Zebra Technologies Corporation released the findings of its latest Warehousing Vision Study. In 2024, India's total warehousing stock has reportedly surpassed 500 million square feet, making the safety of frontline employees a critical focus alongside operational efficiency. As safety emerges as a top priority, automation tools are increasingly recognized as essential not only for optimizing operations but also for safeguarding workers.
In the study titled, “Elevating Every Move: The Formula for High-Performance Warehousing,” frontline workers clearly communicated the benefits of automating warehouse operations – and the risks of not automating fast enough.
According to the study, 63% of global warehouse leaders plan to implement both artificial intelligence (AI) software (63% in APAC including India) and augmented reality (AR) (65% in APAC including India) within five years. In addition, 64% surveyed globally plan to increase spending on warehouse modernization in the next five years, with APAC leaders including India at 63%. Meanwhile, 63% plan to accelerate their modernization timelines by 2029, similar to 64% in APAC including India.
From an industry point of view, Interact Analysis projects global warehouse square footage will increase by 27% to 42 billion square feet in 2030 from 33 billion square feet in 2023. Warehouse labor spend is also expected to show long-term expansion projected at a compound annual growth rate of 7% through 2030.
As this expansion continues and daily order volumes increase, feedback shared by global frontline workers as part of Zebra’s Warehousing Vision Study suggests that warehouse leaders will need to move a bit faster to expand workforce capacity:
85% of associates (88% in APAC including India) report that if employers do not invest in technology to improve warehouse operations, they will not meet business objectives.
74% of associates (77% in APAC including India) are concerned they are spending too much time on tasks that could be automated.
72% of associates (79% in APAC including India) are concerned about safety on the (increasingly busy) warehouse floor, with 70% (72% in APAC including India) specifically worried about injuries.
69% of associates (73% in APAC including India) reported there is a lack of qualified staff on the warehouse floor and express concerns about fatigue and physical exhaustion (69% globally, 76% in APAC including India).
Even warehouse leaders admit they find it challenging to maintain the fill rates (51% globally, 45% in APAC including India) and prepare orders (47% globally, 51% in APAC including India) outlined in their service level agreements (SLAs), with order accuracy (41% globally, 43% in APAC including India) and outbound processes (41% globally, 40% in APAC including India) cited as the top two operational challenges in the Zebra study. Increased e-commerce activity is also making “faster delivery to the end-customer” (37% globally, 36% APAC including India) a top challenge for warehouse teams, even as technology use is on the rise.
Given the disparity between customers’ growing expectations and warehouse operators’ limited hiring capacity, warehouse associates say it’s important that collaborative robots (88% globally, 91% in APAC including India), ergonomic mobile devices (88% globally, 90% in APAC including India), communications applications (87% globally, 90% APAC including India), and task management tools (91% globally, 94% in APAC including India) are used to help solve workplace issues.
More than nine in 10 associates (93% globally, 92% in APAC including India) also believe the increased availability of automation and mobile technologies would help attract and retain more warehouse associates, especially given they personally feel more valued (89% globally, 90% in APAC including India) by their employers when provided with technology tools and automation designed to help them.
“It’s a clear sign to enhance warehousing solutions when associates worldwide note that their lives would improve with more thoughtfully integrated automation in their workflows,” said Subramaniam Thiruppathi, Director of India sub-continent business, Zebra Technologies. “Automating material movement, data collection, and information management benefits everyone. It makes warehouses safer, helps teams meet SLAs more effectively, and ensures a steady flow of quality goods to the market, boosting customer satisfaction and worker engagement.”
How (and How Much) Automation is Really Expected to Help Warehouse Workers
Warehouse leaders believe the biggest impact of mobile device-based AI applications will center on worker safety, quality control, and inventory management. While 79% say AI will positively impact their ability to detect potential hazards and issue alerts for prevention, 78% think AI would make an impact on their ability to detect issues or anomalies using AI – this sentiment is echoed by 82% and 81% of APAC including India warehouse leaders respectively. In addition, 77% (78% in APAC including India) feel AI applications would impact their ability to forecast needs, streamline stock levels, and maximize space using AI applications.
Many global warehouse leaders who plan to augment/automate or have already done so say their goal is to mitigate errors (71%) and meet SLAs (70%). They hope automation will increase worker efficiency and productivity (54% globally, 56% in APAC including India) as well as reduce order errors and manual picking (53% globally and in APAC including India). Plus, 82% of warehouse leaders (84% in APAC including India) agree that giving warehouse workers more technology tools will help them exceed productivity goals while reducing physical strain and preventing injuries. Eighty-one percent of the leaders also admit that automation improves morale, similarly reflected by 80% in APAC including India.
Warehouse Leaders Need More Help, Too
Ultimately, warehouse leaders say their biggest supply chain network challenges are “innovating with technology and intelligent automation” and “meeting changing customer service expectations.” Yet, the latter will not prove possible until warehouse leaders figure out a clear path forward with technology.
“Frontline workers are often overwhelmed with tasks in warehouses, many of which they don’t enjoy and that can and should be automated today,” added Thiruppathi. “To accelerate into a smarter future that ensures warehousing longevity, it is critical for warehouse leaders to actively digitize, automate, and enhance intelligence to support their frontline operations. At Zebra, we are eager to lead the charge with our latest series of products, including Enterprise Mobile Computers (RS5000x, ET60W, ET65W, MC3400, MC3450, MC9400, MC9450, Zebra Dimensioning Mobile Parcel 2.0), Rugged Scanners (DS3600-XR), Asset Tracking Solutions (ZT411 Linerless, ZD621 WiFi 6, ZD611 WiFi 6, ZD421 WiFi 6, ZD411 WiFi 6), and RFID solutions (FXR90), which are designed to meet the needs of the Indian warehousing industry.”
KEY REGIONAL FINDINGS
Asia-Pacific (including India): Missed SLAs are a tremendous financial burden for 88% of decision-makers (83% globally), underscoring the need to swiftly address inefficiencies.
Europe: Workplace safety remains a concern, with 73% of associates (70% globally, 72% in APAC including India) worried about injuries on the warehouse floor.
Latin America: 70% of decision-makers (71% globally, 70% in APAC including India) who plan to augment/automate or have done so already say the biggest driver for automation is the need to mitigate errors.
North America: 88% of decision-makers (84% globally, 83% in APAC including India) agree adopting new technology is essential to remain competitive in the fast-paced, on-demand economy.
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