Dive Brief:
- A.P. Moller - Maersk opened a new center focused on emerging technologies to accelerate supply chain innovation and resilience, the ocean carrier announced in a May 16 press release.
- The Maersk Innovation Center, located in Jersey City, New Jersey, will help set up "a structured approach to developing a pipeline of new innovative ideas and a method to accelerate them," a spokesperson told Supply Chain Dive in an email. The center is set to test and scale tools for customers that improve operational processes.
- While the facility officially opened May 15, it has already been used to pilot warehouse automation and equipment from companies including BionicHIVE, Boston Dynamics and Verity.
Dive Insight:
As Maersk ups its ambitions to become an end-to-end warehouse provider, the company is investing in ways it can differentiate itself from competitors.
"Every company is navigating the macroeconomic environment, looking for new ways to ensure their supply chains are resilient," Narin Phol, president of Maersk North America and EVP of A.P. Moller - Maersk, said in a statement. "Our goal is to ensure we bring an intelligent pipeline of business solutions to make their supply chains more agile, more responsive to market fluctuations and more competitive.”
The center connects Maersk to an ecosystem of customers, start ups and academic programs. The team will primarily focus on tech that enhances supply chain transparency and sustainability, in addition to solutions that can accelerate middle mile transportation or better optimize distribution.
“We want to build an innovative supply chain ecosystem for customers using the best analytics, technology, research, engineering and partnerships,” Erez Agmoni, Maersk’s global head of innovation for logistics and services, said in a statement.
Innovation center projects include warehouse automation and trucking needs
| Partner | Test Details |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Center for Transportation and Logistics | Perform research at a doctoral and post-doctoral level on supply chain challenges |
| Fetch | Test software and scanning technology for warehouse fulfillment |
| Boston Dynamics | Use new equipment and technology to unload cartons from trailers at warehouse doors |
| Verity | Deploy drones to improve accuracy of warehouse inventory management |
| BionicHIVE | Test warehouse automation processes that sort, pick and put-away merchandise in floor-to-ceiling operations |
| Other | Purchsae 460 electric-powered Class 8 in North America as an early adopter of battery technology and route optimization software |
SOURCE: Maersk
