This Month in Modern: In robotics, people and process are fundamental

This month in Modern we offer the third in a series of three System Reports that examine the emergence of robotics in warehousing and distribution. Back in March, we featured a robotic layer-picking solution that L’Oreal is using to build mixed SKU pallets at its facility in Kentucky. Last month we went inside the operations of VSP, a high-volume optics lab, to see how it’s putting piece-picking robots to work in conjunction with automated storage to handle lenses and frames.

This month, executive editor Bob Trebilcock visits Quiet Logistics, a third-party logistics (3PL) provider of e-fulfillment services for premium fashion and apparel brands like Bonobos, Zara and Mark Weldon. And like the high-end brands it services, Quiet has built its own high-level image as a leader in putting mobile robotics to work and is now looking to build a reputation as an innovative robotics vendor.

In fact, the story is one for a business school textbook. Back in 2009, during the depths of the Great Recession, the e-commerce boom was just about to be ignited, and the leadership team at Quiet saw a golden opportunity to build a 3PL that
specialized in each picking.

But instead of going after commodity items like books and CDs like Amazon, Quiet decided to service companies with high customer expectations—like the Gilt Groupe—and specialize in processes that allowed e-tailers to provide a unique customer experience. But would they go with conventional processes with lots of touches and lots of flexibility, or go with a highly automated approach with terrific throughput, but less flexibility?

“They decided that there had to be a better way,” says Trebilcock. “They wanted to create a shared asset/shared infrastructure fulfillment platform for piece picking, and they wanted a solution that allowed them to start small and scale up as the business grew.” Quiet matched their desires with Kiva Systems’ mobile e-fulfillment robots, and the game changed—and their business took off.

However, Quiet got a wake-up call in March 2012, when Amazon purchased Kiva for $775 million. In time, Amazon decided to take Kiva off the market and stop supporting installed systems in the future—and the game took yet another turn.

Starting on page 16, Trebilcock shares the story of how Quiet’s leadership used this important moment in the history of their business to turn the corner and develop their own robotic solution. Enter Locus Robotics, mobile fulfillment robots designed to further the platform Quiet already had in place while addressing some of Kiva’s shortcomings.

“What struck me about this story is the fact that Bruce Welty and Quiet leadership approached their business as a process enabled by robots rather than trying to figure out how to take a robot and stick it into a process,” says Trebilcock. “They’ve also developed a system that’s simpler to integrate with a WMS and a network. So, if it’s truly plug and play, that’s a big step forward over other systems.”

At the end of the day, adds Trebilcock, the foundation of the Quiet story is about getting the fundamentals right from the outset. “Quiet’s philosophy is to let people do what people do well and let robots do what robots do well,” he says. “Focus on the strengths of the individual elements that make up your overall operations, and you’re bound for success.”