Plug and Play 2024: Tech innovation more widespread in supply chain management

When a person in the Dallas metroplex is cooking dinner and needs a particular spice to complete the recipe, Walmart can have a drone deliver it in as little as 10 minutes. If only the Cowboys’ offense could deliver with such precision and speed.

The spicy anecdote is just more proof that artificial intelligence (AI), drone delivery, robotics, autonomous vehicles, smart data analytics, and other technologies are transforming the entire retail supply chain.

Cosmetics giant Coty has improved in-stocks and greatly reduced overstocks and markdowns with tech innovation from startup BOPS. PepsiCo is investing in smart packaging and 2D product smart labels that provide more transparency between brand and end-user, help traceability and improve visibility throughout the supply chain.

There are human-like robots developed by Apptronik that can be used to fill vacant positions in various manufacturing, logistics and retail workspaces. Robotics systems developed by Walmart-owned Alert Innovation can retrieve orders for groceries and consumables at a rate of 40 items picked in 5.5 minutes. Self-driving trucks from Gatik are on local streets hauling refrigerated foods for Tyson Foods between its distribution and storage centers in Springdale and Rogers.

FINDING LOST TRAILERS, NEW BARCODES
Another GentLogs technology helps suppliers like Pepsico or Bayer find trailers lost to theft or miscommunication. Gentlogs applies AI to a nationwide network of roadway sensors and commercial and open-source datasets to track all trucks and equipment on the roads so shippers and freight brokers can access unlimited real-time capacity.

John Phillips, senior vice president of customer supply chain at Pepsico, said the supply chain continues to be challenged by uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, but technology is resetting the way companies better manage the challenges. Phillips made his comments Thursday (April 25) at the 2024 Supply Chain Trends & Expo sponsored by Plug & Play and the University of Arkansas and held at The Momentary in Bentonville.

Phillips said changes are being made to retail bar codes that have been used for five decades. PepsiCo sees benefits in being a first adopter of the new GS-1 smart codes that will replace traditional one-dimensional bar codes. PepsiCo is one of 80 companies and more than 1,000 brands being early adopters of the 2-dimensional codes. He said the amount of data that can be shared with consumers and within the supply chain on the new GS-1 is a huge benefit for companies seeking to market their brand and track all products in the supply chain and, for example, reducing losses from recalls that can easily be pinpointed.

WALMART TECH EXAMPLES
Walmart supply chain officials also took part in a panel discussion about the dos and don’ts for startups wanting to work with the retail giant. Padmini Pagadala, director of emerging technology for Walmart stores, said her focus is on problems that arise from improving out-of-stocks to finding more ergonomic ways to unload a truck into the backroom. She said Walmart works with startups to help solve specific problems when it’s faster and more feasible than innovating the solution in-house.

Cheyenne Stone, director of transportation engineering at Walmart, said transparency is vital and startups who can effectively communicate how they address the problem and make assumptions while under-promising and over-delivering can find a partner in Walmart. She said third-party startups need to come with a prototype in hand and speak to timelines and roadmaps to get the job done.

Santos Cerda, director of innovation and automation at Walmart, said transparency and willingness to work on their prototype with Walmart is important. He said partners don’t have to have all the answers to start, but they have to be willing to trust in their convictions and also work aggressively to find the right solution.

Josh Saffran, director at Plug & Play in Bentonville, said his team works with Walmart and other partners to match startups with industry leaders who voice their needs. He works with Walmart and said he can be the go-between for startups wanting to partner with industry giants like Walmart, Tyson Foods or J.B. Hunt.

Prathibha Rajashekhar, head of automation and innovation at Walmart, joked that she would take one of the Apptronik robots if it could cook her breakfast, lunch and dinner and also fold her laundry. Rajashekhar spoke at length about the benefits innovation has given Walmart, its 2.2 million employees around the world and 225 million customers each week.

She said Walmart is using artificial intelligence to better forecast demand, determining product purchase levels and where products should be stored so they are close to the consumer. It also factors in external factors like demand surges, weather and social media data.

Rajashekhar said Walmart is also using advanced robotics to automate storage and retrieval in distribution centers and market fulfillment centers like the one attached to Store 100 in Bentonville. Walmart is also looking at cleaner options for its transportation fleet in order to meet the company’s zero-emission goal by 2040. She said Walmart’s private trucking fleet includes 15,000 drivers who cumulatively travel one billion miles annually. Walmart is using an application to reduce miles traveled via a digital routing AI platform that it also sells to other carriers.