DC Velocity - December 2018

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The Future-Ready Warehouse

Today it seems that managing fluctuating demand and meeting changing customer expectations is all consuming, making it almost impossible to precisely plan for the future. Especially when you don’t know exactly what the future will bring.

I can’t tell you exactly what the future holds for your operation, but I do know it’s possible to make investments today that allow you to increase your preparedness to deal with whatever comes next.

At Swisslog, we define this as the future-ready warehouse and it encompasses three core capabilities:

Data-driven – you know you’re generating massive amounts of data in your warehouse and that data has the power to improve management and better predict demand. But how do you harness it? The key is in breaking down the silos that have grown up across warehouse management, warehouse execution and automation control systems. The new generation of warehouse management software, as exemplified by our SynQ system, integrates these functions into a single platform to unleash the power of data today while preparing you for a future in which artificial intelligence enables warehouse systems to learn and evolve on their own.

Flexible – mechanized and automated conveyor systems allowed warehouses to increase throughput at the expense of flexibility. That’s a compromise warehouse operators can no longer afford to make. The automation systems that get implemented today must be easy-to-de-ploy, modular and re-configurable so they can adapt to change as it occurs without significant capital investments.

Robotic – robots have emerged as a cost-effective solution to increasing warehouse productivity and throughput while delivering the flexibility and intelligence to adapt to change. These systems can be deployed quickly, are easily scalable and can move with you if you outgrow your current warehouse.

Swisslog has developed a family of automation solutions around these three capabilities. Our robotic solutions, supported by our SynQ software platform, ensure your investments not only pay dividends in the short term but ensure your warehouse is future-ready.