DHL Supply Chain, a contract logistics solutions specialist, and Decathlon Group, a major sporting goods retailer, have announced an expanded partnership.

This partnership is aimed at the deployment of new goods-to-person robot (GPR) solutions to improve operational efficiency and fulfilment speed at the companies’ Sydney fulfilment centre.

The GPRs are to support the fulfilment team’s ability to efficiently pack more customer orders, reduce turnaround time and drive accuracy.

“We are excited to be growing our partnership with Decathlon Group, as we are for the opportunity to bring innovation to our customers,” said Saul Resnick, CEO, DHL Supply Chain Australia and New Zealand.

DHL Supply Chain and Decathlon Group is to deploy the first GPRs at their facility in Sydney, with a view to extend their use to more facilities around the country.

Decathlon Group Australia CEO Oliver Robinet said the pandemic brought with it a surge in e-commerce demand.

“Our aim is to continue delivering the exceptional service our customers have become accustomed to, regardless of the challenge,” Mr Robinet said.

“We have more than 15,000 SKUs in this fulfilment centre, so we need an innovative and practical solution that could scale up our ability to fulfil customer orders without prohibitively increasing variable costs.”

DHL Supply Chain has reported strong success with GPRs in customer operations in North America, Japan and Europe.