Warehouse robots to ring up $51 billion by 2030

Worldwide commercial robot revenue in warehouses will have a CAGR of over 23% from 2021 to 2030 and exceed $51 billion by 2030, according to ABI Research.

The warehousing industry has ramped up its automation efforts considering the increased order volume and labor shortages fueled by the pandemic. 

In addition to technology solutions such as augmented reality-powered smart glasses and handheld devices with enhanced capabilities, autonomous, collaborative, and mobile robots are proving to be the most popular and fastest growing productivity enhancing solution in the warehouse workspace.

“Mobile robots are at the heart of the warehouse robotics market and account for most shipments and revenue,” said Adhish Luitel, ABI Research industry analyst on supply chain management and logistics.

“These robots, made up of Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), are being used to move goods within the warehouse and being integrated within wider automated or manual workflows,” said Luitel.

As a sign of the growing maturity of the market, a wide number of vendors such as Advantech, Brochesia, Kontakt.io, and RightHand Robotics now offer compelling products and solutions. The surrounding ecosystem of software vendors and systems integrators is also maturing, as software and integration capabilities become increasingly important factors for commercial differentiation. 

“In addition to robots, warehouse operators should be seeking to combine the value of multiple solutions across the fulfillment workflow to achieve desired results,” said Luitel.

“There is also a need for operators to look beyond productivity and assess how technologies affect worker satisfaction and safety, worker comfort, energy consumption, distance traveled, and error rates,” added Luitel.

For example, “Pick-by-vision” solutions from augmented reality vendors such as Picavi demand a mere 15-minute training time and can boast up to 30% efficiency gains and up to 60% in time savings for training. 

In addition, order storage and automated order dispenser solutions from Alert Innovation helps grocery retailers enhance their ROI by over 50% versus traditional automated picking systems.

“We can also expect intelligent automation solutions to influence processes across the supply chain. In the future, operators will be venturing further into solutions like Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and mobile warehousing,” said Luitel.