AutoStore, a Norway-based automated fulfilment system, selected Thailand as its second overseas market to set up a robot manufacturing base, aiming for proximity to key markets.
"Since 2012, our robots have been manufactured and shipped exclusively from Poland. With increased demand in our automated fulfilment system across North America and worldwide, it's become imperative that we open a second robot factory to better serve current and future customers," said Mats Hovland Vikse, chief executive at AutoStore.
The workforce availability, proximity to harbours and airports, favourable labour costs, and government incentives for automation companies makes Thailand an ideal location for the firm's second robot factory to power AutoStore's North American operations, he said.
The opening of its robot assembly factory in Rayong province marks a strategic move in the company's global expansion efforts, bringing robotics production closer to key markets, including Australia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea.
"The reason for our investment in Thailand is multifaceted. While the location near important markets like Japan, Korea and the US is a significant factor, diversifying our supply chain to mitigate geopolitical risks also plays a crucial role," Israel Losada Salvador, chief operating of AutoStore, told the Bangkok Post.
"In the last 24 months, we have tripled our capacity and put in place a structure to go 10-fold in 24 months if needed. With our expansion into Thailand, we have not only increased capacity but also established a more diversified supplier base."
Instead of shelf-based storage and manual retrieval, AutoStore employs a cube-based modular storage system using robots to provide retailers with a solution that accelerates order fulfilment, maximises warehouse space, and improves operational efficiency.
The new factory in Thailand is expected to create around 80 direct employment opportunities in the first year, with plans to increase the number to 200-300 by 2026.
Within the next 18 months, AutoStore aims to produce 15,000 robots -- doubling its current capacity to meet customer demand.