All Episodes

May 3, 2024 15 mins

Our guest on this week's episode is Jeff Burnstein, president of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), the world’s largest trade group for robotics & automation companies. Robotics have impacted supply chains in ways few other technologies ever have. From filling orders in warehouses to loading and unloading trucks, robotics and automation are making our supply chains run more efficiently and accurately. And while the use of robotics has seen steady growth in the industry, what is the near-term outlook? 

Supply chain leaders are bullish on generative AI, with most saying they expect to reap returns on their investments in the technology this year and that they plan to invest even more in the future. This is according to an Accenture survey of C-Suite executives worldwide, released this week 

Walmart is famous for making its supply chain as efficient as possible. This week we learned about another way they squeeze cost out of the system. The company opened a high-tech consolidation center in Illinois. This is a 490,000-square foot facility that uses automation to flow three times more volume of goods through the building than a manual version. They have about 10 total of these consolidation centers, but most of those are manual; this is actually the third one of these high-tech ones they operate, following the first one which opened in California in 2019.

 

Supply Chain Xchange  also offers a podcast series called Supply Chain in the Fast Lane.  It is co-produced with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals.  Go to your favorite podcast platform to subscribe and to listen to past and future episodes.


Articles and resources mentioned in this episode:

Podcast is sponsored by: Yale Lift Truck Technologies

Other links

Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce

New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce

Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!

Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.