Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Amazon shipping robots

Robots from Kiva Systems, a company that is now owned by Amazon, are roaming around the warehouse floor to find everyone's orders online. Amazon now has 10 fulfillment centers across the United States that houses more than 15,000 Kiva Robots. Amazon said the technology inside the centers includes the Robo-Stow, a gigantic robotic arm that shifts orders. There are also new inventory systems that cut down time taken unloading and proceessing products and packages, getting the needed products to the customer quickly. These Kiva Robots work harmoniously and are aware of each other's location which prevents any accidents.
When reading the article on Amazon's Kiva Robots, I was like," Great! Machines are replacing humans again." In a way this is true and Kiva Robots should be more productive and efficient compared to normal humans. However, Amazon released a statement this year that the company plans to hire 80,000 employees to cover the season rush which is 14 percent more that last year. Amazon expects that out of the 80,000 short term recruits, thousands of them will move into full time roles as the holiday period ends.
Amazon has done a great job incorporating new technology into doing great efficient work. Drones for delivery and now drones to work inside the warehouse. It is scary thinking about machines doing most of the work at a Amazon warehouse but amazed at how far humans came.

http://techcrunch.com/2014/12/01/these-cool-robots-are-processing-your-amazon-orders/

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