US retail giant walmart announced that construction will begin on a new milk processing facility later this year, with completion expected in 2025.
Walmart will install SwissLog automation solutions at its new facility in Valdosta, Georgia, USA, to enable “seamless” material flow and increase uptime.
Walmart says its Automated Storage and Retrieval Solution (ASRS) will enhance its ability to meet consumers’ milk demands. ASRS is part of the company’s efforts to build a more resilient and transparent supply chain to deliver quality products.
ASRS combines five pallet stacker cranes with pallet loading and unloading robots, pallet conveyor systems and conveyor systems for small packages. The automation solution operates based on the synchronization intelligence of Swisslog’s SynQ software and provides warehouse management, material flow, and automation control system functionality in a single modular platform.
SynQ management software optimizes equipment flow to improve operational efficiency and accuracy and coordinates the operation of multiple subsystems. SynQ equips warehouse automation and IT systems with synchronized people, process, and machine intelligence to improve the efficiency and productivity of warehouse processes and adapt to changing market requirements.
It also provides advanced inventory management and material flow capabilities that enable real-time inventory tracking and item management to ensure freshness, quality, and transparency in the food supply chain.
The Valdosta facility will be Walmart’s second milk processing facility in the U.S. after opening its first milk processing plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 2018 in partnership with Swisslog.
“We are excited to once again partner with Walmart to open our second milk processing facility,” said Sean Wallingford, president and CEO of Swisslog Americas. It was a very hands-on, collaborative and proactive approach from the initial discussion to the completed design. Our automation experts work closely with Walmart’s group to incorporate lessons learned and best practices from our first processing facility, as well as new products designed to help Walmart and its farmers deliver fresh, transparent dairy products to market. We have introduced a new improvement concept. ”
The project also includes Swisslog’s “IT Managed Services,” which provides experts who can manage the IT systems and software needed to keep the equipment running at peak performance. 24/7 support allows Walmart to free up internal resources from day-to-day IT system management while also enabling data-driven, proactive maintenance that helps reduce unplanned downtime.