Online shopping: Woolworths is rolling out mini robots


To enhance its online shopping service, Woolworths is rolling out miniature packing centres at the back of its stores.

The supermarket giant has collaborated with a US-based company called Takeoff Technologies. This firm is responsible to build the automated centres at its outlets. This means that robots will be dealing with online orders. They will pick and pack the products that consumers have ordered on the Internet.  Brad Banducci, the CEO of Woolworths advanced that this system would be particularly 
advantageous to them. It would help them meet customers’ growing demand for same-day delivery. He said that they are constantly working on new ways to improve their clients’ online experience. They are focussed on looking for faster ways to send e-shoppers their items. Thus, this partnership will allow them to deliver convenience at a local level and to be “even closer to the customer for that last mile delivery”. This new service will be trialled at three outlets. It is expected that everything will be set up within the next year.

Woolworths is investing a lot of funds into automation to lower costs and make shopping more convenient. It already uses dark stores. These are warehouses that are closed to the public. They are for staff to pack online orders.

Woolworths will be using robots to pack online orders



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