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Finland's leading grocery chain to build its third micro-fulfillment center with Swisslog

January 27, 2025

Osuuskauppa Arina - a regional cooperative of the Finnish S Group - has decided to build a micro-fulfillment center (MFC) in the city of Oulu, in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. The investment is made to meet a rapidly growing e-commerce of groceries in the region and in Finland generally.

Previously the S Group has ordered one Centralized Fulfillment Center (CFC) in Helsinki and an MFC in Tampere. The facility in Oulu will feature two AutoStore systems for ambient and chilled groceries, with manual floor picking areas for fast movers. Frozen goods are picked from the adjacent Prisma supermarket, with the aim of maximizing the efficiency of last-mile deliveries. 

“We know that our customers find that online shopping makes everyday life easier and frees up time for other things. This is why our online food sales continue to grow strongly in Oulu and the surrounding area. Since the beginning of the 2024, the growth has been approximately 50 percent compared to the previous year,” says Mikko Polso, Director of Supermarket Trade Division at Osuuskauppa Arina.

The automated MFC will enable reliable and fast deliveries to customers in the Oulu region while doubling the delivery capacity for online orders in the region. The micro-fulfillment center will be approximately 1,400 square meters in size and will be equipped with a total of 46 Redline AutoStore-robots. The entire solution is supported by Swisslog's SynQ software. The facility is expected to employ at least 25-30 people to handle piece picking and quality assurance of deliveries.

“The automated solutions and robotics reduce the need for our staff walking around the store collecting items. The change thus offers our customers in the store a more pleasant and spacious shopping experience”, Mikko explains.

Installation in Oulu begins in September 2025, with the facility expected to be fully operational by April 2026.

“We are delighted that Osuuskauppa Arina has chosen us as partner for their micro-fulfillment center. This further strengthens our strong partnership with the S Group, " says Tero Mäki, AutoStore Sales Manager, Swisslog.

About the S Group

The S Group is a Finnish customer-owned trading and service group with over 1.800 locations in Finland. The Group consists of 19 independent regional trading teams, one of which is Osuuskauppa Arina in Oulu.  

About Swisslog

Swisslog delivers data-driven & robotic solutions for your logistics automation alongside reliable, modular service concepts. Collaborating with forward-thinking companies, we are committed to setting new standards in warehouse automation to provide future-proof products and solutions. As part of the KUKA Group, our customers trust the competence of our passionate employees – more than 14.000 people working across the globe.  

Contact

Tero Mäki 
Sales Manager 
Tel: +358 50 357 8789 
E-mail: tero.maki@swisslog.com

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