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In 2019, Walmart began piloting its first local distribution center in Salem, which uses robots called Alphabot to pick items from shelves. Now the retail giant is turning more locations into automated distribution centers by converting part of the stores to warehouses or adding a new section. Walmart stocks automated distribution centers with frequently purchased products, including consumables (such as fresh and frozen items) and electronics. They are meant to speed up the delivery and picking of orders, and the Alphabot is a key part of making this possible.
The wheeled robot can quickly travel to anywhere in a warehouse to retrieve items from shelves and then take them to a workstation for assembly. Human associates will then be free to choose which products are best left to non-robotic workers, such as meat, vegetables, and fruit. In a post announcing the initiative on the company’s website, Senior Vice President of Customer Product Tom Ward said the process could “take a few minutes from when the order is placed to when it is ready to be picked up by a customer or a delivery person ”. Being able to process orders faster means Walmart can accommodate more customers, which could help the company in its bid to catch up with Amazon.
Walmart is also teaming up with partners to test new technologies for distribution centers. In some stores, for example, it will offer an automated pickup option that will allow shoppers to go to a designated area, scan a code, and pick up their order. Ward didn’t say exactly how many stores would be converted to distribution centers, or how many alphabots would be deployed – he only revealed that the company plans to convert “dozens of locations, with more to come.” . According to CNBC, however, it is already being innovated on compact distribution centers in the Dallas area, as well as in Bentonville, Arkansas.
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