBots are fully integrated within LocusOne, the intelligent, multi-bot warehouse orchestration platform that delivers predictable, efficient, and scalable productivity and cost optimisation for all product movement within the four walls of the warehouse. The platform seamlessly centralizes and coordinates a dynamic, multi-bot fleet while also providing detailed, forward-looking, and actionable business intelligence and reporting for effective management and planning.

The new offerings further extend Locus’s position as the industry AMR leader for the automation and digitisation of warehouses, distribution and fulfilment centres to meet increasing order volumes, labour shortages, and rising consumer expectations.

The new line of LocusBots consists of:

Locus Origin – Engineered for maximum warehouse efficiency, Locus Origin delivers proven fulfilment productivity coupled with agile manoeuvrability, incorporating the latest navigation and vision system technologies. It works easily and collaboratively with associates in dynamic warehouse environments.

Locus Vector – The industrial-strength AMR with the flexibility for a wide range of roles from fulfilment to transport to putaway. Locus Vector features omnidirectional mobility, compact design, and robust payload capacity for use in any environment. Locus Vector will ship to customers starting this summer.

Locus Max – Heavyweight payload capacity and unparalleled flexibility to easily transport a wide variety of heavy materials, cartons, or pallets across your facility. Locus Max is ideal for industrial and material handling applications. Currently deployed at several sites, Locus Max will have limited availability in 2022 and expanded availability in 2023.

All LocusBots will be available through the company’s all-inclusive, Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) pricing model and can be added to existing and new workflows, enabling operations to dynamically scale and adapt to changing market demands.

 

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