Interview with Swisslog's Roland Martin: "The aim is to incorporate visions into existing solutions"

materialfluss: Mr. Martin, what role does robotics play in e-commerce?

Roland Martin:
Even today, it is almost impossible to recruit enough specialist staff for e-commerce logistics and distribution centers. If you take a closer look at the forecasts for the industry, it is clear that logistics in e-commerce will no longer be manageable in the future without the use of automated guided vehicles or robots that can perform a certain picking performance on their own and without human assistance. We at Swisslog are therefore working flat out to quickly develop our vision of fully automated single-item picking into a market-ready solution. We also see great potential in the development of swarm-intelligent vehicles to further increase productivity in distribution centers. I am certain that both approaches will give a further significant boost to the effectiveness of robot systems.

mfl: How is Swisslog positioned here and how will the topic of robotics in e-commerce continue in terms of organization and products?

Martin:
We currently have three robotic solutions for the e-commerce sector on the market. Firstly, AutoStore, the space-saving goods-to-person picking system, which we are already using in more than 100 customer applications. Secondly, our two in-house developments ItemPiQ for fully automated small parts picking and CarryPick, our AGV solution for multichannel logistics. For our range of solutions, we are planning to focus more on the software area. Our aim is to incorporate new visions into our existing solutions. Above all, we are pursuing the vision of the Learning Warehouse - a warehouse that optimizes itself independently - and that offers the necessary intelligence on the software side to avoid order backlogs at the picking stations. With KUKA at our side, we are well positioned to contribute robotics, software and industry expertise to our innovative product range.

mfl: Have you planned any acquisitions of specialized companies?

Martin:
Of course, I cannot and do not want to comment on our specific plans at this point. But the fact is that we are in a permanent evaluation process when it comes to integrating new technologies into our portfolio. If we discover gaps in our product range or new technologies that are a good fit for us, we will strengthen our expertise through strategic acquisitions.

mfl: Which fields for intralogistics applications are still important for Swisslog besides the e-commerce sector?

Martin:
Swisslog has almost 100 years of experience in logistics automation. During this time, we have built up an enormous wealth of experience and very good partnerships with companies from the retail, food and beverage and pharmaceutical industries. We know the specific challenges of these industries very well and have an excellent understanding of the safety and compliance regulations of the pharmaceutical industry and the requirements of logistics automation in temperature-controlled areas.

mfl: What does Swisslog stand for, or in other words, how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?

Martin:
First and foremost, Swisslog stands for quality, innovation and many years of industry expertise. We have a wealth of experience in the implementation of customized large-scale projects. We are represented in 25 countries and are therefore always geographically close to our customers. This means that we offer our customers the opportunity to grow with our innovative strength. Our greatest asset is our efficient product range. In the high-bay warehouse sector in particular, we stand out from our competitors because we enable our customers to achieve major energy savings. The merger with KUKA puts us in a very good position to expand our robotics expertise and grow into a full-service provider of automation solutions in the Industry 4.0 environment.

mfl: Is e-commerce in China an issue for Swisslog?

Martin:
China is one of the most attractive e-commerce markets in the world for Swisslog - and not just because of the size of the country and its relatively low store density, but above all because e-commerce providers are very open to innovation. On the provider side, there are currently a number of companies that are launching new logistics solutions on the market, which means that Swisslog also faces competition. However, most providers are only represented on the market with a single product and not with an entire range of products and solutions, as we are. In addition, none of these companies have a comparable wealth of experience in consulting, planning and implementing large-scale projects. These are precisely the points that led JD.com, for example, one of the largest players in Chinese online retail, to choose Swisslog.

mfl: Do the requirements for Swisslog systems there differ from, say, European warehouses?

Martin:
In China, the mentality in the e-commerce industry is fundamentally different. For example, there are many companies that want to carry out the software integration of newly purchased warehouse components themselves. In addition, in contrast to European logistics and distribution centers, there are many more manual processes in China. However, the focus of warehouse automation has already changed over the years. While the focus was initially on handling bulky goods, we are now increasingly attracting interest in the light goods sector.