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Australian e-commerce fulfilment provider eStore Logistics has unveiled yet another robot-powered warehouse as it consolidates its position in the backbone of Australia's home delivery boom, this time in Sydney following a $75 million investment.
The 19,310-square-metre Bankstown warehouse will be equipped with 77 AI-powered Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) - a number that will be expanded to 120 once a mezzanine level is added by the end of next year.
It is an addition that will allow automated picking from AMRs across multiple storeys using a mezzanine platform, in a development eStore Logistics claims will be the first of its kind in Australia.
The new centre is the company's eighth nationwide and the fourth with AMRs, taking its warehousing footprint to 120,000sqm of which 80,000sqm has opened within the last 14 months.
The fulfilment centre will be fully operational from November 2021 and create up to 120 jobs, catering to a wide variety of products from large bulky items such as furniture to delicate, temperature-sensitive products like wine, to consumer goods such as fashion and apparel, health and beauty products, books and sports equipment.
eStore Logistics founder and managing director Leigh Williams says the world has changed a lot over the last 18 months and e-commerce has been completely transformed.
"Consumers are demanding faster and more flexible deliveries, and we’ve been scaling our business to meet the growing demand, by providing our customers with state-of-the-art fulfilment and warehousing solutions," Williams says.
"Automated robots have already significantly sped up the picking and packing process for our customers.
"Our best in class warehousing and fulfilment systems mean online retailers can give their customers the best service possible — including same day delivery — in the most cost-effective way possible."
He highlights a huge demand from e-commerce and omni-channel retailers that are looking to instate eStore’s turnkey warehousing, fulfilment and last-mile solutions.
"All of these new business opportunities are fuelling strong revenue growth and building economies of scale for eStore," the managing director explains.
Utilising AMR technology since March 2020, eStore has been providing Victorian retailers with same-day fulfilment for e-commerce orders placed as late as 4pm and same-day delivery to its customers. eStore is now expanding this service offering to retailers that hold their stock in NSW.
eStore Logistics partnered with specialist supply chain and property consultancy TMX on securing this new facility. TMX secured a 10-year lease for eStore with Altis Property Partners and will now project manage the end construction of the speculative development alongside Altis.
This is the second facility TMX has sourced for eStore in the last two years in Western Sydney to accommodate eStore’s significant growth.
"With the rapid growth of eStore Logistics, they needed to procure another industrial facility in Western Sydney that was operational by the end of this year," says TMX director Jack Moroney.
"Through our property and construction project management expertise, we procured a facility well under construction in a prime infill location nearby the M5 Motorway.
"Our team ensured all the bespoke operational needs of eStore were included within the base building definition to mitigate eStore’s risk exposure during their tenancy and enable them to operate from the site at practical completion."
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