仓库机器人的未来-Geek

THEFUTUREOFWAREHOUSEROBOTICS|InspiringintelligentinsightPart1:TheworldofwarehousinghaschangedUntiltoday,autonomousmobilerobots(AMRs)havebeendeployedinisolatedworkflowsinwarehouseswithnorealmultipleprocessesinthesamebuildingThepandemicmeantwarehouseshadtocopewithsocialdistancingandstaffabsences.Italsocausedamassivee-commerceboostandhasledtoaprotractedlaborshortage.Allthishasforcedwarehousemanagerstotakeadeeperlookatthepossibilitiesofferedbywarehouseautomationandtoaccelerateanyexistingplanstheyhadtoautomate.Thegoalisnotonlytoimprovetheefficiencyoftheirbusinessesinanewlycompetitivelandscape,butalsotobooststaffretentionbyimprovingworkinglives.Atthesametime,thepandemichashighlightedthatnothingiscertainandthatindustriescanbeturnedupsidedownovernight.Flexibilityforoperationsandnotbeingtiedtomajorinfrastructurefortoolongisofmuchgreaterimportance.OntopofCOVID-relatedchallenges,othermajorchangesinthemarketareafoottoo.Theseincludeso-called‘mass-customization’which,forwarehouses,meansthattheproductlinestheyhavetostoreanddeliverareliabletochangesizeandshapeatshortnotice.Aswellasdemandsforevermorerapiddelivery.AnAMRsolutionusuallypresentsseveralmajorbenefitscomparedtofixedautomation:itismorecost-effective,itisfastertodeploy,itismoreflexible,anditiseasiertoscale.Newmobilerobotsolutionsareenablingrobotstoselectindividualtotesandbringthemtopickers,insteadofbringingwholeracks,resultinginmajorefficiencyimprovements.Meanwhile,combiningsophisticatedsoftwaremanagementsystemswiththewidevarietyofAMRplatformsnowavailablegivestheoptionofknittingdifferentrobottypestogetherintoasinglesolution.Ultimately,thispresentsthepossibilityofawholesalereplacementoffixedautomationsolutionswithmobileones.Toputitbluntly:ifateamofwellmanagedmobilerobotscanpickandcarryanyitemtoanylocationinawarehouse,whywouldanybodyeverinstallafixedconveyorbelteveragain?Toputitbluntly:ifateamofwellmanagedmobilerobotscanpickandcarryanyitemtoanylocationinawarehouse,whywouldanybodyeverinstallafixedconveyorbelteveragain?221000sofwarehouses1000sofwarehousesGlobally,theopportunityforwarehouseautomationisimmense.Notleastbecauseofthehugegrowthinthenumbersofwarehouses.AccordingtodatafromInteractAnalysis,therewere150,000warehousesaroundtheworldbytheendof2020.Thiswillhavegrowntoabout180,000by2025(seeFig.1).Globalwarehousecount20010080604020020182019202020212022202320242025EuropeNorthAmericaRestofWorldFig.1–Therewillbeabout180,000warehousesgloballyby2025,upfrom150,000attheendof2020Muchofthisgrowthisdrivenbye-commerce,witharoughrulebeingthat,forevery$1billioninadditionalonlinesales,anadditional1millionsquarefeetofwarehousingisneededtosupportit.Andoverhalfofthesenewwarehouses(57%)willbeinfivecountries:China,theUSA,Japan,India,andGermany.Moreover,75%ofthecurrentwarehousestockhasnoautomationatall,sothemarketpotentialforwarehouseautomationis|movingtheworld|movingtheworldintelligentlyWithT2PAMR,thewarehouseceilingistheonlyreallimitationforstorage.Part2-Embracingtote-to-person(T2P)AMRandthemobileautomationsolutionRT2PAMRtechnologyisanewvariantontraditionalG2P(goods-to-person)solutionsthatseesrobotsbringindividualtotestopickingemployees,insteadofentireracks.OnekeyadvantageofT2PAMRisthatkeepingthemainrackstationaryallowsformuchhigherracksthanwouldbepossibleiftheentirerackhadtobemovedregularly.InmanywarehousestodaywhichuseG2P,thehigherareainthewarehouseissimplywasted.AnautomatedT2PAMRsolutioncanthereforesignificantlyincreasewarehousestoragecapacityinthesescenarios–withthewarehouseceilingbeingtheonlyreallimitationforstorage.Conversely,wherewarehousesarealreadyusingtallrackstofilltheirhighspace,ifthepickingprocessisautomatedatall,itisgenerallydoneusingabespokesolution,ofteninvolvingcranesandforklifts.Inthesescenarios,T2PAMRoffersafarcheaperandeshelfpathtoautomationthatwaspreviouslyentirelylacking.DatafromInteractAnalysisshowsthatthemarketforT2PAMRsolutionsisgrowingfast.RevenuesfromT2PAMRareexpected2025(2025willalsobethefirstyearthatT2PAMRoutpacessalesofstandardG2Psolutionswhichwillbe1.3billionthatyear).ThebenefitsofT2PAMRareparticularlyusefulinsomespecificwarehousesegments.Forexample,inmanyretailandapparelwarehouses,G2Pautomationwasneversuitableincertainapplicationsforvariousreasons,suchastheneedtopickandloadveryheavygoods,ortheneedtoclimbtohighlocationsveryfrequently.T2PAMRrepresentsaworkableautomationsolutionfortheseapplications.T2PAMRadoptionisalsobeingdrivenbywidertrends.Whilewarehouses,likeallbusinesses,arealwaysstrivingforefficiencies,thepressuretoimprovewarehouseefficiencythroughautomationrightnowisparticularlystrong.Partoftheissueisanunprecedentedgloballaborshortagewhich,thoughitmayhavecomeaboutasaresultofCOVID-19,showsnosignofrecedingalongwiththevirus.554.5%20204.5%2020Theotherbigissueisthe(again,largelyCOVID-19related)growthine-commerce.USCensusBureaudatareportsthatUSecommercesalesaccountedfor.5%oftotalretailsalesin2011.rthenextmonthsitincreasedto15%.ThismeansUSe-commercepenetrationroseasmuchin2020asithaddoneoverthepreviousdecadeintermsofmarketshare:apicturethatwaslargelyrepeatedacrossmuchofthedevelopedworld.Thegrowthine-commercevolumeisradicallychangingthecompetitivelandscapeofretail.U.S.e-commercepercentagesoftotalretail|Inspiringintelligentinsight6Moreconservativecustomersarewillingtotestoutautomationsolutionsoncetheyareperceivedas‘triedandtested’bythemarket.Thisgrowthine-commercevolumeispressuringe-commercecompaniestoimproveefficiencywhereverpossible.Itisalsoradicallychangingthecompetitivelandscapeofretail.Oneexampleistherapidriseofrapiddeliverycompanies,whichmainlyusebicycleorcarcourierstodeliveritemswithinverytighttimeslots.Whilerapiddeliverymaynotdirectlycompetewithlargere-commerceoperations,itdoesmovetheentiremarketinthedirectionofevertighterdeliverytimeslots.Oneexampleofaresponsetothisfromlargere-commercecompaniesistheriseofautomatedmicro-fulfillmentcenters,whichareservicedbylargercentralizeddistributionhubs.InteractAnalysis’sresearchshowsthat43micro-fulfillmentcenterswentlivein2021,meaningthetotalglobalstockwas86.In2030,1,998micro-fulfillmentcenterswillgolive,bywhichtime,thetotalglobalstockwillbe7,338–thevastmajorityofwhichwillbeintheUSAandEurope.Warehouseautomationspreadsbeyonde-commerce:implicationsofamaturingmarketAstheoverallwarehouseautomationmarketgrows(from$29.6billionin2020to$69billionby2025,seeFig.2below),ageneralmaturityinwarehouseautomationsolutionshasexpandedthecustomerbase.That’sessentiallybecausemoreconservativecustomersarewillingtotestoutautomationsolutionsoncetheytestedbythemarketWithsuchcustomers,itbecomesprimarilyaquestionofreturnoninvestment.AndsinceT2PAMRsolutionshavearapidreturn,marketmaturityishelpingtoshiftthesesystems.Warehouseautomationmarketrevenueforecastbyequipmenttype80,00060,00040,00020,000020182019202020212022202320242025FixedautomationIntegrationMobileautomationServicesSoftwareFig.2–Thewarehouseautomationmarketwillgrowfrom$29.6billionin2020tobillionby20257|movingtheworldintelligently7It’simportanttorememberthatgrowthinthee-commercemarketdoesn’tjustimpacte-commercewarehouses,itimpactswarehousesfurtherdownthechaintoo.Forexample,Geek+customerComixhasreferredtoa“fragmentationandrandomization”ofe-commerceordersascustomersincreasinglyrequestsmallere-commerceshipmentsandalsoorderitemsthat(pre-pandemic)veryfewwouldhaveconsideredbuyingonline.Thechallengesinpredictingwhichproductswillneedtobepickedandinwhatvolumedrivesevengreaterneedforflexibilityinwarehouseoperations.E-commercewasanearlyadopterofmoreadvancedwarehouseautomationsolutions,butnowmarketdataclearlyshowsthatmanyotherwarehousesegmentsarerapidlyfollowingsuit.AscanbeseeninFig.3belowmanyindividualindustrysegmentsaregrowingtheiruseofwarehouseautomationsignificantly.Forexample,groceryaccountedfor12%ofwarehouseautomationrevenuesin2020butwillaccountfor16%ofamuchlargermarketby2025.Warehouseautomationmarketrevenueforecastbyvertical80,00070,00060,00050,00040,00030,00020,00010,000020182019202020212022202320242025GeneralmerchandiseDurablemanufacturingOtherGroceryFood&beverageNondurablemanufacturingParcelApparelPharmaceuticalwholesaleFig.3–Groceryaccountedfor12%ofwarehouseautomationrevenuesin2020,butwillaccountfor16%ofamuchlargermarketby20258|Inspiringintelligentinsight8RoboShuttleRoboShuttleselectsindividualtotesdirectlyoutofstoragerackstoacachelevelwithRS8robots,andP40robotscarrythemto|movingtheworldintelligently9Part3-Areal-worldcasestudyOneexampleofT2PAMRsistheGeek+RoboShuttlesolution,whichcanincreasewarehousestoragecapacitybyupto3timesbyallowingpickableshelvesupto8minheightwiththeRS8totetransferrobot.ThesolutionalsooffershighpickingefficiencybycombiningtheP40pickingrobotwhichdeliverstheabilitytopickupto400totesperpickingstationperhour.Implementationisrapidwithfullsystemdeploymentinunderonemonth.Andaflexibledesignmeansthatexistingcustomershelves,racksandloftscanbereused.Meanwhile,amodular,scalableapproachmeansrobotscanbeeasilyaddedorremovedinlinewithbusinessneeds,andthattheRoboShuttlesolutioncaneasilybecombinedwithotherautomationsolutions,suchasG2Porpickandplacerobots.Itcanevenbeconnectedinamulti-processsolution(seepart4below).TheresultisthataveragereturnoninvestmentisOnereal-worldclientinFrance–asustainableconstructionmaterialscompany–chosetheGeek+combinedRoboShuttleINCREASEDSTORAGEUPTO3xandP40robotsolution.Theirgoalwastoensurenext-daydeliveryofallproductstobothB2BandB2Ccustomers.Thiswasatoughchallengebecausethecompanyshipsmorethanathousandproductsperhouratpeaktimes.AndtheywerealsoaskingforanAMRsolutionthatwouldhelpthemincreasethisthroughput,aswellasdeliverhigherpickingaccuracyandlowerlaborcosts.Geek+steppedinandmetthechallenge.TheirRoboShuttlerobotsarenowresponsiblefortransferringtotesupanddownhighracks.WhileP40robotsthenretrievethetotesandtakethemtoanoperatoratapickingstation.Thissolutiongivesmuchhigherstoragecapacity,sinceituses5.1meterhighracks–farhigherthanastandardG2Psolutioncouldmanage.Ithasalsoimprovedpickingefficiencybecausepickingstationscanbeadjustedtotheoptimalheightforeachindividualoperator.Finally,theuseofP40robotsinsteadoffixedconveyorsrepresentsamajorcostsaving.400TOTESPERPICKINGSTATIONPERHOUR|Inspiringintelligentx4INCREASEINAVERAGEWAREHOUSESTORAGECOSTSAVINGOF50%Part4-TheevolutionofG2PItsimportanttounderstandthatthecomingofageofT2PAMRdoesnotspelltheendofthelineforG2Ptechnology.Formanycustomers,currentG2Psolutionsaremorethanenough.AndG2Pitselfisevolving.Infact,G2Piscontinuingtodrivethewarehouseautomationrevolution,constantlyimprovingtheefficiencywithwhichhumansandrobotscanworktogether.OnesolutionexamplefromGeek+thatillustratesthedepthandrichnessofG2PinnovationsisPopPick.Anotheristherobotcross-dockingpickingsolution.PopPickPopPickseesG2P-stylerobotscarryentirerackstoapickstation,justlikeanordinaryG2Psolution.ButwhatmakesitdifferentisthePopPickemployeestation.That’sbecauseitisanautomatedAI-enabledtotepickingworkstation.Oncetherackarrivestotesareselectedbyrobotsthatarebuilt-intothepickingstation.Thesetotesarethenpresentedtooperators.Thissolutionenableshigh-densitystoragebystacking12columnsoftotesinarowwithonlya2cmgapbetweenthem,deliveringa4xincreaseinaveragewarehousestoragedensity.Theresultisapickingefficiencyof650totesperhourperpickingstationgiving(onaverage)a50%costsavingcomparedtotraditionalsolutions.WithPopPick,entireracksarecarriedtopickingstations,andstationsselectindividualtotestopresentto|Inspiringintelligent||InspiringintelligentinsightRoboticcross-dockingisaspecialevolutionofG2Ptechnology,andisarguablythebestpracticeforanycross-dockingneedsintheretailindustry.Theprocesstakesplaceinacross-dockingterminalmadeupofareceivingdockforinboundgoods,acentralspaceforsortinggoods,andanoutbounddockwheresortedgoodsareloadedintovehiclestotraveltothecustomer.Thisprocessisachallengebecausedemandisunpredictable,thepaceisfastandisunforgivingofhumanerror,andthesystemleaveslittleroomforstorageofgoodsmeaninganysuddenstoppageoftheworkflowishighlyproblematic.Anotherreal-worldexampleOneexampleofacustomerusingroboticcross-dockingisalargeUKsupermarketchain.Theyadoptedaroboticcross-dockingsolutionfromGeek+ina10,490m2warehouse.Theprojectused50Geek+P-seriesrobotsalongwith30pickingworkstationstomanage600setsofshelves.Andthesolutiondeliveredaflexibleandscalablepickingstoragearea,alongwithintelligentorderandpriorityscheduling.Thebenefitshavebeenimprovedpickingefficiency,amajorreductioninthelaborrequirementandcosts,andradicallybetterpickingaccuracyandqualitycontrol.Deployingmulti-AMRsolutionsFormanymobilerobotvendors,flexibilityhasawaysbeenakeysellingpoint.Mobilerobotsareinherentlyflexiblebecausetheycanberapidlydeployedinprettymuchanywarehouse,becausetheyareveryeasytoadapttomatchnewworkflows,andbecausetheycanveryquicklybescaledupordowndependingontherequiredthroughput.Infact,manymobilerobotvendorshaveaRobot-as-a-Serviceofferingtoallowcustomerstotemporarilyscaleupattimesofpeakdemandsuchaspublicholidays,andthentoscalebackdownagainafter.InthecurrentThenextstepinmarketmaturityistheautomationofouseeeousethroughAMRs.contextofrapidgrowthduetotheCOVID-19rebound,theconceptofflexibilityisonlygettingmoreimportant.Theneedforflexibility,combinedwithalaborshortagewhichisprovidingwarehouseswithanimpetustoautomateanyprocessestheycan,isnowleadingtothenextstepinmarketmaturity:theautomationofentire(orclosetoentire)warehouseoperationsthroughAMRs.Thiscanbedonebydeployingacombinedmobilerobotsolution,whereG2PandT2PAMRandothertypesofmobilerobotplatformsallworkinunison.Thisisabigchallengeintermsofrobotmanagementasithastobemanagedcentrally,andthereforerequiresallrobotstobeworkinginasynchronizedway.1WAREHOUSESTORAGECAPACITY+200%PICKINGEFFICIENCY+50%ACCURACYRATES99.99%1WAREHOUSESTORAGECAPACITY+200%PICKINGEFFICIENCY+50%ACCURACYRATES99.99%totes,isanefficientandprovenset-up,manycustomersaremovingawayfromthem.That’sbecausetheyarealmostimpossibletoadaptasdemandsonthebusinesschange,andalsobecausetheyarerelativelyexpensiveandtimeconsumingtoinstall.Awell-managedteamofmobilerobotscanpickandmoveanythingtoanywhereinawarehousewithnoneedforanyconveyorsatall.Thisisnotjustcheaperthanconveyorstosetup,canhavetheabilitytoreachallareasofawarehouse.MultiMulti-AMRcasestudies:thejourneytocombinedmobilerobotsolutionsDespitetherelativematurityofthemobilewarehouseautomationmarket,mostcustomersstillstartrelativelysmallwithaninitialpickingsolution–usuallyaG2Psolution–inoneareaofthewarehouse.Onlyoncethey’vemadesurethatwarehouseautomationworksproperlyanddeliversastrongreturnoninvestmentwithintheconfinesoftheirspecificindustrywilltheylooktothenexpandintoawidersolution.Onereal-worldexampleofamorecomplexautomationsolutionisatComix–aleadingB2BofficesuppliesandSaaScloudservicecompanyinChina.Thechallengewastodealwithover130,000small-sizedandhighlyvariedSKUs.Todothis,Geek+offeredaninnovativeT2PAMRsolutionthatcombinedtwotypesofmobilerobotsolutionfromGeek+-theRS8tohandlethetote-to-cachestorageandtheP40robottodelivertote-to-person.Geek+wasabletotailorthissolutionwithinComix’suniquebusinessenvironment,combiningtheadvantagesofbothtypesofrobots.TheRS8robotmovestotesfromthestoragerowstoastoragecache,fromwheretheP40robotstakeoverandcarrytotestoindividualoperatorsatpickingstations.1AtComix,thisisasolutionthatworksreallyeffectivelybecauseitgivestheabilitytocachein-demandSKUsonthelowestshelf,whichradicallyspeedsupthepickingprocess.TheresulthasbeenthattheoverallstoragecapacityatComixwarehousesisupby200%,pickingefficiencyisup50%,andaccuracyrateshavereached99.99%.Additionally,thesolutionhasnotonlyimprovedtheefficiencyofoperatorsbuthasalsoimprovedtheirworkingconditionsbyreducingoverallwork|movingtheworld2PACKINGEFFICIENCYUP4-6xSTORAGECAPACITY2PACKINGEFFICIENCYUP4-6xSTORAGECAPACITYUP1.5-2xACCURACY&DELIVERYRATES99.99%OFNEWWAREHOUSESWILLBEIN5COUNTRIES$1BILLIONOFONLINESALESREQUIRESADDITIONAL1MILLIONft23WAREHOUSESTORAGECAPACITY+20%AnotherAnothercombinedAMRcasestudyisShican,alsoinChina.Shicanisaleading3PLintheapparelsector.TheirchallengewastheneedtocopewithmassiveSKUs(withclothesstoredfolded),aswellasamajorincreaseine-commerce,andsignificantseasonalinventorychanges.Tomeetthesechallenges,thecompanyinstalled80RS-5robotsfromGeek+.Theresultswerethatpackingefficiencyincreasedby4-6x,storagecapacitywentupby1.5-2x,andbothaccuracyandon-timedeliveryrateshit99.99%2.AfinalcasestudyisFrenchsportinggoodsretailerDecathlonwhoadoptedaGeek+AMRsolutionconsistingofRS8andP800robotsattheirwarehousesinKunshan,China.Decathlonwasusinghighbayshelvesandforkliftsforpalletstorage,severelylimitingtheirinventorymanagementcapabilitiesandalsorequiringalotofexpensivelicensedforkliftdrivers.TheGeek+solutionincreasedstoragecapacityby20%andalsoincreasedstorageutilizationby25%3.SSTORAGEUTILIZATION+25%|InspiringintelligentThemodularizationchallengeNoteverycustomerwillwantacombinedmobilerobotsolution,yetitisanimportantandgrowingsector.Customerstendtostartbyautomatingthelowhangingfruit,onlywhenthatisimplementedsuccessfullydotheylookforthenextautomationopportunity.Yet,nomatterhowwidespreadthetrendbecomes,multirobotsolutionswillneverbeavailableentirely‘off-the-elfAdegreeofcustomizationwillalwaysberequiredbutmodularizationwillbepossible,andthiswillcausecostsandimplementationtimetofallsignificantlyfurtherovertime.