Warehouse Operators Driven to Automate for Workforce Augmentation

Summary

Prior to the pandemic, warehouse operators who were committing to robotics automation solutions were considered innovative and pioneering. In fact, respondents to a 2019 Warehousing Vision Study conducted by Zebra indicated that the adoption of robotic material handling solutions was only expected to grow by 6-8% in a five-year period.

But the tides shifted quickly once demands for “fast shipping” soared to unprecedented levels, as did attitudes toward robots. Automating manual workflows became necessary for the sake of workforce augmentation, and robots were in demand by warehouse operators and associates alike.

Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR) increase workers’ worth and interest in warehousing jobs

Some argue that robots are replacing workers, but I can tell you that warehouse operators would happily hire more people if they could. There just aren’t enough job applicants these days. So, they’re turning to flexible automation solutions to help augment their workforces, particularly autonomous mobile robots (AMR) that can dynamically collaborate with workers and safely navigate facilities. By utilizing AMRs to move goods and materials from one place to the next, associates can stay in one place and spend 100% of their time focused on their job, whether that’s picking, packing, or putting away items.

Limiting associates’ movements and reducing their responsibilities makes a dramatic difference when you’re trying to increase fulfillment capacity and speed by double digits. Once they’re in sync with their robot coworkers, associates can get in a rhythm in their work zones and reach maximum productivity quite quickly.

Staffing shortages are no longer as apparent or burdensome as each individual can get more items out the door or on the shelf without having to work harder to do so.

Associates also have more time to pay attention to what’s happening around them when they’re not rushing around flustered, trying to meet deadlines as the tasks pile on. If inventory looks like it’s running low in a certain category or SKU, they have the time to report it. Or if something is misplaced, they can take an extra minute to fix it. This automatically increases their value to warehouse operators who are striving to get better control over inventory. It also improves workers’ self-worth, as they are making visibly positive contributions to the business. They don’t feel like robots themselves, running in repetitive circles all day.

Plus, it’s easier to retain people when you reduce how much and how far they must walk each day by 50-60%.

Warehouse jobs have a reputation for being physically demanding, and pain and exhaustion are mentally draining. If we want to turn around the labor situation long term and get more people to apply for open positions, we must make warehouse jobs so simple that workers go home feeling proud of all they accomplished and empowered to do more the next day. This positive energy will start to spread across communities, with employees encouraging friends, family and neighbors to come work with them. But, as referrals increase and the labor pool starts to expand, we must also ensure jobs are so simple that someone who has never worked in a warehouse could be successful on day one. That’s where robots’ value extends beyond workforce augmentation–at least in terms of closing a labor gap.

Intelligent robots such as AMRs can both give and receive instructions either through an on-board human machine interface (HMI) or via the mobile computing devices that human workers have on hand, including wearables, handhelds, and tablets. All associates must do is follow the steps communicated through the on-board HMI, their device screens, or headsets to get through tasks with minimal training and no prior experience. The AMR can help coach them through the picking or put away process so they don’t have to track down a human colleague for help. Likewise, when associates need help moving items, they just need to request assistance and the flexible robots will head right over.

AMRs help eliminate the learning curve and skills requirements that would have previously deterred many warehouse job candidates. They also reduce the number of experienced associates that must be pulled away from their daily responsibilities to train new hires. In turn, inbound and outbound operations can remain steady all day long, even when there are waves of change in the workforce or a surge of customer demands.

To learn more about the specific ways you can leverage AMRs to augment your workforce and maintain workflow continuity during labor shortages or seasonal peaks, click here.