Eileen Mozinski Schmidt Warehouse operations addressing worker and space shortages with technology
In a market with reported labor shortages and shifts in supply chain conditions, material handling companies have a series of evolving challenges to face. This month, we offer a look at some of these technological advancements and solutions for warehouse operators looking to staff operations and fulfill orders.
‘A lot of opportunities’
At Vecna Robotics, a focus on logistics has been at the forefront in recent years, according to Jeff Huerta, head of business development at the company. The business began about 20 years ago, working on government projects before moving into health care and robotics for commonplace environments and now to logistics, Huerta said. “There’s a lot of opportunities there for automation, robotics. We have supply chain growth along with labor shortage,” he said.
With over three billion pallets moved every day worldwide, the current need in warehouses is substantial, according to Huerta, who said Vecna now offers means for taking standard material handling vehicles and converting them to fully robotic. As nearly as five years ago, Huerta said Venca’s customers were focused on controlling costs. “Now in 2020 and 2021, it’s really labor shortage,” he said. “They can’t hire people to sit in a fork truck or vehicle in a warehouse.”
Some of the difficulty relates to the type of work. “People sometimes are not looking to do that kind of job,” said Huerta, comparing some warehouse positions to work like driving for Uber, which he said is perhaps more popular. “As an Uber driver, you make your own hours. You work outside, every day is different. You’re driving around and you’re talking to somebody. In the warehousing world, there are very defined hours. If you’re in a warehouse, it is not temperature controlled. The social aspect is really not there. You are solely driving from point A to B and B to A.”
So Venca’s robotic products seek to fill the roles of tasks that are dirty, demanding, or dangerous, freeing up people to work in more desirable roles, Huerta said. He said companies of all sizes use Vecna Robotics, particularly those operating over multiple shifts. And the robotic technology continues to improve, Huerta said. “Sensors have evolved and are better, smaller and faster,” he said, adding that the technology hardware the company launched at PACK Expo moves faster, similar to the speed people move in the warehouse.
“The new Mark 3 software release helps warehouse, distribution, and manufacturing organizations double fleet performance to improve efficiency and throughput while continuing to exceed industry safety standards,” a press release from the company said. As to safety, Huerta said there are multiple layers of protection built into the company’s robotics. “There are sensing devices that have multiple levels of redundancy,” he said, noting that the sensing equipment assesses the direction a vehicle is traveling and decelerates if there is ever an uncertain situation.
Huerta sees robotics and automation as continuing to help create solutions in warehouses. “I think we’re just hitting the tip of the iceberg. The labor shortage isn’t going away,” he said. “I believe the new trend in logistics is ‘How do we get people to do the jobs in warehouses and what jobs do we want to do?” Huerta said Vecna takes a ground-level approach when working with customers, focusing on moving products and helping a business see how to build an effective strategy. “The technology is ready today and anyone can use it,” he said, noting that representatives from Vecna talk with workers on the ground floor and have heard stories firsthand about logistics needs. “There’s a serious problem here; it’s not going away. Automation and robotics don’t take jobs, it just helps people that need help,” Huerta said.
Filling workforce gaps
At Hyster-Yale Group, Kevin Paramore said the company’s robotic lift truck suite is helping warehouses fill the gaps. The company’s new-to-market operator assistance system also is key. In addition to the labor shortage, there is a high turnover rate of equipment operators, said Paramore, emerging technology commercialization manager at Yale.
Yale’s systems help inexperienced operators by combatting a lot of potential mistakes, he said. “It can detect things like objects, pedestrians and then react to it. It can decelerate the truck, enough for the operation to see what is going on,” Paramore said. “It will not let you pick up a load that is greater than the lift truck’s capacity.”
The operator assistance system is available in nearly all Yale’s warehouse models, he said, noting that the system provides help without taking over the equipment. “It doesn’t’ take over the truck, your operator is always in charge,” Paramore said. But what it can do is provide calculations in speed and loads. For example, the system would help an operator decelerate at the correct rate based on the load, fork height, and other calculations, according to Paramore.
As at Vecna, Paramore said Yale Robotics helps in filling labor gaps due to open positions, absenteeism, or high turnover by completing many of the redundant tasks. “Automation allows a person to go into more of a value-added role,” he said. “I think your highest turnover is in these lower-hanging tasks. It’s probably not very fulfilling to do the same things over and over again. Automating that allows them to progress into other roles and give them more job satisfaction.”
In the coming year, Paramore sees the adoption of robotics only speeding up. “Those that have not already gone down an automation strategy road, they are quickly getting to that place today,” he said. “They see the value in it, the return on investment is a lot more realistic.”
Renting space ‘one chunk at a time’
Others are using technology to meet warehouse space needs. At Chunker, Brad Wright has created an Airbnb-style software program for warehousing. The platform is a marketplace, facilitating short-term rental agreements for warehouse space. “Our tagline is, ‘Warehouse sharing, one chunk at a time,” said Wright, CEO of the company. He noted that in an industry driven by long-term leases, Chunker is helping businesses use and find the short-term space they need.
Users access the platform when needed and can craft deals of their choosing. “We do a lot of month-to-month deals,” said Wright, who said the average deal is four to five months in length. Chunker provides the documentation needed to craft a deal and then processes payments. “We’ve done warehouse deals in 15 minutes before,” Write said. “Everybody gets paid instantly.”
In the months since the business launch at the end of 2019, Wright said Chunker’s growth has accelerated quickly and material handling partners have been key. “They’re out there every day and they know who has extra space,” Wright said. “They make super great partners for us.” So far, Chunker has created a marketplace for deals in warehouses in 46 states and roughly 200 cities, and the platform space has doubled in the last year alone.
“We envision our footprint growing significantly in the U.S.,” said Wright, who said the company will likely grow worldwide in the future as well. Some of the current difficulties related to labor and supply chain dynamics are apparent among Chunker’s customers, although the trends do not change the work the technology company does. “It definitely precipitates the crisis with our customers,” said Wright, noting at the time of the interview with Material Handing Wholesaler one customer with containers being freed up in the Port of Los Angeles but without warehouse space needed.
“Their warehouse is full and they don’t have room,” he said, noting the company was impacted by the labor shortage. “They need a short-term solution. We’re that buffer that gives them an easy solution to a hard problem.”
About the Author:
Eileen Mozinski Schmidt is a freelance writer and journalist based in the Greater Milwaukee area. She has written for print and online publications for the past 13 years. Email [email protected] or visit eileenmozinskischmidt.wordpress.com to contact Eileen. If your company would like to be featured, email [email protected]
