First Look: Walmart's new self-checkout store
Warehouse Automation Warehouse Automation

First Look: Walmart's new self-checkout store

The discount giant is officially confirming mid-June media reports that it opened a pilot supercenter format in Fayetteville, Ark. that replaces traditional, in-person checkout lanes with self-checkout kiosks. Instead of arranging POS terminals in lanes, the store has a front-end layout in which 34 registers line the edges of a wide-open area.

Read More
Walmart’s experiment with robotics
Robotics, Automation Warehouse Automation Robotics, Automation Warehouse Automation

Walmart’s experiment with robotics

The response from store employees has been even more surprising: they recognize that the robots are there to help, have given them names, which they then display on a badge with that name, and are happy to explain their role to customers, even after the trial period during which they were accompanied by staff. Walmart staff are thankful to the robots for relieving them of the task of shelf checking, and consider them a tool at their service, a technology that helps them or works for them. In other words, they don’t see themselves under threat of being replaced.

Read More