Clare Bottle CEO, UKWA
Last year was the worst year for retail in five years. The Centre for Retail Research reported that 17,145 high street shops closed in 2022. Contributory factors included soaring energy costs and wider inflation, but arguably e-commerce has played the biggest role in the demise of traditional shopping habits.
Warehousing has been affected by this too, gaining greater prominence in the retail supply chain as bricks and mortar stores close and retailers focus on delivering directly to consumers. Accordingly, warehouses have transformed into sophisticated order fulfilment centres, offering complex value-add services, and managing ever larger numbers of SKUs with omnichannel inventory. Rapid order fulfilment isn’t just an option anymore. The expectation is for shorter lead-times, fewer errors and higher visibility, both for the consumer and the retailer. To meet these demands, we need good old-fashioned process-flow optimisation of course, but a new generation of highly-skilled logistics professionals is using cutting edge technology too.
As consumers responded to civic lockdowns by embracing e-commerce, fulfilment centres had to simultaneously increase productivity and observe social distancing in the workplace. A mass exodus of EU nationals from the UK workforce and early retirement of older workers, perhaps fearful for their health, or simply re-evaluating their life choices, hit the logistics industry hard. Alongside the well-documented loss of HGV drivers, we faced a severe shortage of trained forklift truck drivers and labour wars ensued, with companies competing to secure sufficient staff even to fulfil entry-level jobs like picking and packing.
But it was not only labour that was in short supply. The impact of many years grappling with a planning system that is not fit for purpose meant we struggled for space to meet the demand created by the e-commerce boom too. This combined dearth of people and places meant warehouse operations had to get creative, finding ways of doing more, in the same space, with fewer people.
The adoption of automation began to accelerate in UK warehouses. Indeed, experts have predicted a surge in digital transformation over the next decade, which will bring fundamental changes to the warehouse operations of the future. Even the UK Government expects warehousing to be at the epicentre of a rapid period of growth in robotics across the whole economy.
Key technologies will include real-time data gathering, underpinned by the Internet of Things (IoT), enabling predictive analytics, real-time visibility and allowing collaboration among processes and partners, to create more efficient and effective operating models.
Beyond visibility, IoT enables holistic performance and status tracking of all connected devices, and the number is likely to increase significantly over the next few years. For example, temperature sensors can monitor cold storage parameters and vibration sensors track motors to predict failures before they occur.
Smart phones, mobile devices and apps have already equipped warehouse employees to access data anytime anywhere, using imaging, voice recognition and more to contribute towards increased performance and lower costs. With increasing capability and configurability, robots are taking more significant roles in warehouses.
Robots offer a cost-effective form of labour that doesn’t require holidays or breaks and operates without needing light or heat. As costs come down and Robotics as a Service (RaaS) gains in popularity, this option takes the strain of monotonous, repetitive work, freeing human workers to focus on more complex tasks and scaling up capacity almost instantly during erratic peak seasons.
Cobots, collaborative robots designed to work together with humans to complete tasks such as picking, are becoming more common, thanks to their affordability and ease of programming. They are designed to work safely and efficiently around humans. Easy-to-integrate, lightweight and flexible, warehouse cobots eliminate unnecessary walking or heavy lifting, so workers can focus on picking and other revenue-producing tasks. It is even possible to take the collaboration further, with an exoskeleton or “wearable” robot to augment human capabilities, reducing the risk of fatigue or injury.
Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) have been around since the 1950s, so they are already used by larger operators like Amazon. Wider adoption has the potential to revolutionise the movement of goods in and around the warehouse. They are scalable and only require minimal adaptation to the existing infrastructure.
Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) have even more dynamic navigation abilities. Drone technology too is proving increasingly popular as a safe and economical option for inventory management, taking a fraction of the time needed for the manual equivalent and delivering more accurate results.
These developments and more, contribute to increased productivity and improved efficiency, optimising workflows with faster putaway, picking, packing and stock control. By replacing potentially hazardous tasks with automation, your warehouse can operate more safely too.
Yet, despite the many benefits, too few warehouses in the UK have adopted technology. Due in part to the low margins with which our industry operates, many companies have been slow to take the leap. Other barriers cited include transition planning, implementation challenges, costs and frequency of maintenance.
As ever, we’re here to help. The thrust of this year’s UKWA National Conference, which is sponsored by Nulogy, will be to support delegates in learning what’s available, what’s achievable and what technology can do to equip you for the tough times ahead.
Join us to hear from an impressive line-up of industry experts, including Richard Potter, CTO of Microsoft Service UK, Wincanton CEO James Wroath and Rueben Scriven of Interact Analysis, one of the warehouse automation industry’s leading analysts. As usual, leading figures from the world of logistics users will join the conference to share their experiences of the changing digital world, and this year’s after dinner speaker will be Edwina Currie, former MP, Strictly contestant and Telegraph columnist.
The message from UKWA is clear. Doing nothing is no longer an option. Technology is the way forward to improve your operational performance and, ultimately, will save costs. These are critical considerations for warehouses not only to survive, but to thrive.
You can book now to find out more about robotics, automation, and digitalisation, how these technologies can benefit your business, optimise your operations and secure your future.
Join us at the Crowne Plaza, Stratford-upon-Avon, 7-8 March 2023. Visit www.ukwa.org.uk to register.