Pushing the limits of warehouse inventory management

The Robot Report Podcast · 28 Jun 2024 · 1h 14m

What this episode covers

Oana Jinga, co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer of Dexory, explains how her company pivoted from retail to warehouse inventory management using a 40-foot-tall autonomous mobile robot that creates a real-time 3D digital twin of warehouse environments. She details the technical advantages of floor-based scanning over drones, including safety, speed, and data richness, and discusses the operational integration and ROI claims. The episode also features Garrett Place from ifm effector, who discusses the scaling challenges of mobile robotics, the shift toward specialized applications, and the importance of industry collaboration and trust among vendors.

Mentioned

Companies
Dexory, Agility Robotics, GXO Logistics, Waymo, ifm effector, 6 River Systems, Boston Dynamics, Figure, Tesla, Unitree, Figure AI, Persona AI, Nauticus Robotics, Gather, Simby, Brain Corp, Magazino, Kuka, Sick, Basler
Products
Pillbot, Digit

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Robot Talk · 18m

    Episode 56: Intelligent warehouse robots - Guillaume Doisy

    Guillaume Doisy, Lead Systems Architect at Dexory, explains how the company builds digital twins of warehouses using autonomous mobile robots to solve inventory inaccuracy. He details the technical challenges of indoor localization in dynamic environments where over 90% of stock changes frequently, and describes the robot's sensor suite including wheel encoders and LiDAR. Doisy also discusses his long-term contribution to ROS (Robot Operating System), highlighting its role in standardizing hardware abstraction and enabling resilient, modular software architectures for the robotics industry.

  • Over the Air · 29m

    The Rise Of Retail Robots With Simbe Robotics

    Shaw, CTO of Simbe Robotics, explains how the company pivoted from a generic autonomous mobile robot (AMR) platform to focusing on retail inventory management with their robot Tally. He details the evolution from early prototypes using GoPros and laser-cut wood to a sophisticated system combining computer vision, RFID, and AI to help retailers track stock levels and planogram compliance. Shaw also discusses the company's scaling journey, the integration of software stacks like ROS and AWS, and future innovations like the Cindy Mobile app and virtual tours.

  • Manufacturing Happy Hour · 42m

    282: Inside a Warehouse Automation Project: How Sumitomo Drive Technologies Is Transforming Logistics and Reshoring Operations

    Tony Barlett, COO, and Shawn Lambert, Operations Project Manager, from Sumitomo Drive Technologies, detail their ongoing warehouse automation project at their Chesapeake, Virginia headquarters. The initiative replaces 30,000 square feet of high-bay racking with a dense AutoStore system and Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs), integrated via Swisslog, to compress inventory into a 7,500 square foot footprint. The guests explain how this shift from pen-and-paper operations to a digital interface addresses labor shortages, improves safety, and enables the company to grow 50% over the next five years without a proportional increase in headcount.

  • The Manufacturing Executive · 21m

    Drones, AI and the Future of Inventory Monitoring w/ Sean Mitchell

    Sean Mitchell, VP of Customer Success at Gather AI, explains how the company uses autonomous drones and AI to automate inventory monitoring in warehouses and distribution centers. He details the technology's ability to capture images, read barcodes and text, and compare data against ERP/WMS systems to identify discrepancies with high speed and accuracy. Mitchell shares specific use cases, including an air cargo facility that reduced scanning time from 48 labor hours to under 5, and a customer who recovered $600,000 in missing inventory after a system migration. He emphasizes that accurate, real-time data is critical for preventing line-down situations and improving overall supply chain traceability.

  • Manufacturing Happy Hour · 54m

    BONUS: Leaders in Machine Vision and Robotics: Live from Boston, Pt. 1 of 2 (brought to you by A3)

    Chris Luecke and Jake Hall interview leaders from Plus One Robotics, IDS Imaging, Calvary Robotics, CMES Robotics, Lincode Labs, KUKA, and Locus Robotics at the A3 Vision Show and AMRL Conference in Boston. The guests discuss the persistent 'technology hesitancy' in warehouse automation, the critical role of machine vision in enabling mobile robots to operate in unstructured environments, and the workforce shortages driving adoption. They also share insights on market entry strategies, AI deployment for quality inspection, and the cultural differences between scaling a startup and operating within an enterprise.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Robot Report Podcast. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.