According to techcrunch, behind the massive influx of funds for warehouse robotics, it is mainly driven by one entity: Amazon Of course, there are other factors driving the development of the industry, including pandemics, labor shortages and supply chain constraints. This also forces companies such as Wal Mart to adopt creative and innovative methods to remain competitive
Although Amazon has the first opportunity in this field, which can be traced back to the acquisition of Kiva system in 2012, Wal Mart has been actively engaged in automation in recent years - although its own performance record is a little unstable, most notably Bossa Nova, which has been silent since the company abandoned the shelf scanning system.
Symbotic, based in Massachusetts, has much better luck. Late last year, the company announced its intention to go public through spac, largely based on the momentum of an ongoing deal with Wal mart that brought its warehouse robotics to the giant retailer's 25 distribution centers. On Monday, the two companies announced that they would expand the scope of the transaction and install symbotic system in all Wal Mart distribution centers in the United States - a total of 42.
Although Wal Mart obviously has confidence in these systems, it will not happen overnight. Symbotic said that the promotion of the transformation will take more than eight years to complete. It can be said that in just a decade, great changes will take place in the retail industry and the robot field.
Wal Mart senior vice president said in a press release: "The demand for accuracy and speed in the supply chain has never been so obvious. We believe it is time to extend symbotic technology to our entire regional distribution center network. Using high-speed robotics and intelligent software to organize and optimize inventory, symbotic system helps us deliver products to customers quickly and seamlessly by completely changing the way we receive and distribute products to stores."
Symbotic's system is multifaceted, which is similar to Berkshire grey and other companies. It includes a combination of mobile robots similar to Kiva for moving inventory and a mechanical arm that can pick, place and unload using a variety of different accessories.
According to symbotic, spac -- originally expected sometime in the first half of the year -- is still on schedule. It may be wise to postpone the listing, considering the market conditions. Meanwhile, Wal Mart has been building partnerships with a number of different robotics companies, including grey orange, which is providing equipment to the company's Canadian subsidiary.