Automation – A Long-Term Solution for a Long-Term Problem

In the logistics industry the dwindling supply of willing, experienced, and qualified workers means warehouse vacancies are proving hard-to fill.  In one recent survey 76 per cent of supply chain bosses said they are experiencing notable workforce shortages and for 37 per cent of respondents these shortages are having an ‘extremely serious’ impact on their business. At first, it was predicted that the workforce crisis would only bring short-term disruption. However, factors such as low unemployment, wage inflation and a declining population of working age adults have combined with the difficulties created by Covid and Britain’s decision to leave the EU and intensified a problem that can no longer be regarded as simply ‘a bump in the road’.

Logistics leaders’ frustration is compounded by the fact that the dearth of both permanent and temporary warehouse personnel has hit the industry at a time when demand for professional warehousing services is at an all-time high: according to the United Kingdom Warehousing Association, the UK’s warehousing sector has grown by 61 per cent in the last 10 years. The significant rise of ecommerce particularly in the years following the pandemic, appears to be driving much of this growth. Online trading is forecast to account for around 38 per cent of all UK retail sales in 2025 compared to 15 per cent in 2015 and, in what has become an ever more crowded market, retailers are looking to their logistics processes to provide them with a competitive edge when it comes to fulfilment speed and lower costs. 

But with fewer workers on the warehouse floor, meeting demands for super-quick order processing and parcel delivery is not easy. So, to ensure that customer service levels are not negatively impacted by the lack of human resources, many logistics companies are opting to transition away from their traditional reliance on people in favour of a more automated approach.

Although automated solutions can be a hefty investment for a business, it might be time for business to seriously consider their automation options, with the current issues surrounding workforce availability showing no sign of slowing. However, automation doesn’t have to be a huge overhaul or multi-million-pound investment. Thanks to the huge advances in technology, a phased approach can be taken starting with those processes that stand to benefit most from a switch to automaton. 

For example, there is currently a great deal of interest in driverless forklift truck technology. Transforming traditional lift trucks into automated guided vehicles, such as Toyota’s Autopilot series, not only eliminates reliance on forklift operators but also delivers tremendous productivity gains and a low total cost of ownership

Logistics companies were moving away from their traditional reliance on manual processes before the onset of the worker crisis, although there is no doubt that the ongoing recruitment problem has accelerated the change. Going forward, warehouses and fulfilment centres have a vital role to play in the future of global trade and commerce. But they will be expected to operate at unprecedented levels of efficiency and the most successful warehouse operations will be those that commit to optimising their performance by leveraging cutting edge automated systems technology.

Toyota develops systems designed to fit a client’s business and each project is based on the latest automated picking and storage technologies, state-of-the-art sorters, conveyors, autonomous robots and automated guided vehicles (AGVs). All the necessary control software is also provided – from single modules that connect to a client’s existing IT infrastructure to a fully-built central management system.