By Liz Young
Sept. 17, 2023
The new robots, drones and other technology tools filling the country’s distribution centers are finding one thing all too difficult to reach: a fast and reliable internet connection.
Robots that wheel through warehouse aisles to find and pick goods need a high-speed link to keep them on the right track. Autonomous forklifts require a signal to direct them as they move pallets from loading docks to storage racks. Self-driving trucks must maintain a GPS tie to get them on the right path from a manufacturing plant to a warehouse.
As companies upgrade their operations with increasingly sophisticated machines, many are finding the internet connections they have in place fall short of the needs of new, high-powered automation technology. For some, that can mean expensive and time-consuming upgrades to get logistics sites up to speed, industry experts say.