AS/RS: An Investment in the
Future
Friday, April 29, 2011
(from MHIA)
The
Automated Storage and Retrieval
Systems (AS/RS) Industry Group
of Material Handling Industry of
America (MHIA) has released it's
Spring Quarterly Report titled
AS/RS: An Investment in the
Future. The report asserts
that sales of AS/RS are enjoying
a strong comeback due in part to
renewed confidence in the U.S.
economy.
According to the report, several
market dynamics are contributing
to the rebound in AS/RS sales
including:
--Pent-up demand
--Investment in distribution
infrastructure
--Automation in the healthcare
industry
--Government stimulus
--A resurgence of confidence in
the U.S. economy
As companies resume investing in
their businesses, they are
turning to AS/RS because it’s a
proven solution. “As these
companies that slowed growth or
retracted during the recession
start to move forward again,
they don’t want to do things the
same old way. They want to move
forward with innovation,”
according to Swisslog
Logistics’ Brad Moore, vice
chair of AS/RS Industry Group.
For companies that had
previously invested in
automation, the desire to
innovate leads to plans to add
more sophisticated equipment to
their operations. Distributors
that already used large
fixed-aisle AS/RS for pallet
handling, for example, are
preparing to install mini-load
AS/RS that will allow them to
offer customers products by the
case as well as by the pallet.
“Adding that kind of value
upstream in the supply chain
makes a big difference in which
suppliers a company will select
as its partners,” says Moore.
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