© Swisslog

Exciting: The FBI's new robotic storage system works with Swisslog's AutoStore for the secure storage of its paper files. The General Services Administration, Mid-Atlantic Region (GSA), has installed the central archiving warehouse for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Winchester, Virginia. For the first time, the facility includes a warehouse with robot-assisted storage and retrieval.

Covering more than 23,000 square meters, this secure FBI facility is used to archive documents that were previously stored at 256 field offices around the world. The complex, which employs around 500 people, also includes an office building, a visitor center, a security guard booth and a parking lot. The National Archives complex is now certified for the official storage of 188 kilometers of paper files. Stacked on top of each other, these documents would currently reach halfway to the International Space Station (ISS).

"After an intensive comparison of several technologies, the project team opted for the AutoStore storage solution to automate the storage and retrieval processes. This extremely high-density system eliminates aisles and utilizes all available space for storage. Radio-controlled robots move along a spanning grid system to retrieve the required 360,000 storage containers from the warehouse," says Dr. Christian Baur, CEO of Swisslog.

The software tracks both file and container numbers so that the robots can be operated without the service provider knowing anything about the contents of the files. The energy consumption of ten robots is comparable to that of a single vacuum cleaner. The high storage density in the system significantly reduces the space required to house the files, saving costs and freeing up space for other needs.

This technology saves time in locating and retrieving files, allowing staff to focus on higher value-added activities. This project is just one example of GSA delivering value and savings in real estate, procurement technology and other support services for the entire U.S. government.