Amazon officials say their Sioux Falls facility is fully operational, but they are still looking to hire hundreds of employees to fill positions at the fulfillment center.
South Dakota U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson visited the warehouse on Tuesday morning.
The tour showcased Amazon’s order fulfillment operation, which is a combination of artificial intelligence and human labor.
Johnson was impressed by the inclusion of robot workers.
“I can imagine how much of a force multiplier this is,” said Johnson.
Tim Choate is the general manager of the Sioux Falls Amazon facility. He says that the robots allow for more efficient production.
“I think people look at these AR drives as replacing associates, but that is not the case. We have the same amount of associates," Choate said. "When I started we didn’t have robots. So when I started as an associate I was walking maybe 35 miles a day just looking for space just like at a grocery store. So we have the same amount of associates now but the associates can now just stand in one place."
The facility houses approximately 6,000 robots throughout five floors and currently employs roughly 350-400 people. Public Relations manager Scott Seroka said the company is looking to grow to 1,000 employees at the site.
The facility utilizes a “pack multi-system” which pieces orders together from all levels of the facility.
“So we have an item from every single different floor they all come down, they get sorted out here, and the packer on the other side, after it is complete, we'll pack it out so we can ship it out to one customer,” said Amazon Learning Operations Manager Jonathan Patterson.
