CoEvolution’s CO-PICK multi-fleet robotic orchestration solution enhances warehouse operations efficiency by 30% and optimizes space utilization, benefiting 417 stores of South Korea’s retail leader, Lotte.
Intelligent logistics company CoEvolution has revealed that its pioneering CO-PICK smart warehouse system significantly boosted warehouse productivity for multinational conglomerate Lotte, based in South Korea. The system led to a 30% increase in throughput in the facility, measured in SKUs per day.
The artificial intelligence-driven CO-PICK solution offered by CoEvolution, implemented by Lotte, was carefully curated to cater to the client’s unique needs. It leverages a fleet of multi-vendor robots and orchestration software for efficient picking, order fulfillment, and integrated logistics support across 417 Lotte Super stores.
Being a Fortune 500 company and a retail titan in South Korea, Lotte Group has a dominant presence in retail, food, electronics, confectionery, and other sectors. After evaluating various options, the company chose CoEvolution to lead a project aiming to automate its complete warehouse transferring operations utilizing a multi-vendor robot fleet.
Facing the Challenge
A wide range of SKUs and a high demand for picking accuracy and efficiency within the retail sector exerts immense pressure on warehouse operations. Lotte sought an advanced warehouse automation system in response to the fast-paced rise in Korea’s minimum wage.
Upon conducting a periodic review of its warehouse systems to identify possible operational enhancements through new technology, Lotte Global Logistics discovered distinct ‘automation islands,’ extensive manual work needed for transfers, and unutilized vertical warehouse space that could be maximized for storage. Robots were seen as a potential avenue for increased productivity and efficiency. Lotte Global Logistics explored a multi-fleet robot solution for various tasks to ensure optimal warehouse system performance and maximum throughput.
Implementing the Solution
Lotte Global Logistics evaluated multiple options from various solution providers before employing CoEvolution’s CO-PICK solution to expedite its warehouse logistics operations. According to Lotte’s preferences, CoEvolution designed a tailored multi-vendor robot fleet orchestration solution, ensuring highly efficient goods delivery across 417 stores. Through the retailing warehouse project, CoEvolution recognized a range of solutions using distinct robot combinations. These were tested via its SIMULATOR product to confirm the most effective selection.
In the Lotte project, CoEvolution integrated mobile robots with its robot control system (RCS) so they could function as a single fleet. CoEvolution’s intelligent logistics control system merged with Lotte’s warehouse control system (WCS) to generate a bespoke automated warehouse solution, providing full control and visibility over the new operation in Lotte’s warehouse.
This solution incorporated a mix of high-tote robots for efficient picking and latent autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) integrated with the existing system. Conveyors and robotic arms were also used to enable smooth and efficient pallet transfer and order picking.
CoEvolution’s CO-PICK smart warehouse solution uses different types of robots working together to deliver high throughput and high storage density, substantially reducing customers’ labor and storage expenses in various warehouse settings.
Experiencing the Benefits of the CoEvolution Project
Following the introduction of the new automated warehouse system that facilitated and accelerated order fulfillment, Lotte’s facility saw notable improvements in overall efficiency. The throughput was boosted by an additional 30% SKUs, and storage capacity rose by a whopping 200%. Moreover, the manual labor involved in heavy pallet transferring was reduced by 20%, a significant factor considering the ongoing labor shortages.
CoEvolution’s multi-fleet orchestration warehouse software, designed to easily integrate with Lotte’s system and existing automated equipment, was rapidly deployed. Its simplicity extends to its maintenance and usage, requiring no complex configurations for its setup and minimal to zero operator training before utilization.
The solution provided by CoEvolution demonstrated efficient and precise performance within Lotte’s warehouse, coupled with improved space utilization and secure data transfers. It has seamlessly automated the entire process from the issuance of orders to their implementation, presenting the ease and convenience of a wholly integrated system.
Assisted by CoEvolution’s CO-PICK solution, Lotte Global Logistics managed to transcend the limitations of their previous isolated automation ‘islands’. They successfully transformed the warehouse into a unified operational map by scheduling robots to interlink the entire transferring process.
“We are delighted that we selected CoEvolution and CO-PICK to come on this automation journey with us,” said Seungkee Baek, Vice President of Lotte Institute of Logistics Technology, reflecting on the success of the retail warehousing automation project.”The new smart warehousing solution has increased our productivity and throughput, made optimal use of our warehouse space and works seamlessly with our operators.”
“The best CO-PICK solution for Lotte combines high-tote robots and latent AMRs with the existing conveyors and robotic arms to deliver optimal efficient pallet transfer and order picking, connecting the whole logistics process,” added Michael Wang, Co-Founder and COO of CoEvolution. “With our Industry 4.0 CO-PICK solution it is possible to simulate and select the best multi-vendor robot fleet orchestration combination for your business and manage it through a single control system. Expected productivity gains are available within days, alongside the flexibility to scale at your pace. Automation doesn’t need to be complicated!”
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