Geodis, a global transport and logistics provider, and Locus Robotics, an automated robotics company, has announced an agreement to deploy 1,000 autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) at Geodis’ worldwide warehouse locations over the next 24 months.
Geodis claims that this represents one of the industry’s largest AMR deals to date.
“As we continue to navigate industry-wide challenges, such as skyrocketing e-commerce demand and labour constraints, it is crucial we remain committed to implementing the most innovative and effective robotics automation solutions available into our warehouses to allow us to best serve our customers,” said Eric Douglas, executive vice president of technology and engineering at Geodis in the Americas.
“Locus’ collaborative multi-bot approach has proven its effectiveness and reliability at each of our sites, giving us the ability to easily scale performance while providing a safe, smart working environment for our teammates.
“This new expansion agreement reinforces our clear and ongoing commitment to cutting-edge technology to meet our exploding customer volumes globally.”
Geodis claims to have already deployed Locus AMRs at 14 sites around the world in service of a variety of retail and consumer brands. This agreement is set to significantly expand this provision.
The pair first partnered in 2018, enabling Geodis to implement Locus’ technology into its operations at an Indiana site.
Since then, Geodis claims that Locus’ tech has delivered improvements in productivity, flexibility and agility and has reduced repetitive tasks to increase staff retention across its facilities.
LocusBots have reportedly reduced unproductive walking time, eliminated manoeuvring heavy manual carts through warehouses, lowered the physical demands on employees and improved workplace ergonomics.
