The trend of shopping online and picking up the order in store is currently developing into an attractive alternative to delivery over the "last mile". With PickUpPort, retailers can offer their customers a simple pick-up option for their purchases. At AutoStore 's first publicly accessible technology, customers receive their ordered products from robots directly from the system. The PickUpPort is an intuitive technology that does not require extensive implementation and training. When a customer selects the pickup option on an online order, a controller function prompts the AutoStore robot to deliver the ordered products to a port where a warehouse worker consolidates all items in the order. Once the order is completed, the container with the ordered products is stored in the AutoStore system and the customer receives a message with a pick-up code. As soon as the customer is on site to collect their order, a robot takes the container with the correct products to the PickUpPort. With the appropriate design with glass elements, customers can see how the robots pick up, organize and store the bins with the items. For safety, the PickUpPort is equipped with a warning sign, a safety bar, a damper and stoppers. The pick-up station is locked while the container is being delivered to the port. An LED lamp signals to the customer when the port can be opened.

The retail of the future focuses on seamlessly connected shopping that is geared towards the needs of customers. The new technology was developed specifically to meet the growing demand for a more efficient way for customers to receive ordered products. With the PickUpPort, the advantages of stationary retail can be combined with the benefits of e-commerce. The PickUpPort enables AutoStore users to offer their customers a new service independent of their opening hours. This enables competitive advantages to be realized in both the B2C and B2B sectors, for example for supplying tradesmen or fitters with materials.

This article appeared in issue 6/23

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