Walmart is opening four new next-generation fulfillment centers with high-tech capabilities using a combination of people, robotics and machine learning. The move is to ensure that the retail giant can continue cranking out orders to consumer fast, whether in-store, pick-up or delivery.
The first of the new centers will open this summer in Joliet, Illinois, 45 miles southeast of Chicago. Walmart leased a 1.1 million-square-foot complex at 3501 Brandon Road owned by CenterPoint Properties.
Walmart also has a 1.6 million-square-foot distribution center in Elwood, Illinois and a 1 million-square-foot building in Spring Valley, Illinois, according to a Friday (June 3) press release.
In the spring of 2023, Walmart is planning a next-gen warehouse facility in McCordsville, Indiana, and in 2024, another will open in Greencastle, Pennsylvania.
The new next-generation fulfillment center undertaking is a “first-of-its-kind for Walmart” that is intended to overhaul how orders are shipped online to people, David Guggina, senior vice president, automation and innovation at Walmart, said in the release.
The move is also intended to make the working life easier for its associates while doubling storage capacity and the number of orders fulfilled each day, Guggina added.
See also: Walmart Announces Robotic Transformation of Regional Distribution Centers
To launch the new fulfillment centers, Walmart is teaming with Knapp, a tech company for intelligent fulfillment solutions, to develop an automated, high-density storage system that streamlines a manual, 12-step process into five steps.
“We’ve been perfecting this system in our fulfillment center in Pedricktown, New Jersey, and have seen how the benefits of this technology are wide-ranging and include: more comfort for associates, double the storage capacity and double the number of customer orders we’re able to fulfill in a day,” Guggina said in the release.
Combined with Walmart’s traditional fulfillment centers, Guggina said the retailer will be able to reach 95% of the U.S. population with next- or two-day shipping.
The four new warehouse facilities will employ more than 4,000 associates and launch new tech-focused jobs, including control technicians, quality audit analysts, and flow managers.
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