Ocado

The challenge of Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGVs) with distributed intelligence for an automated warehouse.

Speaker

Alex Harvey

Abstract

Speaker Bio

Alex Harvey is a Departmental Head at Ocado Technology, part of Ocado, the world's largest online-only grocery retailer.
After studying Mechanical Engineering followed by Computer Science at Edinburgh university, Alex started his career as a software engineer and vibration analyst in the aerospace industry. He worked at a company called HGL Dynamics for a number of years and was subcontracted by HGL into Rolls-Royce as a vibration expert. Alex is particularly proud to have lead the redeveloped of the entire HGL analysis suite of applications as well as negotiating, specifying and managing the delivery, and after-sales support, of a condition monitoring and pro-active maintenance system that operates on all gas turbine powered Royal Navy surface ships.
After joining Ocado in 2010, Alex worked as Project Manager delivering a second generation, highly efficient, goods to man picking system that has been deployed both in Hatfield and Dordon. Alex is now Head of Project Management and Research departments, responsible for a team of Project Managers and WMS (Warehouse Management System) Business Analysts and a team of Robotics & 3D Vision researchers and a Simulation & 3D Visualisation research team. In this role, Alex oversaw some of Ocado's recent projects, most notably the Morrisons ecommerce launch and has overseen the successful award of two EU Commission funded robotics research projects (Horizon 2020) with several high profile European universities.
Alex is married with 2 children. In his spare time he likes to hike up Munroe’s in Scotland and spends as much time outdoors with his family.