Market trends such as the growth in e-commerce has resulted in proliferating needs for warehouse workers and in an interview with the Indiana Business Journal (IBJ), Locus Robotics CEO Rick Faulk believes robots could fulfil such demands by reducing physical requirements of such labour.
Although industry observers agree with him that technology increases efficiency of warehouse operations, reactions remain mixed on whether that translates to job reductions for human workers. As robots are allocated more mundane tasks, people are freed up for jobs requiring human judgement and skills but the key lies in workers acquiring such skills.
With more sophisticated technologies enabling higher efficiency, the ways businesses rely on warehousing will also change, allowing for shorter shipping times and more frequent deliveries.