Warehouse Automation Paving A Smarter Path To Growth

Warehouses in india have gradually transitioned from being just godowns for storage to ulta-modern, state-of-the-art facilities. What is now revolutionizing the warehousing experience is the advanced level of automation as robotics, artificial intelligence and internet of things propel warehouse communication for quicker deliveries.

- Surya Kannoth

India is emerging as one of the world’s leading consumer markets. It expects to sustain strong growth over the coming years and strives to become one of the top three economies in the world, with the logistics sector playing a critical role in supporting this growth.

Warehousing in India has undergone a sea change over the years. Traditional brick godowns” that were simple four walled sheds with no ventilation and lighting, lack of racking systems or inventory management are now replaced by ultra-modern warehouses equipped with robots.

Today, manufacturers, e-commerce giants, retail and logistics players are embracing warehouse automation as it improves efficiency and of course reduces human labour and cut down supply chain wastes. Furthermore, the emergence of industrial hubs and a uniform tax structure, Goods and Services Tax (GST) has also been a push in the right direction.

Independent global property consultancy Knight Frank recently released the third edition of its flagship India Warehousing Market Report 2018. The report revealed that leasing transactions in the warehousing sector across key Indian markets burgeoned to 25.7 million sq. ft in 2017, recording 85 percent spike year-on-year.

Balbirsingh Khalsa, national director – industrial and asset services, Knight Frank India said “Post GST there has been a spike in demand by almost 100 percent as companies who were till now in a wait and watch mode have now got into execution mode. For the first time we are witnessing consolidation and expansion of warehousing space. This increase in demand from sectors like e-commerce, 3PLs, consumer durables, FMCG and manufacturing to name a few coupled with a requirement for larger sized warehouses has opened up the field for more and more organised players which has led to a demand. We expect the trend to continue and get better in the days to come.”