Worldwide Warehouse Automation Industry Report to 2027 - Post Pandemic the Most Important Trends Have Been E-Grocery Growth, Micro-Fulfilment Centers, Dark Stores and Automated Cold Storages

DUBLIN, May 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Warehouse Automation Market - By Technology (AGV/AMR, ASRS, Conveyors, Sortation, Order Picking, AIDC, Palletizing and WMS/WES/WCS), By Industry (E-commerce, Grocery, Apparel, F&B, Pharma), By Regions" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

According to this report the global warehouse automation market is expected to touch the mark of $41 Billion by 2027, at a CAGR of almost 15% between 2022 and 2027. 

Year 2021 witnessed a huge order intake for warehouse automation companies but revenue growth was limited due to supply chain constraints. As a result, industry has also entered in 2022 with a record order backlog which is great sign for the future potential of this market. Order intake has been led by Dematic with more than $5 Billion in 2021 followed by Honeywell Intelligrated (~50% YoY growth) and Daifuku (~30% YoY growth).

The growth of this market can be attributed to the growth in the e-commerce industry, multichannel distribution channels, e-grocery penetration with dark stores & ultrafast delivery services, globalization of supply chain networks, emergence of autonomous mobile robots and rising need for same day / same hour delivery. The boom in e-commerce is compounding the major labour challenges faced by the $5T global logistics industry. Not only are shipment volumes growing rapidly, but online retail also typically requires more logistical work per item than brick & mortar retail. Indeed, online purchases require individual picking packing and shipping, as opposed to the bulk transportation models of traditional brick & mortar retail.

Our 3rd version of this market study is having a detailed market analysis of more than 650+ players (part of our exclusive Market Map), 10 solutions, 7 industries and 30 countries along with 550 pages, 355 Market Tables, 293 Exhibits and 134 Company Profiles. Analysis is validated through 100+ in-depth interviews across the value chain with components and technology providers, system integrators & manufacturers, software and services providers, and end-user industry verticals.

Of course, the push to automate the warehouses was in full force before the Covid-19 but global pandemic forced the companies to change their strategy w.r.t warehouse automation from "good to have" category to "must to have" if they have to sustain in this industry. One of the learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic is that mega-trends like aging population, globalisation, health & safety, mobility, green logistics, autonomous world, urbanisation, individualisation and digitization need to be given more consideration and weight than in the past with a long-term vision so that we are ready with any challenge.

Post pandemic, most important and emerging trends have been eGrocery growth, Micro-Fulfilment Centers, Dark Stores and automated cold storages.

Huge investment for start-ups like Takeoff technologies, Fabric, Attabotics, Exotec Solutions, Hai Robotics, Addverb Technologies, SEER, Dexterity, Nuro, and Youibot are witnessing this growth along with presence of existing big players like Dematic, Honeywell Intelligrated, SSI Schafer, Knapp, Daifuku, Muratec, AutoStore, and Toyota Advance Logistics. Retailers such as Walmart, Kroger, Coop, Woolworths, Amazon, Ocado, Meijer, Carrefour, H-E-B, Albertsons, and Ahold Delhaize have already started adopting and implementing these new technologies during pandemic.

Apart this, piece picking players such as Righthand Robotics, Nimble, Fizyr, Kindred, Covariant, OSARO, Plus One Robotics, Berkshire Grey, and AWL have established a new attractive capability for order picking in ecommerce fulfillment as picking is least automated process in existing warehouses.

Analytical Insights

• United States, China and Germany are the largest markets with more than 50% share for Warehouse Automation both with regards to demand as well as the presence of OEMs and System Integrators. Europe is a big hub for OEMs, with strong presence in Germany, Italy, France, Netherlands, and Spain. Western Europe is a big market accounting ~30% of the overall global market
• Most of the fastest growing markets are concentrated in APAC, mainly in South Asia (India) and South-East Asia. Middle East is another exciting opportunity and is well suited in terms of geography with European players looking to expand their offerings in the region. Latin America is still under-penetrated with regards to automation; however, things are set to change and market is set to observe a high growth in Brazil and Mexico. Within Europe, Central and Eastern Europe is a fast-growing region, with Poland and Czech Republic emerging as logistics hub and showing good growth prospects. However, given the current geopolitical situation with Russia-Ukraine war, expansion and investment plans have been put on hold
• AGV/AMR market is expected to be biggest market in 2027 with a CAGR of 40%. AMR (without any external support of optical tape, sensor or vision) is going to be main contributor in the warehouses due to high demand in e-commerce sector and its flexibility to deploy the robot without any major change in the existing warehouse infrastructure. However, it is a bit slow in terms of pick rate per hour as compared to ASRS but is preferred in small and medium warehouses due to lower cost and quick deployment. It is expected that AGVs/AMRs are going to have more than 24% market share by 2027 in overall warehouse automation market led by players like Seegrid, Balyo, Hai Robotics, Geek+, GreyOrange, HikRobot, Quicktron, Locus Robotics, Fetch Robotics (Zebra), 6 River Systems, Teradyne (MiR, AutoGuide Mobile Robots), Rocla, JBT, ek-robotics, Omron etc
• The Grocery industry is one of the most challenging and attractive industries from a logistics perspective. Grocery distributors ship high cubic volumes of merchandise to retail stores with frequent deliveries to ensure product freshness. Grocery distribution center operations are amongst the most labour intensive of any industry. Higher automation driven by online grocery, micro-fulfillment centers (MFC) and ultrafast deliveries is going to be biggest opportunity in next 5 years led by different type of solution providers as AutoStore, Takeoff Technologies, Exotec, Fabric, Attabotics, OPEX, Dematic, Geekplus, and Urbx Logistics. It will witness an opportunity worth ~$7B by 2027 with ~19% growth rate. We have already witnessed these partnerships in last 2 years such as Ocado and Kroger in USA, Takeoff Technologies and Majid Al Futtaim in Middle East, Dematic and Coop in Denmark, Walmart and Symbotic in USA etc

Key Highlights

• Warehouse Automation equipment suppliers and industry consultants expect broadly double-digit growth in sales driven by demographic changes, increased penetration in e-commerce and the advent of the Industrial IoT, that will drive demand for data analytics, 5G, digital services and automated operations in post-pandemic era
• Competitive landscape - There are 12 large players having annual revenue of more than $1B and 15-20 medium-size companies with revenue between $200M and $1B operating in the material handling equipment space capable of delivering comprehensive automated warehouse solutions. Top 10 large companies (including Dematic, Daifuku, SSI Schaefer, Honeywell Intelligrated, Knapp, Toyota Advance Logistics, Muratec, Beumer Group, MHS Global, Witron) are capturing more than 50% of market share although lots of start-ups are emerging in new categories like AMRs, Cube based ASRS, Picking Robots, Micro-Fulfillment, Autonomy Service Providers etc
• Services, both MRO and Digital, importance is increasing - Over the time as the installed base of automated warehouse solutions grows, industry players expect an increase in revenues from services and maintenance, which would have a positive impact on profitability as the service business typically has 15-20% operating margins, versus 3-5% margins for new equipment. It is expected to be $10B opportunity by 2027 including digital services
• Business models are also changing considering the real time pain points of end-users for high capex. Businesses are increasingly intrigued with RaaS (Robotics As a Service) because of its flexibility, scalability, and lower cost of entry than traditional robotics programs. The business model for picker-as-a-service is usually on a per-pick basis, ranging from 6 cents to 10 cents per pick, while AMR-as-a-service is usually leased on a monthly basis, from US$750 per robot per month to several thousands of dollars per month, depending on the commitment period
• Industry Consolidation - The past 5 years have seen an increase in consolidation amongst material handling equipment providers as traditional players see acquisition of technology leaders as an increasingly attractive way of positioning themselves in response to changing market trends. Acquisitions like Zebra (Fetch Robotics), ABB (ASTI), Toyota (Vanderlande, Bastian Solutions, ViaStore), Murata Machinery (Cimcorp), Locus Robotics (Waypoint), Hitachi (JR Automation), KPI Solutions (Kuecker Logistics Group, Pulse Integration, QC Software), Ocado (Kindred, Haddington Dynamics), Element Logic (SDI), Honeywell (Intelligrated, Transnorm), Korber (Cohesio Group, Siemens Logistics, HighJump), Teradyne (MiR, Energid, AutoGuide Mobile Robots), Jungheinrich (Arculus), KION (Dematic), KUKA (Swisslog) are just some of the examples of this consolidation

What will you get in this report?

• 550 Pages and 293 Exhibits Market Report for 7 major Industry Verticals and 10 Technologies
• A bottom-up analysis of Warehouse Automation market for 20+ countries and regions
• In-depth analysis of 600 companies in the ecosystem with more than 130 company profiles
• Focus Group Discussion with 100+ key industry stakeholders across the value chain to collect the first-hand information to validate our analysis
• Excel file with a pivot modelling and 350+ market tables including forecast till 2027
• 2 Analyst Sessions to brainstorm further
• Investment details of 2019-21 with 150+ M&A and 750+ funding deals Exclusive Market Map (650 Players across 15+ categories)

Key Topics Covered:

1 Warehouse Automation

2 Warehouse Automation Technology Breakdown
2.1 Warehouse Management System (Wms), Warehouse Execution Systems (Wes) and Warehouse Control Systems (Wcs)
2.1.1 Warehouse Management System (Wms)
2.1.1.1 Entry Functions
2.1.1.2 Location Functions
2.1.1.3 Stock Control Functions
2.1.1.4 Exit Functions
2.1.2 Warehouse Control System (Wcs)
2.1.3 Warehouse Execution System (Wes)
2.2 Automatic Identification and Data Capture
2.3 Conveyors, Sorting and Overhead Systems
2.4 Autonomous Guided Vehicles (Agvs) and Autonomous Mobile Robots (Amrs)
2.5 Automated Storage and Retrieval System (As/Rs) or Pallet Rack
2.6 Palletizing/Depalletizing Systems
2.7 Order Picking
2.7.1 Currently Available Technologies Are Capable of Delivering Fully Automated Picking Solutions
2.7.2 Small-Scale Automation Solutions Exist But Are Unlikely to Provide Sustainable Profits

3 Warehouse Automation Business Model, Drivers and Trends

4 Covid-19 Pandemic - Impact on Warehouse Automation

5 Warehouse Automation Drivers and Trends

6 Warehouse Automation Market, by Technology

7 Warehouse Automation Market, by End-User Industry

8 Warehouse Automation Market Share, by Country

9 Warehouse Automation Developments - Major Customers
9.1 Amazon
9.1.1 The Expanding (Accelerating) Role of Robot-Enabled Fulfilment
9.1.2 The Benefits of Automation/Robotics
9.1.3 There is Still More Room for Improvement
9.1.4 Automation Beyond Amazon'S Traditional Retail Operations
9.1.5 Amazon - Last Mile Delivery (Scout and Prime Air Drone)
9.1.6 Amazon Small Delivery Hubs - Urban Warehouses
9.1.7 Expansion Plan
9.2 Jd. Com
9.2.1 Warehouse Automaton
9.2.2 Delivery Drones
9.2.3 Autonomous Delivery Robots
9.3 Walmart
9.3.1 Alphabot Micro-Fulfilment Centre
9.3.2 Walmart Consolidation Centres
9.3.3 Last Mile Delivery
9.4 Tesco
9.5 Kroger
9.6 Ocado
9.6.1 Ocado Smart Platform (Osp)
9.6.2 Ocado is Distributing and Licensing Its Technology to Other Retailers
9.7 Asos
9.8 Zalando

10 Competitive Landscape

11 Emerging Technologies

12 Company Profiles

13 Agv & Amr - Key Players

14 Autonomy Service Providers (Asp)

15 Machine Vision & Imaging

16 Battery & Chargers

17 Motion Control

18 Piece Picking Robots

19 Warehouse Management System Providers

20 Automatic Identification and Data Capture (Aidc)

21 Warehouse Drones

22 Delivery Robots

23 Research Methodology

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/hrgzf0

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