COVID-19 has changed the way businesses traditionally operate, bringing to the forefront new challenges and opportunities to be seized. Nowhere is this transformation more pronounced than in the warehousing industry. The pandemic has paved the way for a dramatic increase in the demand for cutting-edge solutions that will maximise efficiency while safeguarding workers’ safety and well-being. This shift in demand has also presented a unique opportunity for businesses to re-evaluate their operations model and seize the advantage of reimagining the adaptation of advanced technology to meet their customers’ needs.
The evolution of warehouse operations
By now, it has become known that the use of technologies such as robots, Autonomous Forklifts and Warehouse Control Systems have helped warehouse operators optimise productivity, reduce labour costs, minimise human error, and increase safety in warehouses. Task automation eliminates the need for labour-intensive manual tasks, which also reduces the operators’ recruitment needs in an industry that is faced with pervasive manpower shortage challenges. Automation also makes it possible to run a third shift and manage more tasks in each shift compared to manual processes. By replacing back-breaking manual labour with machines, more complex tasks are now delegated to employees – presenting new opportunities for employees to gain specialised skills and knowledge to become expert technicians who can control and optimise the technologies.
The impact of warehouse automation on employees
The changes brought about at the workplace by digital transformation have resulted in the swift implementation of government policies focused on reskilling and up-skilling human operators.
At the start of the pandemic, the Singapore government had already foreseen the need to prepare the workforce for a change and to promote employment resilience. Singapore Budget 2023, for example, is focused on developing a robust reskilling and upskilling system to empower workers in Singapore for growth opportunities.
While numerous studies have been published on the operational effectiveness of technologies for warehousing companies, solutions like warehouse sensors can also benefit employees’ safety. They help workers avert the dangers of accidents, and in some cases, it also paves the way for shorter working hours, preventing them from fatigue. Automation offers many advantages, and it includes creating a safer work environment without compensating for productivity efficiency.
Dispelling job replacement concerns
The adoption of automation technology has also fanned fears of job losses and obsolescence. Workers worry that they will no longer be needed at the workplace as most of the traditional roles are now performed by technologies. From a macro perspective, such concerns are unfounded when looking at the industry’s overall labour force scarcity. The reality is that workers are far from being replaced as the emergence of automated processes creates more job opportunities for skilled and unskilled personnel in the industry.
