Highlights –
- Massachusetts-based Locus Robotics develops a series of robots that can carry goods automatically from one warehouse area to another.
- Over more than 230 warehouses and other locations worldwide have signed agreements to use the startup’s robots.
Locus Robotics Corp., a company that creates warehouse robots for businesses to improve the efficiency of their supply chains, has raised more than USD 117 million through a new late-stage funding round.
Today, Locus Robotics disclosed the Series F financing round. The principal investors were G2 Venture Partners and Goldman Sachs. More than a half dozen additional backers, including Silicon Valley Bank, participated in the round, which places Locus Robotics’ worth at close to two billion dollars.
According to Goldman Sachs Managing Director Mark Midle, “Locus has established itself as an innovative, high-quality market leader for flexible automation in the massive warehouse fulfillment and distribution market. Our investment reflects our view that Locus has the product offering and the operational excellence required to meet and exceed the market challenges posed by today’s dynamic economic environment.”
Locus Robotics, based in Wilmington, Massachusetts, develops a series of robots that automatically carry goods from one warehouse area to another. The startup’s robots are primarily made to speed up the task known as the picking process. It includes employees locating a product’s shelf in the warehouse, taking the product off the shelf and carrying it to a part of the warehouse where it can be set up for shipping.
Warehouse robots from Locus Robotics help businesses complete tasks more quickly. After taking it off the warehouse shelf, workers can load a product into the cargo bin of one of the startup’s robots. The product will then be transported automatically to the warehouse area, where it may be made ready for delivery by the machine.
Locus Robotics offers three robots. The Locus Origin, the company’s first system, can transport up to 80 pounds of goods between two storage divisions. The other two are the more sophisticated Locus Vector and Locus Max, which can move up to 600 pounds and 1.5 tons of merchandise, respectively.
According to Locus Robotics, the deployment of its technology in a warehouse can happen in as little as four to six weeks. After the deployment procedure is complete, warehouse owners can use an application called the Locus Management Portal to keep an eye on the operation of their robot fleets. Access to information like the number of packages each robot processes in an hour is made possible by the program.
According to the company, their clientele comprises businesses from various industries as well as significant logistics providers, including DHL and Ceva Logistics Ltd. More than 230 warehouses and other locations worldwide have signed agreements to use the startup’s robots. Locus Robotics anticipates deploying as many as 500 of its robots at some of these locations.
According to Locus Robotics Chief Executive Officer, Rick Faulk, “This new round of funding marks an important inflection point for Locus Robotics as we look toward our next stage of growth, and we strategically chose to bring in investors with a wealth of experience in both the public and private markets to advise us as we continue our journey. As the rapid digital transformation of the supply chain continues, warehouses increasingly seek flexible, intelligent robotics automation to improve productivity and grow their operations.”
