6 River Systems Sees Great Potential for Logistics Robots

Germany is the European champion: With 371 industrial robots per 10,000 employees, the nation is clearly ahead of the second and third-placed countries, Sweden and Denmark, with 289 and 246 units, respectively. This is according to the World Robotics 2021 Report published by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR).

“Looking at the world champion South Korea with 932 industrial robots, however, there is still significant growth potential,” emphasizes Jürgen Heim, Sales Director Europe of 6 River Systems (6RS), which specializes in fulfillment solutions. With Chuck, the company offers a collaborative robot for storage, picking, counting, replenishment, and sorting tasks with a maximum payload of just over 90 kg.

Chuck belongs to the category of logistics robots, which are already experiencing strong demand growth. In this market segment, global demand increased by 11 percent in 2020 to a volume of over one billion US dollars, according to the IFR. There are various reasons for this development: “Increasing skilled labor shortages, rising cost pressures, and the ongoing boom in e-commerce are driving further automation in logistics,” notes Heim.

6 River Systems will benefit significantly from this demand potential. The company offers unique solutions that reduce the travel paths of pickers, thereby increasing their productivity by two to three times. The American manufacturer has been active in Europe for three years and established a new European headquarters in Frankfurt am Main in 2020. An innovation center is also located there: Here, interested parties can experience how Chuck works and how it increases productivity as the basis for 6 River Systems’ end-to-end fulfillment solution. In combination with the new Mobile Sort and Packout, the collaborative robot from 6 River Systems makes the entire intralogistics process faster – from goods receipt to shipping at the goods exit.

Employees Stay in Their Picking Zones

Since its founding in 2015, 6 River Systems has recorded significant successes: Chuck is already in use as a fulfillment solution in many warehouses in the USA, Canada, and Europe. Chuck guides its employees through the processes within their assigned picking zones. Chuck is supported by artificial intelligence, which identifies the ideal route and prioritizes orders. By adaptively directing the various picking zones, 6RS increases efficiency. Congestion is reduced, and relevant tasks are combined. Employees remain in their picking zones. They are sequentially accompanied by different Chucks, which autonomously cover longer distances between the zones. This principle significantly reduces the employees’ travel times and thus also the costs.

Photo: © 6 River