World-renowned logistics company DHL has renewed its partnership with successful startup Locus Robotics. By 2022, the number of used warehouse robots manufactured by Locus Robotics will reach 2 thousand. The company has now deployed 500 warehouse ancillary systems across the United States, Europe, and the United Kingdom. By the end of 2021, it is planned to introduce an additional 500 additional devices. It is predicted that the number of automated robotics will at least double by 2022.
Locus is not DHL's only robotics partner. At the end of 2018, the company announced investments in automation for about $300 million, since then the corporation has given birth to more than 200 thousand robots serving American warehouse complexes.
Warehouse automation is gaining momentum and becoming more and more popular. It can be assumed that the development of e-commerce and the general trend towards robotics associated with the pandemic will further stimulate manufacturers to purchase additional robotic systems.
According to the commercial organization PitchBook, in 2020 the volume of investments in young startups related to the automation of warehouses grew by 50%, and the volume of the global warehouse robotics market will reach $6.8 billion by 2025. According to Forbes, more than 4 million commercial autonomous robots will be installed in warehouses around the world by 2025. According to information provided by the corporation, about 80% of warehouse complexes are still serviced manually, despite the obvious benefits from automation and the growing demand for speed and accuracy of service. Rick Falk, the director, calls an even less optimistic figure: according to his data, 95% of warehouses around the world (over 100 thousand objects) are still doing manual work that can be completed by robotics.
