The Impact Of The IoT In DCs

There are plenty of opinions floating around concerning the burgeoning impact of the IoT (Internet of Things) on various aspects of the supply chain. From futuristic takes on auto-replenishment of consumables at the consumer level—think connected pantries and refrigerators that automatically order more ketchup or flour when those staples run low—to comparably mundane store-level inventory forecasting improvements, the increasing connectivity of data is poised to drive big supply chain change. Much of that change is happening in and around the DC.

Before you read any further, stop for a second and think about the current level of automation in your DCs. Quick, what came to mind first?

Chances are good that your first thought was a closed-loop, inside-the-four-walls operation. Perhaps you envisioned goods-to-person picking. Or the storage and retrieval or palletization processes that your company implemented a few years back to drive operational efficiency. And that’s good, because a few years back, that’s loosely what DC automation meant—removing manual or intellectual labor from processes in order to improve productivity.