India Warehouse Automation Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

India Warehouse Automation Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The Indian Warehouse Automation Market is expected to reach a value of USD 682.1 million by 2027, registering a CAGR of 26.1% over the forecast period. For estimating the market studied, types of solutions covered under the scope have been analyzed individually, including conveyor and sortation systems, palletizers, mobile robots (AGV/AMR), vision inspection equipment, and labeling equipment employed in the FMCG industry.

• Warehouse automation is the process of employing technology to increase the efficiency of warehouse processes, like moving and assembly. These processes could involve mechanics to help move products between facilities or database systems to help track each area or warehouse. Warehouse automation became essential, especially for FMCG players dealing with bulk goods and items. From inbound transit to storage to outbound transit, several areas require adequate focus and advancements to make the whole process seamless.
• A significant component of warehousing and fulfillment operations is proper inventory management. It enables the company to re-order and stock products effectively so that both excess inventory and stock-outs are avoided. Warehouses handle inventory using warehouse management software that provides real-time inventory management capabilities.
• Material handling in warehouses has undergone various transformations that have changed the industry's outlook. Material-handling machines and mobile robots have replaced individual workers. Due to this transformation, many industries have grown, including FMCG. The rising infrastructure investment from the government, investments from industries, and the 'Make in India' initiative are expected to drive the demand for warehouse automation systems.
• Developing economies such as India have been representative of labor-intensive formats. With labor costs significantly low compared to other developed countries, high investment in specific warehouse automation systems with additional staff training has restrained the adoption of warehouse automation, especially in SMEs.
• In January 2022, due to the spike in COVID-19 cases across the nation, customers stocked up the goods, increasing demand for FMCG businesses, which increased supplies to their stockists to avoid a supply crisis. Companies like Parle Products, Dabur India, and ITC, which are already dealing with inflationary pressures on inputs, are keeping extra stock of raw materials to prevent any supply chain disruptions brought on by the new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. They do this by applying what they learned from the previous two waves.

• The e-commerce boom in India has benefitted several industries in India, especially the supply and logistics sector, wherein data science is applied increasingly for shipment tracking. With the continued rise of online shopping and changing buyer expectations, speed and accuracy of delivery have spurred e-commerce companies to find a faster way to reach customers.
• The retail fulfillment paradigm shift is witnessing a new dimension, with e-commerce giants competing fiercely to fulfill faster deliveries. Warehouse automation and control system sales stimulate growth by boosting operational efficiency. Warehouse automation forms the backbone of e-commerce players in India, such as Amazon, Flipkart, and Bigbasket, among others.
• For instance, Noida-headquartered Falcon Autotech Pvt. Ltd provides its automated solutions from the warehouses of prominent e-commerce portals. Companies, such as Amazon, are acquiring large automated warehouses on lease and also started acquiring robotic warehousing companies across the world.
• Most offline traditional grocery stores are expected to have an online version, making the in-store shopping experience more holistic and ensuring that the lack of shelf inventory is made up by warehouse inventory, increasing the customer loyalty base in this process.
• According to the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) and Morgan Stanley, the e-commerce industry is growing at an exponential rate. The e-commerce industry in India was valued at USD 84 billion in 2021, and it is estimated to reach USD 350 billion by 2030.

• Historically, all the warehouses in India were designed based on the tax structure and not on the supply chain synergies. For example, in the pre-GST era, the companies used to maintain warehouses in each state to save the heavy taxes. As a result, companies had to handle several small and sub-optimal warehouses.
• However, implementing GST (one tax across the country) completely changed the rules. Now, companies do not get the advantage of maintaining multiple warehouses in different states. In the current scenario, companies are achieving economies of scale by installing bigger and multiple commodity warehouses. In such a changed scenario of warehouse consolidation, the smaller and existing warehouses are in an ideal stage. The more extensive and sophisticated warehouses always demand huge manpower in their astute management; hence, robots' role is to cater to the significant demand.
• The primary application of mobile robots is using mobile automated guided vehicles (AGVs) in warehouses and storage facilities to transport goods. These robots operate in predefined pathways, moving products for shipping and storage around the clock. AGVs play an essential role in reducing the cost of logistics and streamlining the supply chain.
• The automated guided vehicle (AGV) comprises an automated forklift, automated tow/tractor/tug, unit load, assembly line, special purpose, and laser-guided vehicle, among others. AGVs are also used in inbound and outbound handling for replenishment and for picking. For instance, AGVs are utilized to transport inventory from receiving to storage locations or from long-term storage locations to forward-picking locations to replenish stock. Moving inventory from long-term storage to forward-picking locations ensures that adequate inventory is accessible to pickers, making the order-picking process more efficient.
• India's FMCG warehouse landscape is shifting with intensive robotics usage and manual labor optimization to reduce cost and increase profitability. While the robots are kicking in and taking care of efficiency mapping and waste reduction to create a smooth flow, workers in a warehouse are expected to spend their human intelligence on more value-adding activities.

The Indian warehouse automation market is highly competitive and consists of some influential players. The major players in the market are leveraging strategic collaborative actions and investments to improve their market percentage and enhance their profitability.

• July 2022 - Falcon Autotechintroduces the Swivel Wheel Diverter, the most delinquent addition to its portfolio of sortation technologies. Swivel Wheel Diverter (SWEDI) is a linear sortation line non-impact sortation module. It is ideal for medium-volume sorting centers with capacities of up to 8000 PPH. SWEDI's modular design saves space while allowing for future sorting destination development. SWEDI's modular and compact design makes it a plug-and-play system that can easily fit into existing sites while reducing on-site commissioning time.
• April 2022 - Addverb Technologies Pvt. Ltd announced its plans to establish a manufacturing plant in Noida after getting USD 132 million in funding from Reliance Industries. The new plant, which covers an area of 60,000 sq. m., will be able to produce up to 60,000 robots per year.

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
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