Ahold Delhaize to add 500 robots at Giant/Martin’s and Stop & Shop

On Jan. 14, 2019 Ahold Delhaize announced it will bring nearly 500 robots to Giant/Martin’s and Stop & Shop neighborhood grocery stores as a result of the partnership between Retail Business Services and Badger Technologies. The move comes after a pilot project implemented in November of last year improved in-store efficiencies and safety. The deployment of robots is underway and will continue through early 2019. Other Ahold Delhaize USA brands will continue to test with autonomous robots in select stores.

The in-store robots, named Marty, were easily recognized by customers in stores by their friendly appearance where they were tested and used to identify hazards, such as liquid, powder and bulk food item spills and provide reporting that enables corrective action. They help stores mitigate risk caused by such spills, as well as enabled associates to spend more time serving and interfacing with customers.

“As part of our continued focus on technology transformation, we’re pleased to support one of the most significant deployments of robotics innovation in the grocery retail industry,” said Paul Scorza, evp and Chief Information Officer for Retail Business Services. “Several companies in the grocery retail space have recently begun testing or using in-store robots—something Retail Business Services and the local brands we serve have been doing for some time. We’re pleased to support the Giant/Martin’s and Stop & Shop brands as they now lead the industry from test to large-scale usage of robots and to see the benefits the technology continues to drive for their businesses,” Scorza said.