Pharma Supply Chains Get Technology Booster
over-produce, consequently reducing waste and manufacturing costs. Controlant’s pay-per-use solutions can easily be scaled up or down, Palmadottir says. They can be integrated with a company’s ERP or other software system to streamline communications and provide a single source of truth. The loggers also can be recalibrated and reused, cutting down on supply chain waste. The increasing population is straining global logistics and the supply chain as a whole. “Greater and greater demand means sourcing more raw materials, constantly ramping up production, and moving and delivering more products to more destinations,” Palmadottir says. That’s prompting an increasing premium on space and time. “The days of loggers that need manual inspection are numbered,” Palmadottir adds. “Controlant is working on a solution that goes even further toward addressing this challenge, as well as getting us one step closer to true end-to- end monitoring.” L R : P A Locus Robotics, based in Wilmington, Massachusetts, develops powerful autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). Known as LocusBots, they are designed for on-time healthcare ful llment. Its experience in this sector is deep and expanding—it has tripled just in the past year—and clients include many top healthcare companies, Wang says. “We’re experienced, proven, and a leader in providing AMRs to the healthcare supply chain sector,” he adds. The Locus solution is customized for each client, which can include healthcare, medical device, and pharmaceutical companies, as well as hospitals and distributors. By deploying robots in their distribution and warehouse operations, pharmaceutical and life sciences companies can alleviate labor challenges and ensure on-time shipping. The robots’ accuracy and ability to
Locus Robotics provides powerful autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) for on-time healthcare fulfillment. Known as LocusBots, they can drive productivity gains of 200 or 300%.
are powerful, industrial strength, and designed for the warehouse and materials handling industry. Waypoint’s solutions, now part of Locus Robotics, also are interoperable with Locus AMRs. I P A number of healthcare companies have bene ted from implementing Locus AMRs. One healthcare distribution center, for example, implemented six robots within an 18,000-square-foot life sciences center, integrating it with the company’s warehouse management system. The productivity increase was so pronounced that the center boosted its AMR population to 56 robots working across 99,000 square feet. Locus implemented this larger solution within 90 days. With the AMRs, the center was able to process more than double the volume of orders it had been handling previously, with no change in headcount. Productivity rates now top 150 units per hour. On top of that, cycle time was cut in half. This ensures products move quickly to their destinations. “We help customers meet their service level agreements,” Wang says. “And we make sure healthcare professionals have the supplies they need.” n
capture and validate serial and lot numbers mean the right products get to the right patients at the right time. Locus solutions also maintain product traceability and enable compliance with serialization requirements. In order to bring current and new associates up to speed quickly, training on the solution typically takes just minutes. LocusBots improve healthcare ful llment in several ways. By optimizing material movement, they can drive productivity gains of 200 or 300%, without increasing the number of workers or the size of workspace. “We increase pick and put-away ef ciencies,” Wang adds. Real-time data alerts supply chain professionals to changes in volumes, allowing the organization to ef ciently scale the solution up or down to meet demand uctuations. The robots themselves can easily be moved across multiple sites, and can shift between picking approaches, including batch and discrete order picking. They also can work with a variety of containers and totes. The acquisition of Waypoint Robotics in September 2021 enhanced Locus’s ability to move larger, heavier loads, as well as smaller ones, Wang says. Waypoint’s Vector and Max robots
54 Inbound Logistics • August 2022
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