Dive Brief:
- Walmart is installing Swisslog automation and software at its milk facility in Robinson, Texas, according to an April 16 press release. The plant is slated to open in 2026.
- The Robinson plant is the retailer’s third milk facility to be equipped with Swisslog’s automated storage and retrieval solution to optimize material flow and increase uptime.
- The facility’s products will serve more than 750 Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs throughout the South, including Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas, and parts of Arkansas and Mississippi.
Dive Insight:
In 2018, Walmart opened its first milk processing plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, serving as the blueprint for its second facility in Valdosta, Georgia, which is expected to open in 2025, per the release.
The technology is part of Walmart’s larger goal to build a resilient and transparent supply chain and bolster the company’s capacity to meet milk demand.
ASRS includes five Vectura pallet stacker cranes with palletizing and de-palletizing robots from robotics company Kuka, and Swisslog’s ProMove pallet conveyor system and small-load conveyor system.
All solutions are operated on Swisslog’s SynQ software, which “provides warehouse management, material flow and automation control system functionality in a single, modular platform,” per the press release.
“It equips warehouse automation and IT systems with synchronized intelligence of people, processes and machines to boost the efficiency and productivity of warehouse processes and adapt to changing market requirements,” according to the press release.
SynQ also optimizes equipment and inventory flows for real-time inventory tracking and management.
Owning and operating the milk facilities gives Walmart complete oversight over the bottling and packaging process, a company spokesperson previously told Supply Chain Dive. The retailer has also expanded this model to other product supply chains, including case-ready beef, which has a dedicated facility in Thomasville, Georgia, with a second under construction in Olathe, Kansas.