X5 Group has conceived to introduce cleaning robots in a warehouse of about 60 thousand square meters. m. To reduce manual labor

As TAdviser discovered, X5 Group is considering a project to implement a comprehensive cleaning automation solution in a huge warehouse. From the request for prices for robotic solutions, published on the trading platform B2B-Center August 14, 2024, it follows that X5 Group wants to equip its warehouse complex in the Moscow Region with robotic cleaning equipment^[1]

The terms of reference specify that the equipment is required for dry and wet cleaning of an area of ​ ​ about 60 thousand square meters. m. Without involving human labor or with minimal involvement.

The equipment is required to reduce the manual labor involved in cleaning, as well as the economic efficiency of warehouse operations, the company explains in the terms of reference.

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X5 Group

In addition to the equipment itself, the architectural solution should also include a robot charging area; water replacement area, filters cleaning, tray removal from debris; other processing areas if they are part of an integrated solution.

Among the requirements for a comprehensive solution is the availability of convenient access to the control system for diagnostic and configuration purposes, including loading the algorithm for moving and cleaning the territory, viewing statistical data, creating reports. It is supposed to be integrated with WMS Kh5, and integrations with SIEM systems, ADMS and secure development tools should also be taken into account.

The equipment supplier shall have a representative office in Russia and service services ready to work with the proposed equipment, and shall agree to provide the equipment for the test upon request.

X5 Group has several warehouses in the Moscow region. The terms of reference do not specify the address of the object where it is planned to introduce robotic cleaning.

X5 Group has not previously reported on the experience of using robots for cleaning in warehouses, but in June 2024 it reported on the launch of a pilot to use ten robot washers in the Perekrestok supermarket chain in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Sochi. The message was about the intelligent Chinese robots Pudu. The X5 Group clarified to TAdviser that the company is still evaluating the effectiveness of processes and is considering the option of scaling this innovation.

Even earlier, in March 2024, X5 Group announced the launch of a landfill laboratory for testing robotic technologies based on its distribution center in Podolsk, where at that time it was testing two types of robots: autonomous forklifts and autonomous mobile robots^[2]. The company expects that various automation solutions will optimize several key business processes for which a lot of human resources are now spent: moving and placing goods in the storage area, replenishing cells, selecting goods for picking orders and moving them to the shipping area. According to the company's plans, in September-October 2024, the group's retail chains will be able to begin introducing robotic solutions for partial automation of warehouse processes.

The X5 Group told TAdviser that the company was also testing cleaning robots as part of a landfill laboratory at a distribution center. After the tests, an efficiency calculation was carried out and technical requirements were drawn up for this type of robots. The automated devices given in the request posted in mid-August are not the purchase of devices, but the technical task for monitoring the market, formed on the basis of tests, specified in the X5 Group:

During this monitoring, the Kh5 looks for solutions that meet the requirements. After piloting, a decision will be made to purchase and scale the technology of automated cleaning of warehouses.

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