The year 2024 is a banner year for the green warehouse, and the warehouse automation industry is leading the charge toward greater supply chain sustainability through the deployment of efficient, mobile and scalable order fulfillment robots. Environmental consciousness is on the minds of retailers, e-commerce companies and other businesses because consumers are voting for sustainable practices with their spending habits.

But as companies push toward sustainability goals, ever-increasing demands for faster fulfillment and shipping add to an exponential increase in online orders mean companies are struggling to keep up amid increased costs and warehouse labor shortages.

Does focusing on sustainability slow down order fulfillment?

Retailers can commit to environmentally friendly practices and increase supply chain sustainability while reducing order fulfillment errors and boosting picking efficiency.

Goods-to-Person order fulfillment robots, a flexible form of warehouse automation, can help companies bring efficiency to a historically manual process while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Goods-to-Person robots can operate efficiently in dark areas and have a reduced need for HVAC systems, lowering the carbon footprint of the operation by reducing energy spend.

Enabling customer sustainability by cutting down on energy-consuming tasks is just one benefit: By cultivating optimal order fulfillment operations and picking efficiency, companies breed sustainability into their culture by reducing the waste created by manual picking errors.

Geekplus helps companies achieve greater picking efficiency and accuracy while hitting sustainability targets. The entire suite of Geekplus Goods-to-Person warehouse automation robots help fulfill these goals, but the tote-based robots merit special recognition for their space-saving attributes. In the Tote-to-Person solution, two robots work together: one robot that operates in the aisles, reaching up to store totes 40 feet in the air, and a small robot that quickly delivers totes to picking stations. Tote-to-Person combines high-density storage for small- and medium-sized goods with order fulfillment efficiency. PopPick, another tote-based order fulfillment solution, is an upgrade of the flagship Geekplus Shelf-to-Person solution with totes stored on movable racks and picked from an automated tote picking station. Offering heightened throughput, the solution is particularly suited to e-commerce scenarios. 

How can warehouse automation contribute to logistics sustainability?

This efficiency is achieved through space-saving storage that doesn’t need light, heating, or air conditioning, reduced waste from low error rates, minimized packaging, and paperless practices. Using renewable energy sources, such as solar power, can further reduce the environmental impact.

G2P robots can replace high-energy-consuming logistics equipment. Even after shifts end, robots keep working, rearranging orders during downtime and reducing electricity, lighting, and air conditioning use. These robots have low power consumption and can even run on solar power in some cases, making them an environmentally friendly choice.

Sustainability doesn’t begin when the robots hit the warehouse floor. Geekplus is committed to sustainable growth and energy savings. From the production of robots to system deployment and after-care, the order fulfillment robotics company adheres to strict sustainability principles every step of the way. The company thrives to make a positive impact on society by reducing the environmental impact of logistics.

Why should companies reduce greenhouse gas emissions now?

Regulators all over the world are constantly weighing rules that impose GHG emission reduction on companies; warehouse operators can get ahead of this environmental trend by embracing automation. For example, the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme, a carbon emissions cap-and-trade regulation, now applies to ocean carriers in EU waters. Policymakers can also help by offering tax breaks or grants to companies adopting sustainable technologies, encouraging technology integration with environmental protection.

Today’s consumers also prefer companies that prioritize sustainability, and employees are increasingly drawn to environmentally conscious workplaces. On average, a smart warehouse using AMR solutions consumes 75 per cent less power than a manually operated one.

Modular order fulfillment robots are a proven way warehouse operators can streamline and improve manual picking processes while reducing GHG emissions. Instead of investing in costly, fixed order fulfilment systems that can be inefficient and inflexible, adopting Goods-to-Person solutions allows companies to easily scale up when their business grows.

Geekplus has the largest portfolio of mobile robot solutions in the industry, providing customers with flexibility, scalability and reliability no matter the order fulfillment task. Schedule a conversation to learn more about the suite of Geekplus order fulfillment solutions, spanning Shelf-to-Person, Tote-to-Person and Pallet-to-Person robots.