June 11, 2020

Covid-19, Warehouse Automation and National Security

June 11, 2020/ john mabe

One big takeaway from Covid-19, is that we have learned the lengths people will go to for a roll of toilet paper, hand sanitizer or pasta, and even gluten-free pasta. Shoppers behaving badly was mildly amusing, albeit a little sad as panic buying emptied store shelves quicker then they could be restocked. Grocery stores and supply chains in general were wildly unprepared for a pandemic and the sudden surge in demand for certain products.

June 01, 2020

The Decimation of Retail Jobs in One Chart

June 01, 2020/ john mabe

The number of warehousing and storage jobs since 2010 has more than doubled in the U.S. while retail employment has been flat (and negative since Covid-19) over the same period of time.

Chart shows the percentage change in employment since 2010.

September 28, 2017

Connecting the Dots on Amazon's patents in Logistics

September 28, 2017/ john mabe

I've dug into Amazon's patent filings over the last five years and mined the patent titles for keywords related to inventory and logistics. Patents range from the mundane like optimization of packaging sizes or allocating regional inventory to reduce out-of-stock costs to the more technologically advanced like autonomous vehicles, mobile ground-based fulfillment centers, and drones. At the far end of the spectrum are topics that appear to be more the realm of sci-fi fantasy like underwater warehouses, airborne warehouses, and beehive-like warehouses, but hey, who knows.

May 16, 2017

Flexe, the Airbnb of Warehouses, a threat to Amazon?

May 16, 2017/ john mabe

Flexe, the Airbnb for warehouse space, announced a new next-day delivery service, which the company said would give brands the ability to reach 98 percent of U.S. customers faster than Amazon Prime two-day shipping. This was a natural next step for Flexe as they began offering fulfilment services last year.

March 09, 2017

Automation in Logistics and the Future of Work

March 09, 2017/ john mabe

Several recent studies have suggested that nearly half of all jobs are susceptible to automation in the next 20 years. Robots and artificial intelligence are poised to displace jobs in various industries, and the logistics industry is highly vulnerable to job loss. Recently notable tech leaders have made statements in regards to how to deal with automation displacing jobs. Bill Gates has argued for a robot tax to recapture money that displaced workers would have paid as income tax. Elon Musk advocates for a universal basic income...

January 14, 2017

Amazon's Growing Robot Workforce is 45,000 Strong

January 14, 2017/ john mabe

According to a recent report in the Seattle Times, in 2016 Amazon significantly expanded the deployment of Kiva Robots in their fulfillment centers. Amazon acquired Kiva Systems in 2012 and the robots automate the picking and packing process. According to the report, Amazon has 45,000 robots deployed across 20 fulfillment centers which represents a 50% increase over the previous year and a 200% increase since 2014. Since 2014 the human workforce has increased by roughly 100%.

January 03, 2017

Logistics Technology Trends That Will Dominate 2017

January 03, 2017/ john mabe

Making predictions in technology, even just one year out, are generally an exercise in futility, so this really isn't a forecast for 2017, but more a list of trends that I am interested in and keeping my eye on. Technology is rarely released according to plan and surprises can come from many directions. However, it makes sense to keep tabs on what’s coming and it's also great fun to think about what’s coming next. Here's what I will be looking out for in 2017:

October 06, 2016

Logistics Startup: FLEXE and Pop-up Warehousing

October 06, 2016/ john mabe

Today's innovations from startups could be the source of transformation that shapes the future of logistics. Recent technological innovations have allowed startups to disrupt mature industries in a matter of a few years. Take Uber for example, a car service start up founded in 2009. As of July 2016, there have been more than 2 billion trips on Uber that have bypassed the taxi industry. Are there any start-ups out there that could have this type of impact in Logistics?

September 27, 2016

Amazon on the hunt for Warehousing Space in Australia→

September 27, 2016/ john mabe

The Sydney Morning Herald reported today that Amazon is looking for warehouse space in Sydney's west. Reminds me of a great quote from Richard Goyder, Wesfarmer Managing Director, when speaking of the threat Amazon poses to Australia retailers:

"Amazon will eat all our breakfasts, lunches and dinners"

I couldn't agree more; retailers in Australia should be worried, very worried. According to a recent survey, more than 50% of U.S. online shoppers begin their product searches on Amazon.com which is really bad news for U.S. retailers. I would expect the same results here.

September 21, 2016

Pokemon Go is coming to a warehouse near you!

September 21, 2016/ john mabe

The Pokemon Go phenomenon, which has exceeded 500 million downloads worldwide, highlights the possibilities of augmented reality (AR) not just for gaming, but also for use in the supply chain. A good starting point for augmented reality in the supply chain, is in warehouses, and DHL recently announced that they will expand testing of augmented reality in warehouses in Europe and the United States:

July 19, 2016

The Robots are Coming

July 19, 2016/ john mabe

A recent McKinsey and Co. report entitled “Where machines could replace humans and where they can’t (yet)” looked across industry sectors to determine which jobs could be replaced by machines based on currently demonstrated technologies. f you view this report through the lens of warehousing, many physical activities performed in a warehouse throughout the workday are predictable, making many warehousing jobs highly susceptible to automation...

Logistics Technology