Nike has employed over 1,000 robots to assist with order processing in its distribution hubs. Due to the pandemic’s disruption of the worldwide supply chain, Nike introduced the robots, as well as other advancements, over the last two years, according to a recent post on the company’s website.
Nike’s automated workers are known as “cobots” (short for collaborative robots) and assist manufacturing workers in sorting and packing products. Over the past two holiday seasons, the robots have helped Nike quadruple its digital order capacity in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
“The challenges and constraints imposed by the pandemic have driven our teams to transform how we serve consumers through the implementation of new technology platforms, automation and process improvement in our operations,” Nike chief operating officer Andrew Campion said in a statement.
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Prior to winter 2020, Nike’s North American production was centralized though its facilities in Memphis, TN. The company has since opened regional centers in Los Angeles, Bethlehem, Penn., and Dallas to diversify its operations. Nike’s new facilities have also been supported by demand-sensing and inventory optimization technology platforms that help predict consumer demand.
In a Jan. 6 earnings report, Nike said it lost about three months of production during the first quarter of fiscal 2022 because of government-mandated factory shutdowns in Vietnam and Indonesia due to Covid-19. During fiscal 2021, 51% of Nike footwear and 30% of Nike apparel was manufactured in Vietnam; while 24% of footwear and 12% of apparel was made in Indonesia.
