Humanoid robots target smaller warehouse automation

Humanoid robots could extend warehouse automation into smaller and ageing facilities, as supply chain operators consider alternatives to large bespoke automation projects.

The technology is emerging as an option for warehouses where existing infrastructure, lower volumes or changing workflows have made traditional automation harder to justify. TMX expects falling technology costs and more flexible deployment models to broaden the range of sites that can be automated.

Humanoids are designed to operate within environments originally built for people. They can perform general warehouse tasks including picking and placing goods, scanning inventory, and operating pallet jacks and push carts.

Deployment shift

Traditional warehouse automation often requires systems designed around the requirements of an individual facility. This can involve significant changes to infrastructure and lengthy implementation periods.

Humanoid robots offer a different deployment model because the machines can be introduced into existing operations and adapted to specific tasks.

"These are products that come off the shelf and then adapt to your operation," said Nick De Klerk, Managing Director, TMX Global Centre of Excellence.

De Klerk expects adoption to occur progressively, with robots deployed against individual tasks rather than through large-scale warehouse rebuilds.

"Over the past couple of decades, we've been automating warehouses by placing layers and pockets of automation in an annual facility, but humanoids are now pushing into an era where you begin to automate the work inside the warehouse that you already have. It's transitioning the industry from system to product engineering," said De Klerk.

The model could allow operators to automate existing warehouses while retaining much of their current physical infrastructure. It could also shorten the time required to introduce automation compared with a greenfield development.

TMX expects the cost of humanoid technology to decline as production and adoption increase. De Klerk compared the expected trajectory with consumer technologies such as mobile phones and flat-screen televisions, which became more affordable as manufacturing volumes grew.

Blended workforce

TMX sees humanoid robots operating alongside employees and taking on physically demanding or repetitive work across warehouse operations.

Potential applications extend from the arrival of products at a facility through to order fulfilment and dispatch. Employees could then spend more time on higher-skilled activities, supervision and handling exceptions.

"I think long-term, humanoid robots are set to reshape how we design supply chains… A humanoid-enabled facility works kind of just like software, so it's flexible, adaptive, and continuously evolving, and that really makes for a resilient design network, which is just what we need when heading to the future, where things are continuously changing for us," said Charlotte Jordan, Executive Director for Supply Chain, TMX.

The technology could also affect decisions about where companies locate inventory and how they structure warehouse networks.

Large centralised distribution centres have traditionally offered stronger economics for automation because high throughput can support the investment required for fixed systems. Humanoids could change those calculations if operators can introduce automation into smaller facilities without extensive infrastructure changes.

"I think humanoids are unlocking the ability to automate smaller sites, and moving forward, there's a question you should be asking yourself: do you have candidate sites that can retrofit and rebuild through technology like humanoids?" said Jordan.

Smaller sites

TMX identifies smaller and more dynamic warehouses as one of the potential early applications for humanoid technology.

These facilities can have lower volumes and greater variation in their workloads. Such characteristics can make fixed automation harder to justify because traditional systems work best when processes and product flows are predictable.

"As we start to look out to the smaller facilities that are more dynamic, lower volume that have historically struggled to automate, that is exactly where we see this technology taking a foothold," said De Klerk.

The approach could also extend the operating life of ageing warehouses. Operators could retrofit existing sites rather than replace them with new facilities designed around fixed automation systems.

China Post has deployed humanoid robots to induct letters and parcels onto existing sorting infrastructure. The application demonstrates how the technology can operate alongside equipment already installed within a facility.

TMX expects supply chain operators to assess potential deployments against several aspects of their warehouse networks. These include whether greater automation could support more distributed sites, improve service speeds or allow ageing infrastructure to remain operational.

Deployment timelines are another consideration. Progressive automation could allow operators to introduce robots site by site rather than wait for a new distribution centre to be designed and built.

Network design

The potential use of humanoids also raises questions about the future operating model of warehouse networks.

Companies have traditionally faced decisions around centralisation, outsourcing and investment in fixed automation. More adaptable robots could give operators another option where labour availability, building constraints or variable workloads make established models difficult to apply.

Humanoids are suited to general-purpose tasks because their physical form allows them to interact with equipment and environments designed around human workers. Structured and high-volume product flows can continue to use established warehouse automation, while humanoids could handle workflows requiring greater flexibility.

That could result in hybrid facilities combining fixed automation, humanoid robots and employees. Human workers could concentrate on activities such as exception handling, customer interaction and operational improvement while robots perform repetitive physical tasks.

TMX expects adoption to occur gradually as operators identify suitable sites and individual workflows. Smaller warehouses and facilities constrained by ageing infrastructure could provide early opportunities because they have historically presented greater challenges for conventional automation.

"Uber didn't invent cars – they put a digital layer on top of the existing manual taxi system," said De Klerk. "Waymo is fundamentally changing the transportation model by redefining the car which is no longer a vehicle for a driver to operate, but fully autonomous. That's exactly the inflection point we're hitting in supply chain today."