Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) in material handling: Pros and Cons

The nature of material handling is dynamic. Picking up, moving, packing, pushing, pulling, lifting – the list of physical forces are many. When these are powered by manual labor, this dynamism means material handling is also dangerous. Along with transportation, it's ‘the occupational group with the most fatalities.’

When it comes to a solution that increases safety while improving dynamism, there’s one solution that’s commonly referred to: Automation. It’s clear that this type of technology is disrupting economies and labor markets. However, the early signs and use cases are that AMRs can augment human expertise, freeing up workers to focus on value-added activities in the workplace.

Of course, with every organization at different stages of maturity around emerging technology, automating isn’t necessarily the answer for all. That’s why there needs to be careful evaluation of the pros and cons.

What are some of the pros of AMRs in material handling?

Many of the pros of AMRs are interlinked. So that incremental improvements can be felt across multiple functions at the same time. The result: A whole improvement that’s greater than the sum of its parts. Let’s take a look at some of those potential improvements individually.

Improving health and safety

Despite many improvements in health and safety, there are still thousands of accidents and fatalities each year. One-in-five workplace fatalities are caused by forklift trucks or industrial vehicles. Meanwhile, ‘10% of major injuries across European industry occur with material handling equipment’

For workers and their employers, there’s only so much that can be done to reduce the risks. If it’s not possible to eliminate the risks from vehicles, perhaps the answer is to find a different way. AMRs offer a way to plug the gaps, and allow existing workers to work in less hazardous environments with less exposure to potential injury.

Solving labor shortages

Manufacturing is experiencing a labor shortage and skills gap, with potentially 1.9 million unfilled jobs up to 2033 in the US. Many of the challenges are structural, with no quick fix available. These include aging workforces and higher staff turnover, estimated to be 37% in warehousing compared to 3.6% across industries each year.

For this reality, AMRs can help fill gaps that the current labor market can’t. Existing workers can then be used for more creative and problem-solving tasks, helping to boost employee retention, health, and safety.

Optimizing productivity and reducing cycle times

When it comes to repetitive tasks in material handling, there’s always the risk of human error. By automating parts of the processes, such as where to position materials, organizations can be more precise with measurements. Higher precision also allows for maximizing warehouse floor usage, with greater consistency in storage allocation.

For one global consumer packaged goods firm, investing in automation resulted in a 70% productivity boost in processing, and 280% increase in filling and packaging

Cost savings

AMRs can be used to continuously monitor equipment, and alert or take autonomous decisions when a machine is at risk of failure. This allows businesses to take preventative action in advance and minimize unplanned outages.

Naturally, this offers a way to cushion the financial impact of downtime. PWC estimates ‘AI-enabled predictive maintenance could reduce maintenance costs by up to 30% and unplanned downtime by 45%’ (pdf). Meanwhile, the typical observed ROI from robotic automation in manufacturing is now estimated to be 1–3 years, compared to 5–8 years from the 1980s.

Improving customer experience

Fulfillment and shipping are key battlegrounds for customer experience, with 42% of surveyed shoppers choosing retailers based on speed of delivery (pdf). They’re also areas of high unpredictability. Different seasons or campaigns may launch, or a product may go viral without warning. Reacting to these sudden changes are a constant challenge for those responsible for allocating material handling resources.

AMRs can help bring some predictability to processes, being available 24/7 and offering repeatable and consistent packing. In turn, the robots can free workers to focus on managing inventory and using their expertise to identify areas for improvement.

Business intelligence

AMRs can provide a constant source of data to better understand throughput and patterns throughout the working day. This allows businesses to better understand where to allocate resources.

As insights grow over longer periods, it becomes possible to compare year-on-year performance, to implement longer-term strategic decision-making based on objective data.

wheel.me comes with an app for monitoring tasks and transport in real time

New employment opportunities

Some forms of autonomous robots, such as Genius 2, can be used by workers from non-technical backgrounds. This democratization offers operatives a way to move away from physically demanding jobs, and toward more strategic tasks. For example, using their understanding of the warehouse layout to better analyze, interpret, and optimize routes and throughput.

By leaving automation for repetitive tasks, workers can focus on edge cases. These can often be those technical outliers that involve problem-solving, helping to engage workers.

What are some of the cons of AMRs in material handling?

Businesses evaluating these pros and cons will have different methodologies for measuring their importance. For example, those already with advanced business intelligence may not see automated mapping as a key driver. Others, such as those with staff shortages, may look to embrace automation more urgently. That’s why it’s important to be aware of some of the cons that can arise with AMRs in material handling.

Environmental limitations

There's the initial mapping required for robots. This can be laborious if using less autonomous robots that aren’t equipped with LiDARs, cameras, smart obstacle avoidance, or navigational algorithms. For dynamic environments, such as warehouses and factories, layouts will change, causing less advanced AMRs to become more inefficient due to outdated navigational paths.

Some AGVs may also need changes made to the environment, such as magnetic tape with human intervention. That can also add to expenses if and when the business decides to relocate, in terms of returning the building to the owner or landlord in its original condition.

Downtime costs

Robots need maintenance. Servicing helps ensure smooth running of the robots, it also means downtime while they're out of action. Innovations such as predictive maintenance can help organizations plan ahead. However, that relies on more advanced AMRs, and can’t completely remove the financial impact of AMRs being unavailable.

Capital investments

When you look at the price of AMVs and AGVs, up to $100,000 or $200,000, the initial capital expenditure can be an obstacle. Especially if stakeholders are looking for an initial Proof of Concept (PoC) before committing to a bigger automation project.

Limited use cases

The environment may need adapting to accommodate automation, potentially increasing costs and limiting the scope. For example if AMRs are carrying payloads of irregular shapes, such as lumber for framing houses, this may be beyond even the most autonomous AMVs or AGVs.

Genius 2 can be fixed to almost any item, including irregularly shaped materials to provide autonomous omnidirectional movement

Adding workloads to human operatives

While AGVs offer opportunities to optimize warehouse processes, they can also lead to bottlenecks. For example, stopping if they meet an obstruction, rather than autonomously redirecting and continuing on their journey.

Less adaptable than humans

While repetitive tasks are primary candidates for automation, humans remain the choice for tasks requiring imagination, creativity and adaptability. While humans are used to covering a colleague’s workload at short notice, AMRs are tasked with doing one thing repeatedly, and are less likely to be able to switch mid-task.

A question of adoption

The pros and cons encompass all parts of the business. When evaluated separately, some may not have a major influence. That's where it can be an advantage to choose an automation solution that allows for a lower investment commitment. So that it's a low-risk way of understanding where and how to realize the benefits and ROI. 

To build a business case, factors include:

• ROI
  How soon will the business expect to see results, and will this impact be enough to encourage stakeholders to scale their automation more widely?
• Current technology stack
  Is the system set up for integration with business analytics tools, or is it better if the automation solution had its own analytics suite?
• Training
  How much in-house expertise is available – or needed, depending on the solution chosen? How sophisticated should the automation be, and is it user-friendly enough to be used by non-technical employees?
• Culture
  What's the attitude to automation internally? Do employees see it as a way to support, extend, and improve safety in their day-to-day tasks? Or does there need to be education to address their concerns?
• Nature of payloads
  Are they standard sizes and shapes that can be used by any type of automated solution? Or does it need a more flexible type of automated system, one that adapts to non-standard payload sizes?
• Environment layout
  Is existing space at a premium, making some AGVs unsuitable for compact spaces?
• Existing material handling equipment
  Can trolleys, racks, and pallets currently in use be retained and integrated with automation, or will the business need to invest in new transportation for material handling?

For an automated robot that can answer all these questions positively, you’re invited to explore Genius 2. The robotic wheels are modular, so you can start small with your automation program. Maintenance and troubleshooting can be done by your team – no engineering expertise needed.

You can add Genius 2 sets to almost any object to make it intelligent, automated, and fully mobile with zero-point turns. They come with a subscription model, at rates that are only around one-third of a lower-priced AGV or AMR.

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