BALLWIN, Mo. – If you’ve spotted a robot gliding across the floor at your neighborhood QuikTrip, it’s not science fiction, it’s part of a company-wide initiative to make cleaning more convenient in the store.
This year, the company has started to roll out its automated floor cleaning project, deploying self-operating scrubbers designed to handle high-traffic areas. It’s designed to make it easier on the employees, allowing them more time to tend to customers while their new robot pals work on the floors.
The machines follow scheduled cleaning cycles and are able to have maps of the specific stores programmed into them so they know where to go and not to go. They can also be activated as needed in the event of something like a spill.
Store teams can guide the robots manually in tight spaces like back rooms, food service areas and coolers, though restrooms are off limits. At the Ballwin location on Big Bend Rd, employees even cut a small door in half to allow the robot access to a back room where it recharges and refills, almost like a pet’s doggy door.
To give them more personality, employees are also encouraged to give their store’s robot a name. One employee said at a different location they named it “Scrubecca,” so only time will tell us if these robots start to become almost like a store’s mascot, and what other quirks could come out of the initiative.
Want more insights? Join Working Title - our career elevating newsletter and get the future of work delivered weekly.
