Amazon unveils European operations ‘innovation lab’

The technologies being developed by the company follow the implementation of more than 350,000 Robotic Drive Units at several of the company’s sites across the world.

The mobile drive units and four-sided yellow shelving towers are now commonplace at Amazon facilities, supporting employees by bringing items to them, and thus reducing the amount of walking around facilities.

Based in Vercelli, Italy, the lab brings together a high-tech collection of the company’s latest innovations for Amazon Operations; the company’s supply chain and logistics arm.

The new technologies include item sorters, pallet movers, tote retrievers, automated guided vehicles, and robot sorters.

Amazon confirmed that its new Operations site in Doncaster would be the next area where Tote Retrievers, Item Sorters and pallet Movers would be deployed later this year.