When companies implement safe, flexible mobile platforms enabled by intelligent sensors, everyone wins. We break down how every role benefits from this smart technology.
For the logistics managers
Mobile platforms and humans can work safely in close proximity.
They need good visibility into their warehouse and DC operations at all times, and that’s not possible without advanced sensor technology. Combine that technology with automated mobile platforms, and the operation basically begins to “run itself” all while reporting the critical data points that logistics managers need to be able to hit their daily key performance indicators (KPIs).
Because they help mitigate volume constraints, intelligent sensor-enabled platforms also ensure that throughput targets are met (or even exceeded). “Logistics managers get more predictable operations because they know the AMRs and AGVs are always going to show up for work,” said Don DeLash, national sales manager, retail distribution, at SICK, Inc.
And because the vision of the lights-out warehouse is still coming into focus, logistics managers are also concerned about worker safety, social distancing, and the need to maintain accident-free workplaces. “In the old days, you had to put up fences around AGVs and install walkways next to them,” DeLash said. “Thanks to the use of intelligent sensors, that’s no longer necessary.”
For the VP of Supply Chain
Focused on meeting customer service level agreements (SLAs) while running efficient, productive supply chains, these professionals need assurances that the right product is in the right place at the right time. And, that those products are ready to ship as soon as a customer needs them.
By combining mobile platforms with intelligent sensors, VPs of supply can rest easier knowing that their operations are going to produce more consistent, predictable, and accountable volume despite any potential labor issues. “They’re going to see labor costs retreat,” DeLash said, “while continuing to meet their customer SLAs.” The sensors also provide a high level of supply chain transparency, says Tom Bonucchi, sales manager, transport logistics, at SICK, Inc., while reducing materials handling vehicle damage, accidents, and breakdowns.
For the CFO
Asked to do more with less, today’s CFO is concerned with cost increases and other issues that impact their organizational bottom lines. By infusing advanced technology into mobile platforms, intelligent sensors help CFOs attack these financial issues while requiring less labor in return for higher production volumes.
“CFOs want to see volumes go up and costs go down,” DeLash said. And while automated equipment may require higher-skilled maintenance personnel, DeLash said CFOs are especially interested in the long-term payoff that automation provides.
“The good news is that once you make that first CapEx investment in a mobile platform, it immediately begins paying for itself,” DeLash said. “Within a few years, you’re basically printing money as your labor costs continue to retreat.”
For the CEO or COO
C-level executives who want to see higher unit sales based on more product volumes moving through their fulfillment centers can reach those goals without having to apply additional, expensive labor resources to the problem.
When their companies implement mobile platforms and intelligent sensors, these executives can expect their top-line revenues to increase and their bottom-line profits to increase—a virtual Nirvana for any C-level executive operating in today’s competitive business environment.
“The more unit sales they get out the door, the happier they are,” DeLash said. The same executives can effectively build their companies’ brands by consistently meeting and exceeding customer expectations, and attracting younger, tech-savvy talent to their teams.
“Employees are expecting their workplaces to be equipped with advanced technology,” Bonucchi said, “so much so that they’re surprised when they climb into a forklift that only moves forward and backward, and up and down.”
Want to learn more about sensors for AMRs?
