'Warehouse worker salaries have steadily been on the rise in the last few years, especially in cold storage operations, where it is often difficult to find employees willing to work in sub-zero temperatures.
Turnover in those jobs can hit as high as 40 percent, depending on the time of the year. And even if companies can find workers willing to brave the cold, they're likely to pay the price in productivity.
Worker productivity in an uncomfortable environment like a freezer can be 30 percent to 60 percent below what it is in ambient storage.
A growing number of warehouse operators, therefore, are finding that it's far better to bring in automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) to operate in their freezer and cooler sections. It should also come as no surprise that the companies that design and build AS/RS systems have seen the most interest among that industry segment.
"With AS/RS, we continue to see a lot more activity in the temperature-controlled storage market," primarily because of the labor issue that is a common problem there, notes Ken Matson, an executive vice president at FKI Logistex in St. Louis. "People just do not want to work there."
"We're seeing a lot more in coolers and freezers as companies look to lower personnel that have to work there," adds Tom Steininger, a senior solutions consultant at HK Systems, New Berlin, Wisc.
To be precise, an AS/RS can save labor by reducing a warehouse's reliance on forklifts and the operators needed to drive them. A typical crane may do the work of two or more lift trucks per shift. In order selection, automated layer pickers, for example, can pull a full layer of 15-20 cases in the time that it takes a person to handle one case.
Eliminating some of ...