Drakes Supermarkets, one of Australia’s largest independent grocery retailers, has chosen Dematic to install its robotic piece picking solution at the company’s new state-of-the-art distribution center (DC) in South Australia. It is the first time the robotic picking system will be deployed in Australia and the second time globally.
The A$80m (US$56m) Drakes DC, which has received planning consent from the City of Playford and is fully funded by Drakes Supermarkets, will be located on a 17-hectare site at Edinburgh North and is expected to create up to 550 jobs.
“Our new facility will be the most advanced independent distribution and logistics center in South Australia and is a key part of our group’s vertical integration strategy within the supermarket sector,” said Glenn Sutcliffe, logistics manager at Drakes Supermarkets. “We are excited that the center will incorporate robotics as part of a wider high-tech warehouse picking system.”
To ensure high productivity and efficiency within the DC, Drakes has chosen Dematic’s RapidPick 1 to 1 Goods-To-Person (GTP) solution including the Dematic Multishuttle buffering and sequencing system and robotic piece picking.
The system will handle GTP compatible grocery products in an ambient environment.
“Some of the key benefits of the new Dematic solution include the security of high value items and increased pick rates, which meet Drakes Supermarkets’ needs in an increasingly competitive grocery sector,” said Terry Jamieson, business development manager at Dematic.
