Smart Warehouses Speed Up E-Commerce in China

SHANGHAI—China’s e-commerce giants are starting to build a new crop of smart warehouses that can keep up with the surging growth of the world’s largest online retail sales market.

But that trend promises to add enormous costs to warehouse development. Modern robot and conveyor-belt systems require a multitude of upgrades not found in traditional warehouses like higher ceilings, more air conditioning, the amount of mezzanine space and other infrastructure.

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