EStore Logistics, one of Australia’s largest 3PL ecommerce fulfilment businesses, has picked Chinese firm Geek+ to provide smart logistics robots for two new fulfilment centres.
 
The partnership will see more than 200 of Geek+ autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) deployed by the end of 2021, allowing retailers of all sizes to keep up with growing customer expectations and take advantage of Australia’s ecommerce boom.
 
Serving over 50 of Australia’s online retailers with a wide SKU range meant that EStore Logistics was looking for a technology partner that could support its multi-customer business, flexibly meet rapidly changing SKUs and enable retailers to improve fulfilment performance while remaining profitable.
 
The goods-to-person picking system, empowered by Geek+ proprietary smart algorithms, uses P-series warehouse robots to eliminate redundant walking, improve picking accuracy and reduce labour intensity. The AI-driven system features robot task management, combined order optimisation for picking, inventory management, dynamic wave optimisation, and adjustments of inventory layouts for increased efficiency.
 
“We are proud that EStore Logistics chose Geek+ for what has become the largest ever implementation of AMRs in Australian ecommerce,” said Lit Fung, vice president at Geek+. “By choosing Geek+, EStore can take advantage of our AI-driven AMRs to optimise warehouse operations, flexibly meet changes in demand, and empower retailers regardless of size with better and faster customer service”
 
After the implementation of an initial batch of Geek+ AMRs in its fulfilment centres, EStore has seen a fourfold increase in efficiency as well as faster order fulfilment and, for some of the company’s customers, the capacity optimisation of Geek+ system has led to a 30% reduction in their logistics costs. Thus EStore expects a payback in less than five years as the flexibility provided allows the company to scale and mitigate against risks associated with swift changes in SKUs and rapid growth demands.
 
“We chose Geek+ AMR because it provided the highest flexibility, lowest capex outlay and the fastest return on investment,” said Leigh Williams, EStore Logistics founder and managing director. “Other systems we looked at had, at best, a five to seven-year payback while offering less flexibility benefits. By making this technology available to retailers of all sizes, we’re enabling them to improve their fulfilment performance without a significant upfront investment, bringing state-of-the-art logistics fulfilment to any company that wants to take advantage of the significant ecommerce growth we see here in Australia.”
 
Moving forward, Geek+ hopes to continue providing AMR-driven smart logistics and work with EStore to enable fast and agile order-fulfilment, supporting ecommerce retailers across Australia.
 
Geek+ applies robotics and AI technologies to realise flexible, reliable and efficient installations for warehouses and supply chain management. It has 300 global customers and has deployed more than 10,000 robots worldwide. Founded in 2015, Geek+ has more than 800 employees and is headquartered in Beijing, with offices in Germany, UK, USA, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.