Study: 50,000 warehouses to use robots by 2025

By 2025, over 4 million commercial robots will be installed in over 50,000 warehouses, up from just under 4,000 robotic warehouses in 2018, according to “Robotics in E-commerce Fulfillment,” a study produced by ABI Research, New York. The rapid rate of adoption will be driven by the need for flexible, efficient and automated e-commerce fulfillment, especially as same-day delivery becomes the norm. Global adoption of warehouse robotics will also be spurred by the increasing affordability and return on investment (ROI) of a growing variety of infrastructure-light robots.

“Flexibility and efficiency have become primary differentiators in the e-commerce fulfillment market, as retailers and third-party logistics (3PLs) struggle to cope with volatile product demand, seasonal peaks and rising consumer delivery expectations,” says Nick Finill, senior analyst. “Robots enable warehouses to scale operations up or down as required while offering major efficiency gains and mitigating inherent challenges associated with labor and staffing.”