Organizations worldwide are always on the lookout for ways to streamline their business, and any tools that meet this requirement are snapped up with enthusiasm. Automated material handling equipment (AMHE) is one such tool. The equipment eliminates the need for manual labor to sort, organize, and retrieve materials, and provides an efficient, accurate, and cost-effective method for moving goods across an organization.
The increased efficiency provided by this advanced equipment is a major reason the AMHE and Storage Systems Market in Europe is expected to grow steadily at a CAGR of 10.61 percent from 2014-2019.
Adoption of Automation Technology in Healthcare Industry
Increased demand for automation technology in pharmacy and hospital applications is one of the major factors behind this market growth. High standards in control, accuracy and traceability are essential for healthcare providers and drug manufacturers, which is leading these end-users to adopt automated solutions like guided vehicles and storage systems.
On the pharma side, drug manufacturers are increasingly adopting AMHE and information systems to reduce supply chain inefficiencies and to meet high demand while maintaining the required level of quality and consistency in manufacturing,
In the hospital sector, AGVs are used to transport hospital trolleys carrying pharmacy and general supplies, and other items such as catering supplies, laundry, and waste. Automated vehicles have made hospital employees’ jobs easier, allowing them to focus more on patient care.
High Deployment Costs
While the benefits of AMHE are relatively wide ranging, the high deployments costs are the major barrier to more widespread adoption of this equipment in the European market.
The initial investment in adopting advanced technologies is significant, with the cost of deployment varying depending on the user’s requirements. In addition, budgetary constraints can limit testing of automated material handling solutions once they are installed. And if implementation isn’t successful, it can result in huge losses for enterprises.
On top of the high upfront costs, maintenance of automated machinery requires operational attention and support, which is another big expense.
Incorporation of Vehicle Intelligence
Despite the associated costs, AMHE systems are still gaining popularity as key vendors in the market work towards developing equipment with increased functional competency.
Several vendors are incorporating electronic intelligence in their material handling products. This will make future AGVs more efficient in navigating around pallets and other temporary obstructions. They will be able to assess whether an aisle is too congested for travel, and they will change their speed depending on whether there are pedestrians and manually driven forklifts present.
This dynamic “robot-like” behavior will require a much greater degree of vehicle intelligence and autonomy, but also will enable easy and effective control of the equipment to achieve superior operations, leading to high demand and ultimately growth in the AMHE and Storage Systems Market in Europe.
