Europe's largest e-food warehouse launches in Oberhausen
Picnic invests EUR 150 million in the technological leap in online retail
With the opening of its robotized fulfillment center (FCA) in Oberhausen, the online supermarket Picnic is setting a new standard in European food logistics. The 150 million euro investment not only creates Europe's most efficient e-food warehouse, but also enables Picnic to supply even more customers with the best quality. Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst symbolically opened the FCA by packing the first product for a customer order.
Technology revolution on 50,000 square meters
The FCA sets new standards: 1,500 high-performance robots move along 21 kilometers of conveyor technology through three fully automated climate zones from -18°C to +20°C. At its heart is a completely in-house developed software platform that coordinates all robot movements in real time - developed by 100 Picnic engineers over the course of two years. "Our FCA sets a new global standard," explains Frederic Knaudt, co-founder of Picnic Germany. "In future, we will be able to deliver even more families' weekly groceries to their homes at the best price, reliably, in the best quality and sustainably."
Economic power for the region
Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia Hendrik Wüst emphasized at the opening ceremony in front of around 180 guests: "North Rhine-Westphalia is the strongest retail location in Germany. Large retail chains have traditionally been based here. The new forms of retail are also at home here. Oberhausen is investing in the future. Picnic's new location is an example of the innovative strength that characterizes North Rhine-Westphalia and the Ruhr region. The ultra-modern branch enables innovative processes and high efficiency through the use of modern technologies. The food processing industry is a mainstay of value creation in North Rhine-Westphalia. To keep it that way, targeted strategies and bold investments are needed locally - for attractive, competitive and sustainable development."
The FCA will serve over 150,000 families in the Ruhr region every week and create up to 1,000 new jobs. Lord Mayor of Oberhausen Daniel Schranz added: "The new Picnic Center will not only bring state-of-the-art technology to Oberhausen, but above all real future prospects for many people - with up to 1,000 new jobs. Here, the economic future is growing on Oberhausen's industrial past; this is structural change that has been developed, implemented and lived."
Milestone for Picnic
For Picnic, the FCA marks a decisive milestone on the way to becoming Europe's leading online supermarket. The fully automated system enables the company to realize its ambitious growth plans and at the same time further increase service quality.
Core features of the FCA:
- Purpose-built architecture: building designed by Picnic itself for full automation
- 1,500 autonomous shuttle robots for maximum efficiency
- Cloud-first control with multiple daily updates during operation
- Seamless integration of different temperature ranges for all product categories
Growth trajectory continues
In addition to the significant increase in capacity as a result of the FCA opening, Picnic continues to expand consistently: the online supermarket recently launched in Bavaria to supply an additional 350,000 households in the Nuremberg area. The recent integration of Thermomix® Cookidoo® recipes into the Picnic app underlines the company's innovative strength with the aim of simplifying everyday shopping and cooking.
Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.
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