How can automation save space in the warehouse? 5 questions for David Lamb

With e-commerce booming, retailers worldwide are facing new challenges. For most of them, automation can provide the right answer. There are many different solutions that all aim to optimize processes picking, for example. Dematic offers several solutions that feature AutoStore™, an automated storage, goods-to-person (GTP) picking and fulfilment system. We asked David Lamb, Consulting Manager at Dematic, about the benefits of these solutions and the potential of automated picking in the warehouse.

David Lamb, Consulting Manager at Dematic

What are some of the key differences between an AutoStore-based system and manual warehouse operation?

When compared to a typical manual warehouse operation, AutoStore systems streamline the process significantly, creating an efficient picking process with a single operator doing the equivalent work of four to five manual pickers. With AutoStore, the products are brought directly to the operator, working to actively streamline the picking process by reducing warehouse foot traffic and keeping the products close to where they are required to be. In a manual operation, this can be a tedious effort to walk around the warehouse and visit each slot to replenish single units.

So it’s pretty obvious that automation can make the picking process way more efficient. But you mentioned the reduction of foot traffic — does that mean it can also save space?

Yes, definitely. For example, envisage an operation that needs 300 bays of long span shelving to provide the required storage and SKU selectivity. Now consider the space required for this operation. There are the products themselves, the steel and shelving of the bays, and the clearances between levels, and then there is the ‘empty’ space required for the pickers to walk through the aisles and maneuver their equipment. This space is empty from floor to ceiling. This solution would conservatively require 1,730 m², including the storage, aisles, and some packing benches. A long-span bay of shelving is typically the equivalent of 20 AutoStore bins. Therefore our 300 bays represent 6,000 AutoStore bins. The space required for 6,000 AutoStore bins with GTP ports is just 220 m², which is an 87% footprint saving in the storage and packing area. 

It’s great that AutoStore can save so much space, but how exactly does a company profit from this?

Achieving maximum storage space in a minimum footprint is a key challenge for modern operations. Whether you lease or buy an existing parcel of land, build new facilities, or make use of existing structures, footprint is expensive. AutoStore has the highest storage density of any GTP solution in the market. While many happy customers have saved money on a smaller building or parcel of land, others have cleared up to 80% of the footprint from their existing manual warehousing space, and thus avoided having to move altogether. Furthermore, space savings allow for better utilization of existing facilities beyond warehousing. Some customers have used newly created space to expand manufacturing or add special areas for value-adding tasks such as kitting or custom build areas.

It seems an AutoStore-based solution is tailormade for the current conditions brought on by the pandemic. What do you think?

The unparalleled flexibility of AutoStore allows it to align with the specific fulfilment challenges a business needs to address. Additionally, in the age of COVID-19, AutoStore allows for excellent social distancing practices, with separation of workers at dedicated ports and no need for workers to walk around and pass each other.

The advantages of automation seem quite appealing. But from a sustainability point of view, wouldn’t energy consumption increase, creating financial and environmental challenges?

Dematic solutions featuring AutoStore are among the most sustainable warehouse picking solutions on the market. Power regeneration technology used by the robots make AutoStore one of the lowest energy consuming technologies in warehousing. In fact, a turnkey system with 10 robots and a GTP port will consume the same energy as a domestic toaster: 1,200 Watts. So it is quite the opposite and represents a real opportunity for businesses to promote their green credentials with a tangible example. And save money, too!