United Natural Foods Expands Supply Chain Evolution with Implementation of A.I.-Powered Warehouse Automation System in its New Manchester Distribution Center

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE: UNFI) (the “Company” or “UNFI”) today announced plans to implement an A.I.-powered robotic automation system in its soon-to-be-completed distribution center (DC), in Manchester, PA. This advanced system, manufactured by Symbotic, is the second installation for UNFI and part of the Company’s commitment to further enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its distribution center network. Once installed, UNFI expects the system to enhance the customer experience, improve quality and service to customers, increase capacity within its facilities, and lower overall costs to fulfill customer orders.

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UNFI announces plans to implement it second A.I.-powered robotic automation system in its soon-to-be-completed distribution center in Manchester, PA. This advanced system, manufactured by Symbotic, is the second installation for UNFI and part of the Company’s commitment to further enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of its distribution center network. (Photo: Business Wire)

UNFI’s new Manchester distribution center is a 1.3 million square-foot facility set to come online in the Summer of 2024 to improve existing customer experience and support new customer growth across the Northeast. Once completed, Symbotic’s end-to-end solution will provide robotic case pick capabilities in Manchester’s dry grocery area, improve order accuracy for customers, and automate the assembly of customer order pallets. Part of UNFI’s multi-year transformation plan, this new technology is intended to improve the customer receiving and replenishment experience when the order is delivered at the store. It is expected to be fully operational by Spring 2025.

“We always want to make doing business with UNFI easier for our customers and suppliers, and that means investing in ways to make our supply chain more effective and efficient,” said Erin Horvath, UNFI’s Chief Operating Officer. “Automating key distribution centers, such as Centralia and our new facility in Manchester, will help us improve order accuracy and deliver a better overall customer experience, while also reducing operating cost. Symbotic has been a great partner and we’re pleased that the Centralia installation is on schedule, allowing us to begin implementation of our next automation system in Manchester.”