Addressing Labor Shortages and Turnover in Material Handling with Automated Picking Solutions

Will Blount | 31 January 2024

In the dynamic warehouse operations and logistics industry, a prominent issue consistently arises in corporate discussions and daily floor operations: the challenge of labor shortages and high employee turnover.

As supply chain, operations, and production leaders, you know how these labor issues strain daily operations and threaten long-term growth and efficiency. The current scenario presents a stark contrast – while there's a booming demand for logistics and warehouse services, finding and retaining skilled labor to meet this demand has become increasingly more difficult. Frequent turnover amplifies these issues, leading to operational delays, escalating costs, and a decline in employee morale.

Amid these challenges, automated picking solutions are a necessary approach to addressing workforce issues and consistently maintaining your clients service level agreements.

Automated picking solutions harnesses the power of goods to person technologies, advanced robotics and state of the art intralogistics software to:

• Streamline the order fulfillment process
• Reduce reliance on a scarce workforce
• Improve operational throughput

These automated technologies create a resilient, flexible, and efficient material handling system, that empowers your workforce the ability to fulfill orders accurately and on-time. Next, let's explore how embracing automated solutions like these can mitigate the current labor challenges and significantly enhance productivity and order accuracy. Get ready to position your operations for a rapid and substantial return on investment.

The Impact of Labor Shortages and Turnover in Material Handling

The material handling and logistics sector is navigating a significant labor shortfall. According to a January 2023 survey conducted by Instawork, a logistics management magazine of more than 400 light industrial business leaders 34% of their respondents had to forgo business due to a lack of available labor in 2022. Among those that had to pass up revenue, 64% of respondents say they had to forgo revenue that amounted to more than 25% of their total business.

This shortage is more than numbers; it reflects an industry-wide struggle to find and retain the workforce needed to keep pace with the growing demands of global supply chains.

High turnover rates compound the challenges posed by labor shortages. When experienced workers leave, their departure creates a ripple effect, disrupting workflow and reducing overall operational efficiency.  End the cycle of hiring and retraining, Instead invest in automation tools that will be used for immediate production.

Beyond the direct costs of recruiting and training new staff, indirect costs include decreased productivity, missed deadlines, and lower customer satisfaction. Cumulatively, these factors affect the bottom line, emphasizing the urgent need to address labor scarcity and turnover.

Automated Picking Solutions: A Comprehensive Response

Automated picking solutions are a practical and effective response to labor challenges. Goods to person systems, advanced robotics and state of the art intralogistics software to reshape warehouse operations.

1. Goods-to-Person Systems

Goods-to-Person (GTP) systems revolutionize how products are delivered to pick stations. By bringing items directly to the operator, these systems minimize walking and searching time, significantly increasing picking efficiency and accuracy. Technologies like AutoStore, and Exotec, ensure a highly efficient and compact storage solution, maximizing space utilization and throughput.

2. Industrial Robotics

Robotic systems like robotic picking, an case packing, and sortation offer unparalleled precision and consistency, handling tasks ranging from simple picking to complex placement and sortation. These automated systems consistently maintain high productivity levels and adapt smoothly to everchanging operational requirements.

3. Intralogistics Software

In modern warehouses there are many sub-systems that need to communicate with each other for operations to run smoothly. This is especially true for facilities that use any level of automation – conveyance and sortation pick to light, robotic picking and palletizing or goods to person systems, for example. The responsibility of managing more than one software or system can be intimidating and can lead to operational downtime if proper training has not occurred. An intralogistics software suite, like Exacta, is designed with the flexibility to integrate many different automation technologies under one software solution for your business, enabling faster deployments, and one streamlined operation interface.

The Benefits of Automation in Material Handling

Automated picking technologies significantly benefit the end customer by guaranteeing a more predictable, consistent, fast, and accurate delivery. Operationally, automation solutions address labor challenges, boost operational efficiency, and offer exceptional ROI. Below are the key highlights of these solutions:

• Enhanced Picking Accuracy and Reduced Errors: Automated systems use various customizable cues to ensure correct item selection, drastically reducing order fulfillment errors and error-related returns and increasing quality and customer satisfaction.
• Organized Pick Presentations for Operational Efficiency: Automated solutions streamline the picking process, making it more efficient and reducing the time spent on each order.
• Seamless Integration with Warehouse Intralogistics Software: These dynamic technologies paired with Exacta, are easily deployable in any operation regardless of your Host System. Exacta software ensures streamlined communication across your automation systems and operations, as well as offering improved visibility and reporting.
• Reduced Training Time for New Employees: The intuitive interfaces and simplified processes significantly shorten the training period, quickly bringing new staff up to speed and reducing the training investment.
• Cost-Effectiveness and Fast ROI: Long-term savings in labor costs, increased productivity reduced footprint and minimized errors lead to an optimal return on investment.
• Flexibility and Adaptability: Automated systems are designed to expand and adjust to changing operational needs, allowing businesses to scale and respond to market demands efficiently without affecting operations.
• Seamless Integration with Other Automation Processes: The holistic approach to automation enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire supply chain, supporting sustainable growth and future success.

Material Handling Automation Solutions in Action

Bastian Solutions has successfully partnered with organizations across all markets facing unique material handling challenges. Explore how these industry leaders responded through practical applications of advanced automation in the material handling industry.

Collaborating with Bastian Solutions, PUMA overcame the challenges of their expanding e-commerce business in North America. The new Indianapolis, IN facility, equipped with AutoStore’s goods-to-person system and in-line packing automation, successfully increased capacity and efficiency. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the center was operational by June 2020, adeptly handling a surge in online orders and paving the way for PUMA's future growth.

Facing the need for next-day delivery of a vast inventory, Hercules worked with Bastian Solutions to design an automated distribution center in Louisville, Kentucky. This facility, equipped with AutoStore’s goods-to-person system, Exacta WES software, and custom conveyor systems, significantly increased storage capacity and order processing speed, improving overall efficiency and customer experience.

Integrating automated picking solutions in the material handling industry is more than a response to labor shortages and turnover; it's a strategic move towards greater customer satisfaction by improving operational efficiency and adaptability. Bastian Solutions' advanced technologies in goods-to-person systems, advanced robotics and intralogistics software underscore a future where automation not only resolves current workforce issues but also enhances overall productivity. Adopting these innovations represents a crucial step toward sustainable growth and competitive advantage for businesses navigating the complexities of the modern marketplace.

Download our How to Ease Labor Challenges with Advanced Automation whitepaper.

Ready to explore how automated picking solutions can revolutionize your operations and tackle labor shortages? Talk to one of our experienced engineers today and take the first step towards a more efficient and profitable future.

Author: Will Blount