West Des Moines, Iowa — Hy-Vee has begun testing robots named “Tally” that roll through the aisles taking inventory and reporting where shelves have been emptied. Christina Gayman is an associate vice president for the grocery store chain.
Five robots have been deployed. They are at stores in the Des Moines suburbs of Ankeny and Altoona as well as Hy-Vee stores in Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska and Lee’s Summit, Missouri.
The robots are programmed to return to a docking station to recharge after every pass through the store. Gayman says within a couple of months, they’ll have an idea of how much faster stores get empty shelves restocked.
Gayman says the robot knows what products are available in the back of the store to restock shelves and staff are quickly directed by a new software program to where those products are located and where they need to go.
As for whether these robots will replace Hy-Vee’s human employees, Gayman says the goal is to have workers taking stock of what’s missing or misplaced on the shelves and focus them entirely on customer service. She says Hy-Vee employees currently assigned to do inventory are also there to help customers find products in the store.
