When Motorola bought Symbol Technologies in January 2007, the move signalled a new era for Motorola and its customers, further strengthening its position as a market leader for enterprise mobility. A consistent focus on this kind of innovation has done much in recent years to transform supply chain operations around the world, and customers in many industry sectors have seen significant productivity improvements. Enterprise mobility is the cornerstone of Symbol’s value proposition, particularly with applications such as hands-free scanning in the form of RFID and voice-picking, together with a wide range of industry solutions for the modern business environment. David Picton is Motorola’s Industry Director for the Logistics market across EMEA, working closely with end users and partners implementing solutions in the warehouse and logistics sector. David spoke to Warehouse & Logistics News.
Warehouse & Logistics News – How big is Motorola’s Enterprise Mobility business, in terms of device sales, projects carried out and active clients?
According to analysts, Motorola is the market leader in enterprise mobile computing. Our flagship product, the MC9000 series computer, has passed the million units mark across the world, and the MC70 Electronic Digital Assistant reached 250,000 units in just over 18 months to become the fastest-selling mobile computer in our history. We have four core industry sectors – retail, manufacturing, transport & logistics and field mobility – and projects with partner companies in Asia Pacific, EMEA and the Americas. Our active clients number many thousands, and 2007 was an extremely strong year across EMEA. There’s significant growth in our traditional markets, we’re penetrating new sectors, such as government and utility companies, and we’re growing in Europe’s emerging countries as they enjoy increasing investment to become East-West gateways.
WLN – How important is the UK to your business?
The UK is very significant and is one of five or six major countries for us in the European theatre. Symbol’s European HQ has been here since early in the company’s history, and the UK will continue to be the corporate home for Motorola’s Enterprise Mobility business.
WLN – To wind the clock back for a moment, why did Motorola buy Symbol? What was the rationale?
A key driving factor was the continuing convergence of voice and data communications. Motorola was exceptionally strong in networked communications and Symbol led the way in mobile data capture. Taking those together, there was complete synergy between Motorola’s and Symbol’s strengths.
WLN – What are the customer benefits?
Motorola now provides an extremely strong offer in enterprise mobility, with access to significant R&D resources focused on the continuing convergence between voice and data. Feedback to date suggests that our customers see the acquisition as complementary, with real potential for further success.
WLN – Is Symbol’s integration within Motorola complete?
Yes, it is – the acquisition was completed in January 2007.
WLN – What’s changed in the Symbol business as a result?
It’s very much ‘business as usual’ as far as product development and roadmaps are concerned, and we are starting to see real benefits and potential for growth as part of the wider Motorola family.
WLN – Are all staff located within the same office premises?
Many of our teams around EMEA have moved into the local Motorola offices so they can work more closely with their colleagues across the business. This includes the Enterprise Mobility team previously based at our UK head office, who are now based at Motorola’s corporate head office in Basingstoke.
WLN – How do you sum up the new-look Motorola/Symbol customer proposition?
We’re a ‘one-stop shop’, spanning all aspects of the convergent voice and data communications technologies. These are being applied across a wide range of industry sectors, both B2B and B2C, and give unprecedented scope to capture the critical points of business activity.
WLN – What has Motorola done to enhance the Symbol business?
Motorola have worked hard to align the businesses together with minimal disruption, and bring our critical partner community along with us. A lot of work is now going into communicating the significant potential of the converged proposition, to a wide range of cross-sector audiences.
WLN – Will the Symbol brand continue to exist, moving forward, or will Motorola eventually be the brand for this part of the business?
At present we are continuing to use the Symbol brand on most of our products. It’s a strong brand, with an enduring value and significant market loyalty.
WLN – What was your role at Symbol before Motorola came into the picture?
I was Industry Director for the EMEA Logistics market, responsible for strategy, partner relationships and user engagement.
WLN – What is your remit now?
Very much the same as before, with engagements up to CEO level to identify the business benefits of the solutions we provide. I review solution details and industry trends with clients and partners, both pre and post-sales, and act as trusted advisor to companies across the sector.
WLN – Let’s talk specifically about hands-free scanning. To bring our readers up to date, in non-technical terms, how does hands-free scanning work?
In its simplest form, hands-free scanning involves the capture of information – usually by a wearable mobile computer – whilst leaving both hands free to handle boxes and consignments. For warehouse customers, this often includes voice picking, where users wear a headset linked to the mobile device with a software application that directs the worker’s picking operations.
WLN – What kinds of goods is it suitable for?
Hands-free scanning is generally suitable for products with dense picking applications, like consumer goods and electronics, and workers assembling complex orders. Hands-free is generally seen as an incremental application – if a business is already productive and efficient, hands-free can deliver the next step in ultimate productivity and order accuracy.
WLN – What are the components in the average hands-free scanning solution?
The solution tends to start with a mobile computer, like our WT4090 (wearable) or MC3000 series devices. Based on a Windows platform, voice recognition software integrates to the WMS system and provides the building blocks for scaleable operations involving hundreds or even thousands of users.
WLN – What is the business case for moving to hands-free scanning?
First, the business benefits from fast moving inventory, in real time, with no delay in updates. Second, time and motion studies in industry prove how much quicker voice is than paper based picking. Finally, voice can be incredibly precise, delivering accuracy in the very high 99 percentage terms.
WLN – What figures can you quote for increased productivity and other improvements?
The figures depend on the specific existing processes and levels of scanning. Higher accuracy is probably a bigger benefit than increased productivity.
WLN – What distance does the scanner need to be from the barcode?
Proximity scanning can be carried out within a couple of metres, or up to five or 10 metres – whatever’s practical. It’s not significantly different from hand held devices for laser capturing bar codes – wearable scanners have a laser ring scanner worn on the finger.
WLN – Can you talk us through the current Motorola scanning product portfolio?
We offer handheld scanners for advanced data capture (ADC), as seen at the retail point of sale, either wireless or cable-connected. In warehouses, mobile computers, like the MC9000, often take a ‘gun’ form factor. Our wearable computers are strapped to the arm and linked to a laser scanner on the finger. RFID readers are either mobile or fixed, for example at dock doors or on conveyor belts. Together with mobile devices, Motorola wireless networks are optimised to carry data captured at the point of activity. We’ve also developed a Mobility Services Platform (MSP) that manages device performance remotely, reducing the cost of rolling out and controlling the family of devices. This application can monitor several thousand devices across a national network.
WLN – Are they cumbersome to wear? Are there any health and safety issues to consider?
Our devices were developed in conjunction with our customers – TNT for example – and designed with feedback from end users. Anecdotal evidence from customers suggests that hands-free scanning reduces workplace accidents, as users need never take their eyes from the job at hand.
WLN – When did you first introduce hands-free scanning technology in the UK? What percent of companies that could benefit have adopted it so far?
We introduced our original devices 15 years ago, but hands-free has grown in significance during this decade. We’re still relatively early in the adoption curve, at around 20% of the market, and there’s room for further growth.
WLN – What reasons do people give for not going hands-free?
As with adoption of many other technologies, the business case is often the biggest hurdle for businesses. Generally employees are very accepting of the technology if they share the gains and are involved early on.
WLN – How does UK adoption of hands-free scanning compare with other countries?
We’re seeing significant adoption across Europe with the UK and Netherlands two of the leading countries, particularly in the retail supply chain sector.
WLN – What size companies in which industry sectors are your existing and potential customers for hands-free scanning?
Retail and logistics are the two biggest sectors, expanding to take in manufacturing warehouses. Many large companies have invested but the technology is scaleable, so SMEs can easily adopt it, and is moving down over time to mid size and smaller companies.
WLN – How big in value is the potential UK market for your hands-free scanning devices?
Although it’s difficult to provide exact figures, the opportunity runs into millions of pounds. The important point is that it is a multi-modal solution, part of a mobile strategy enabling many applications to run on one device.
WLN – Can you name any companies you’ve developed hands-free scanning solutions for, and talk about your work for them?
An excellent, recent example is Albert Heijn, the Netherlands’ number one food retailer. They’ve fitted out four regional DCs so far, with 5000 users, and in January will expand into two national DCs. This success story can be seen in full on the page opposite.
WLN – When companies are building new warehouses and DCs, how soon should they talk to you about hands-free scanning solutions?
It’s important for designers and consultants alike to be aware of their options from the start – this technology can change how you think about warehouse design. However, it’s not too late if you’ve already built your warehouse – we can easily tailor our solutions to existing operations.
WLN – How do you go about helping customers develop and implement a hands-free scanning solution?
Enquiries come in through our partners, or we have account managers in direct contact with a range of clients. We start by understanding what the client wants to achieve, how their processes work and what their productivity goals are. Projects tend to include feasibility studies and 2-3 month trials.
WLN – Can you give us an idea of the cost of a hands-free scanning solution of a given scale?
Although it’s clearly dependent on the size of the project, the complete solution could cost up to £2,500 per user in very broad terms.
WLN – How long does it take to implement a hands-free scanning solution?
Implementation can be complete within months. The guiding points are the existing level of sophistication and the client’s expectations.
WLN – Do you train staff in using the technology properly?
As the solution is application-specific, our partners tend to do the training.
WLN – How long does it take customers to see a return on their investment in hands-free scanning?
Customers can realise their ROI within a year or even sooner, depending on the situation and the problems it fixes.
WLN – What is the expected lifespan of the current hands-free scanning solutions you are implementing? Do you offer a warranty for the hardware?
We usually calculate total cost of ownership over 3-5 years or longer. We offer extensive service back up at a range of levels (‘service from the start’).
WLN – Have you won any awards for technical innovation for hands-free scanning?
We won the Business Week Innovative Design Award in 2007 for our latest wearable scanner, but another gauge of Motorola’s innovation comes from the thousand or so patents we hold for data capture.
WLN – What industry standards are your hands-free scanning solutions accredited to?
Our devices operate across the MS Windows platform as standard. There are no specific standards so far for voice or hands-free operations.
WLN – What external factors do you see driving demand for hands-free scanning?
The ability to localise solutions with voice applications in a range of different home languages is making adoption easier for today’s multicultural workforces. Hands-free scanners can also be made more hygienic with different accessories, so workers on different shifts can share devices. The increasing sophistication and flexibility of the software also makes it better able to interact with users than before, with minimal customisation.
WLN – Are hands-free device prices falling?
Mobile computing prices inevitably show a downward trend over time, but they are already at a level which can deliver real RoI in a short time period.
WLN – Finally, where do you see the hands-free scanning part of your business going from here? Where do you see Motorola going next?
Hands-free scanning will become an even more integral part of the initial design of new warehouses – part of the convergence between voice and data capture technologies. As we’ve discussed, everyone with a stake in the business sees Motorola’s acquisition of Symbol as complementary and beneficial. Our recent European Partner Conference showed plenty of positive energy and optimism about the future, and it’s an exciting challenge to drive the business forward.
Mororola EMb
UK call centre: 0800 028 7787
www.motorola.com
www.symbol.com
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