Woolworths has deployed its first micro-automation technology in the e-commerce facility located at the back of its existing Melbourne-based Carrum Downs supermarket, in a bid to speed up the delivery of online grocery orders.
The supermarket giant claims to be the first in Australia to deploy the Takeoff technology, which has been designed to sort and move up to 10,000 grocery products from automated storage units to team members that are handpicking customer orders. Fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat will continue to be handpicked from the shop floor, Woolworth said.
According to Woolworths Group CEO Brad Banducci, automating the picking of products will help dispatch five times the online order volume of a standard Woolworths store.
"As customer expectations continue to rise, we're investing in new technology to keep pace with the growth and focusing on building an ever more convenient online offer," he said.
"The micro-fulfilment technology in this e-store is a potential game-changer. It will help us deliver unparalleled speed and accuracy in the online picking process while keeping us close to our customers for faster and more flexible deliveries to the home."
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Banducci added how introducing the technology would reduce congestion on the shop floor, as personal shoppers will be able to pick and pack items at the back of house, as well as boost the availability of same-day delivery.
Carrum Downs is the first of three initial Woolworths sites to trial the technology. Woolworths confirmed the two other sites will be in Auckland and Christchurch, New Zealand. It also has plans to introduce the technology to another site in Australia, with details of its location to be confirmed.