Savoye markets a new robotic solution suitable for pick-and-pack order picking. The application works side-by-side with employees and consists of a combination of autonomous robots and mobile picking racks. In those racks, end-of-pack or order picking bins are placed directly.
The intralogistics specialist's mobile robot solution works on the principle of virtual stations. It is an alternative to classic order picking from shelf racks, via conveyors and picking stations.
"We wanted to broaden our offering and meet a specific, different requirement of our customers, namely a flexible solution to help employees handle limited order picking flows - a solution that can also be available quickly operationally, without time-consuming on-site installations," explains Marc-Antoine Fernet, Manager Robotics & New Technology Products at Savoye.
Short interactions
Savoye's robotic solution first picks a picking rack and then moves from position to position until all orders or order lines have been picked. Employees remain in their picking area. Robot and employee therefore do not follow each other but only meet briefly, with Savoye's software steering them through the warehouse.
To make this process run smoothly, Savoye is using artificial intelligence and experience gained in previous projects. "This allows us to optimise the grouping of parcels, minimising the number of robot movements and managing the interaction between employees and robots in real time," concludes Fernet.
