Robots streamline online returns at South-Central Pennsylvania facility
Robots are making it easier for companies to process the items you buy online and have to return.
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SHOEMAKERSVILLE, Pennsylvania (WGAL) — Robots are making it easier for companies to process the items you buy online and have to return.
Only 8 On Your Side reporter Anne Shannon got a look inside the facility in the Susquehanna Valley.
More than 150 autonomous mobile robots zip along on what’s referred to as the dance floor at the Happy Returns facility in Berks County.
“So-called because the robots are kind of dancing with each other. They do not partner well with humans, so don’t try to dance with them. They may hurt you,” COO Tim Fehr said.
The robots are the latest innovation at Happy Returns, a Los Angeles-based company that works with hundreds of retailers to make online returns faster and easier.
Customers take their items to “return bars” located around the country. The items are scanned and get a special code before being shipped to a Happy Returns hub.
“We have three warehouses, one here in Shoemakersville, Pennsylvania,” Fehr said.
Fehr is a Berks County native who joined the team in 2018.
“My first responsibility was to get an East Coast warehouse. I had no idea how to do that, so like a good kid, I called my dad – who’s from here,” he said.
Happy Returns quickly outgrew that space. Fehr said it now does as many returns in a half an hour as it used to do in a month, in part due to the addition of the robots in August.
Thousands of returns are brought to the facility each day and unpacked at 10 manned induction stations.
“It’s a pair of shoes, and she’s going to scan this and our system will know what’s in here and where it’s supposed to go,” Fehr said.
From here, the robots take over. A traffic control system on the floor helps prevent them from running into one another.
“As it goes over each QR code, it just asks itself left, right, forward or backward every single time, and then the system is determining how to route that,” Fehr said.
Sides on the machine’s platform help to make sure items don’t fall off. With a quick turn, the conveyor places the item into a shipping container.
Once the items are sorted and the boxes are full, they get shipped back to the manufacturer.
“We’re trying to solve the challenging problem of returns. We’re trying to make returns joyful and wonderful for both consumers and merchants,” Fehr said.
So far, the system is running smoothly. Fehr’s team is already working on new ways to add automation – making your returns even happier.
“We’re really excited to be innovating here in the community. We have wonderful employees. It’s been a great success story,” Fehr said.
The addition of the robots came as Happy Returns was increasing the number of parcels it processes.
The company said no one was laid off, but no jobs were added either.
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