Kroger, Ocado to open CFC in Dallas

The Kroger Co. and online grocery retailer Ocado Solutions plan to open a high-tech, automated customer fulfillment center (CFC) in Dallas, the companies said September 12.

The Dallas facility will be the fifth of 20 CFCs Cincinnati-based Kroger said it plans to open. CFCs are automated warehouses with digital and robotic capabilities designed to speed order fulfillment and accommodate growing customer demand for e-grocery shopping. Kroger broke ground on its first CFC in Monroe, Ohio, in June, and followed that with the start of construction on a CFC in Groveland, Fla. The two other planned CFCs will be located in Forest Park, Ga., and the Mid-Atlantic region, the companies said.

The Dallas CFC will measure 350,000 square feet and is expected to create up to 400 new jobs, Kroger and Ocado said. Officials said they will break ground in Dallas early in 2020.

Ocado Solutions is a dedicated online grocery retailer in the United Kingdom that provides its Ocado Smart Platform (OSP) as a service to retailers around the world. Its CFCs, also known as "sheds," combine automation, robotics, and software for single-pick operations and to speed order fulfillment.