Warehouse innovation is on the 2019 horizon and will make a significant mark in the warehousing logistics sector. In an article titled, “Taking a Look into Supply Chain’s Crystal Ball,” drones take the spotlight for warehouse solutions citing that “50 per cent or more of the total cost of the logistics journey is from last-mile delivery” while drones provide a solution from added flexibility. With 2019 around the corner, warehousing companies might want to consider the use of unmanned aerial vehicles as an option for delivery.

The top two key differentiators companies consider drivers for change in warehouse usage was the need for lowered transportation costs (42.7 percent) while others cited the need for shortened delivery times (40.5 percent), according to a survey released by Zebra Technology.

Looking ahead at the changes to come in 2020, Zebra also shows that in 2015, only 55.1 percent of companies were leveraging load optimization and performance monitoring and anticipate its integration by 2020. This number will jump to 61.6 percent according to the global survey results. The report goes on to explain that explicit costs and benefits should not be the total focus and only make up a part of the bigger picture. It states that, “Not only do we need to improve the technological advancement of our warehouse, but we need to update our thought process also.

When considering RoI on implementing technology, don’t only look at the investment as cost and recovery of cost, but think of how this creates value for your customers, how you improve the productivity of your employees, what impact does it have on your culture and public image, will embracing technology give an advantage over competitors, and so on,” (Clarke, 2018).