Badger Technologies provides autonomous robots to Stine stores

Badger Technologies, a retail automation expert, is rolling out in-store robotics at Stine, a building materials dealer, to assist in elevating operational efficiencies and customer-service excellence.

Badger Technologies’ multipurpose autonomous robots empower Stine’s stores to detect out-of-stock (OOS) products with more than 95 percent accuracy while helping to decrease OOS products by up to 50 percent. Additionally, in-store robots are enabling Stine to improve price-tag accuracy by more than 97 percent.

For Stine, the decision to introduce autonomous robots was driven by the company’s overarching commitment to its hard-working associates and loyal customers.

Robert Spears, CIO, Stine, says: “We always look for innovative ways to increase productivity by removing operational obstacles.

“Badger Technologies’ robots free our associates from time-consuming inventory checks, enabling them to help customers while ensuring our products are placed and priced correctly.”

Based in Sulphur, Louisiana, the 13-store hardware-retail chain serves customers throughout Louisiana and Mississippi with a vast inventory of home-improvement products and building material supplies.

Long recognized for dedication to the communities it serves, Stine received the 2014 National Golden Hammer Retailer of the Year award for its strong performance, adoption of industry best practices, and ambitious plans for the future.

Autonomous robots help alleviate many of the toughest operational problems facing retailers today. Not only do the robots offload manual, tedious tasks from store associates, they also ease the burden of addressing persistent labor shortages.

Additionally, in-store robots improve on-shelf product availability by generating actionable data and analytics to provide a more accurate view of shelf conditions.

The collection and correlation of sell-through and pricing-trend data, along with out-of-stock (OOS) duration and frequency, enable retailers to prioritize product replenishment.

Badger Technologies’ multipurpose robots also support elevating store safety and cleanliness by swiftly identifying hazards, such as spills of liquids, powders, or bulk-item foods, to further mitigate risk.

William Santiago, CEO of Badger Technologies, says: “Our multipurpose autonomous robots offer much-needed relief by extending staff operations and producing critical data to increase efficiencies and improve shopping experiences.

“The robots deployed by Stine are helping improve customer satisfaction, storewide operations, and retail revenues.”