Walmart preps new fulfillment center with ergonomic benefits for workers

Walmart is getting ready to open a 1.5 million-square-foot fulfillment center in Greencastle, Pa., which will be ergonomically advanced for employees, reports news affiliate ROI-NJ.

The move will shut down a center in Pedricktown, N.J., in June. Walmart is trying to get employees to relocate to the Greencastle location, offering a $7,500 bonus and relocation fees. 

The new facility will require around 1,000 workers to manage, and the current number of committed workers falls well short of that mark. 

Employees will have ergonomically designed workstations at the new center and instead of walking to products, the products will come to them. Walmart estimates a worker has to walk as much as nine miles during every shift to fulfill orders. 

The new state-of-the-art facility will also fill orders with increased speed and efficiency, which Walmart claims will keep prices low. 

Robotics and machine learning will be other features of the new center. 

Walmart plans to open three more next-generation fulfillment centers in Joliet, Ill., Lancaster, Texas, and McCordsville, Ind., and workers will be offered the same bonus used to lure associates to the Pennsylvania location.