The Material Handling Blog

Robotic order picking and sorting are becoming key technologies in warehouse automation and often provide huge advantages to distribution centers over more conventional order fulfillment methods. However, without a versatile WCS (warehouse control system) or WES (warehouse execution system), it can be difficult to integrate such technologies into a complex operation.

Bastian Solutions was once again excited to attend ProMat at McCormick Place in Chicago. This year's booth featured a live system demonstration that integrated multiple technologies, including several of our autonomous vehicles, Bastian Solutions SmartPick, AutoStore, Tompkins Robotics tSort, Bastian Solutions Conveyor, and more. We hosted a live seminar "Cutting Through the Noise: How to look beyond technology and meet business objectives". We also unveiled our newest product, the CB18 AGF, during a live press conference at our booth on Monday, March 20th.

The fierce competition for warehouse space and fulfillment labor combined with growing customer demands and ever-evolving technology offerings can make it overwhelmingly noisy and difficult to navigate. That challenge can make it hard to identify the solution that will help companies meet business objectives today and in the future. To add to that complexity, the supply chain industry is ever-growing and evolving. Our team of engineers can help guide through the noise that companies may be facing. Bastian Solutions is eager to attend this year’s ProMat tradeshow March 20-23, 2023, to discuss some of these supply chain challenges with attendees.

Floor or fluid trailer loading is a common task that companies utilize to maximize the cube utilization of a trailer. Unfortunately, the improved usage of shipping space comes with an increased operational cost. At its core, fluid loading is an extremely labor-intensive task that has proven to be difficult to complete and staff. The work environment, ergonomic strain, and monotony of the task lead to high turnover rates and a physically strained workforce. Not to mention the increased costs and reduced throughputs resulting from cases being double handled. Fortunately, Bastian Solutions has addressed these issues with the ULTRA BLUE® robotic truck loader.

Recently, Bastian’s Autonomous Vehicles General Manager, Michael Marcum, spoke with other industry experts about insights on getting started with mobile robotics.

From concept to micro-fulfillment reality, Decathlon and Bastian Solutions worked together to create an in-store, customer-facing micro-fulfillment system.

In a recent webcast, Matt Kohler, Bastian Solutions’ Applications Director, and other industry leaders discussed how both online and traditional retailers can take advantage of automation as peak season approaches. A key topic discussed during the webcast was the importance of collecting and analyzing data to provide timely and actionable insights for customers.

Over two decades ago, the internet made its way into households, retail, and manufacturing environments, providing a foundation for commerce to occur in a more rapid and convenient fashion. Since then, ecommerce has undoubtedly become the platform of choice for procuring everything from household products to industrial equipment. While present strategies such as warehouse execution systems, sortation, rainbow palletizing, and GTP (goods to person) systems have certainly helped meet these aggressive order fulfillment pursuits, a new robotic solution is proliferating the material handling industry that can further improve operations and customer satisfaction.

Bringing products as close and as fast as possible to customers triggered a new way of looking at fulfillment centers. In addition to large regional warehouses, microfulfillment centers (MFCs) are popular topics in retail, ecommerce and food industries. Before implementing any solution, it’s key to carefully review applications and properly prepare for current and future scenarios. This step can help you avoid key mistakes and select the right technology. The last thing you want to do is to install a technology that doesn’t do the job the way you expected or needed.

Easier than ever to integrate into operations, AGVs (automated guided vehicles) and AMRs (autonomous mobile robots) are transforming the way manufacturing and distribution centers operate. This cost-effective solution increases efficiency, improves working conditions and easily scales to match business growth. Technologies like BlueBotics ANT opens possibilities through their advanced fleet management capabilities and interoperability. This means customers can carefully build-out the vehicle tech stack they need for their business. BlueBotics ANT is part of the Bastian Solutions growing portfolio of automation capabilities.

Sin duda alguna, el “microfulfillment” es un concepto que se está volviendo tendencia dentro de los esquemas de cadena de suministro. La habilidad de llevar productos a las manos de los consumidores más rápido que cualquier competidor es el objetivo último, así que, no sólo es una tendencia actual, si no que ha evolucionado en una estrategia de descentralización a través de la cual los productores buscan mejorar la experiencia de los consumidores. Entonces, ¿cómo se define?

Autonomous vehicles such as AGVs (automated guided vehicles) and AMRs (autonomous mobile robots) are self-guided load carriers that can autonomously travel to execute tasks assigned to them and can be the best fit for distribution centres, warehouses or manufacturing facilities. These vehicles can work independently without an onboard operator due to the latest innovation in sensors and control devices that help drive the navigation.