TECH & AI
“ Robotics is an interesting one ,” says Davis . “ It ' s kind of counterintuitive as to how it works , because you ’ d think warehouse robotics are simply a means of reducing the need for staff . But actually , it can help you scale your workforce . As companies grow , they can order robots for any task that they need to take care of on the plant floor or in the warehouse .”
“We ' ve converted operations into being completely Industry 4.0-driven and expect to reduce costs by around 30 %”
MINDY DAVIS VP , GLOBAL MARKETING , DIGITAL SUPPLY CHAIN , SAP
And this is exactly what SAP customer Bechtle has done . Bechtle is a 100-year-old , US-based global engineering , construction and project management company . It works on civil infrastructure projects and was involved with the building of the Hoover Dam and the Channel Tunnel .
Christian Dippisch is Innovations Manager at Bechtle Logistics & Services in south-west Germany . He says the company “ has been expanding for years ” and that the pandemic reinforced the need to keep deliveries on time . “ So we had to strengthen and automate our logistics , and the solution was to introduce robots .”
Dippisch reveals that - using SAP Warehouse Robotics , in conjunction with SAP Extended Warehouse Management - the programme took just four weeks to implement .
“ We expect to be able to reduce costs by around 30 %,” he says . “ We ' ve effectively converted our operations into being completely Industry 4.0 driven .”
He adds : “ The robots support our warehouse employees in their daily tasks . They ' re guided by 3D laser scanners , which helps them operate safely side-by-side with humans . The great thing is we can easily scale , by adding robots on the fly .
“ Integrating all types of robots from different manufacturers for different tasks will increase our flexibility . This will ensure on-time deliveries and meet our goals for growth .”
The way Bechtle has reinvented its warehouse operation using WMS allied with robotics is “ definitely a future vision for SAP ”, says Davis : “ Our customers want to make sure they can not only scale their operations , but also help their employees to move product – all with a view to keeping their own customers happy .”
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