One of the Czech Republic’s largest retail brands has deployed more than 40 autonomous scrubbers in a deal with Californian AI robotics company Brain and cleaning firm Tennant.

Albert, part of the Ahold Delhaize company, initiated the testing of several autonomous cleaning robots last year in an effort to prioritise the cleanliness of its stores and the automation of its in-store processes. With the combination of equipment from Tennant and the BrainOS AI platform, Albert has fully automated the task of cleaning floors in its stores.

In addition to the machines’ autonomous operation, BrainOS also provides a suite of fleet management tools, such as BrainOS Mobile, enabling managers to track machine operation and performance and ensure work is being carried out on schedule and to a consistently high level.

Tennant and Albert Czech Republic worked collaboratively to define the optimal robotics, able to operate effectively and safely alongside employees while delivering the best cleaning performance tailored to Albert store surfaces and requirements. The partnership was initiated with a pilot programme, which saw automated cleaning robots deployed in several stores throughout the Ahold Delhaize network in Europe.

“After an extensive phase of research, we elected to deploy BrainOS-powered Tennant autonomous scrubbers, which proved to be the most effective machines for operating efficiently and safely in our stores,” said Pavel Klemera, operations support manager at Albert Czech Republic. “The roll out has been seamless and the advanced robotic scrubbers are easy for our team to operate, creating a high level of consistent and trackable cleaning, which ensures that our customers enjoy a comfortable and pleasant shopping experience.”

Tennant has been deploying autonomous mobile robotic cleaning globally since 2017 and has seen a significant increase in deployments across central Europe year-on-year.

“We pride ourselves on producing automated machines that prioritise ease of use for the teams using them and in deploying these machines quickly and efficiently all across the world,” said Bruno Ferraty, strategic account manager at Tennant. “With this partnership, we have seen the best of these, with a rapid and well-coordinated roll out and Albert’s instore teams welcoming the introduction of robotic co-workers able to take over the mundane and repetitive cleaning tasks.”

Michel Spruijt, chief revenue officer at Brain, added: “Albert stores’ introduction of autonomous robots is a great example of how retailers are using technology to support their workforces and enhance in-store operations.”

Since the start of the national deployment in Albert stores, BrainOS-powered robotic scrubbers have covered over eight million square metres and completed over 41,000 cleaning routes.