Building the Connected Warehouse

Walk into many warehouses or distribution centers today, and you’re likely to see a scene that hasn’t changed much in 20 years: workers manually picking, packing, and sorting orders. Despite all the talk of a robotic revolution, only 6% of warehouses are highly automated, while more than 60% are still fully manual, according to a December 2025 Kardex survey. The remainder use a mix of automation and manual labor.

That’s steadily changing, however. About 80% of warehouses and distribution centers plan to deploy some form of warehouse automation equipment by 2028, Gartner reports.

Several factors drive their investments. Fickle consumer preferences introduce uncertainty when it comes to determining which products need to be shipped, from where, and when, says Al Dekin, co-founder and chief revenue officer with Locus Robotics. The automation and intelligence increasingly embedded in material handling solutions can help warehouses manage the growing need for flexible operations.

Labor costs and availability, as well as concerns about employee health and safety also prompt investments. Greater deployment of automated material handling solutions can help make warehouse jobs safer and less physically demanding, potentially reducing turnover, says Johannes Hinckeldeyn, director, research engineering with KION Group AG, a supply chain solutions provider.

Yet even as materials handling innovations promise to make warehouses safer and more productive, to create real value, the various solutions need to work effectively together. This requires “strong control systems, fleet orchestration, flexible deployment tools, and the ability to connect with existing warehouse systems,” says Maya Gong, global marketing director with SEER Robotics, an intelligent robotics company.

Here’s an overview of some of the most promising materials handling innovations gaining ground on the warehouse floor.

Advanced Robotics Enable Flexibility

DHL deploys thousands of Locus robots across its global network. The robots are coordinated through the LocusONE platform, which enables the robots to operate as a unified fleet, increasing fulfilllment efficiency.

As robotics technology advances, it is increasingly able to address issues of concern among warehouse operators, including labor shortages as well as changing consumer preferences and shopping habits. One company making good use of these benefits is DHL, which deploys thousands of Locus robots across its global network, recently surpassing one billion picks. The robots are coordinated through the LocusONE platform, which allows multiple robots to operate as a unified fleet.

Each robot handles in-aisle picking from the totes in storage, completes the order it’s working on, and then moves to a drop-off station, which could be a conveyor spur, racking, or a pack station. “Then it returns to the start to do that over and over again,” says Kait Peterson, vice president and head of marketing with Locus.

LocusONE leverages AI agents, refined from more than 7 billion picks, to dynamically optimize fulfillment operations. The platform intelligently groups and assigns orders to minimize robot travel, maximize throughput, and drive system productivity.

These capabilities allow for flexibility. The robots can be deployed in new or existing warehouses, where they can handle multiple tasks. The goal is to remove repetitive, labor-intensive tasks so humans can focus on value-add work. “It’s a completely new paradigm for warehouse operations,” Peterson says.

The Locus Array, introduced early in 2026, is a robots-to-goods solution that combines AI, autonomous mobility, and robotic manipulation. It can retrieve items directly from storage locations and deliver completed orders with minimal human intervention, says Gina Chung, chief strategy officer. This helps increase throughput and accuracy and reduce cost, while supporting operations that can run almost 24/7, she says. Locus has begun deploying Locus Array with select North American partners, including DHL Supply Chain.

And with Locus Array, LocusONE uses predictive demand patterns to proactively reposition inventory totes to optimal locations, reducing movement and increasing fulfillment efficiency.

In addition, Locus recently acquired Nexera Robotics, which specializes in advanced robotic grasping. By integrating Nexera’s end-effector technology into the Locus Array, the robots can handle an even wider range of packages, Chung says.

Humanoids and Robotic Arms Tackle Complexity

Ryder System is currently piloting humanoids, or robots that can handle more complicated activities, such as picking and repackaging items. Ryder starts the humanoids with basic tasks, such as taking parts from a container in an ASRS and repacking them.

“But the technology is moving quickly,” says Gary Allen, Ryder’s vice president of supply chain excellence. As it matures, the applications for which humanoids can provide value likely will expand.

There’s some debate, however, around the true need for humanoids, Allen says. Instead of deploying a humanoid, it might be possible to leverage robotic arms. But humanoids tend to offer more adaptability and flexibility, while robotic arms provide precision and speed. “It will be interesting to see how it progresses,” Allen says.

Virtual Commissioning Speeds Deployments

KION’s autonomous lift trucks can be virtually commissioned to speed deployment. The forklifts are tested virtually to ensure they can handle the required tasks.

Another promising innovation is KION’s ability to virtually commission its autonomous industrial trucks, Hinckeldeyn says. Many warehouses weren’t designed for autonomous forklifts, so implementing them often takes weeks or months. Typically, a team has to conduct a site survey, plan the equipment’s trajectory, and complete other tasks to prepare the environment.

Now, the KION team can use a portable scanner to create a three-dimensional map of the warehouse that integrates data from a range of devices, including laser scanners and cameras. It also uses AI and machine learning to identify different objects, such as pallets and racks.

By leveraging this information, a team can virtually test the forklift before installation to see if it can navigate the facility and handle tasks such as moving pallets. Once it’s tested, setting up the autonomous truck so it’s operational should take several days, compared to weeks or months previously.

Automation Streamlines Loading and Unloading

Automating the loading and unloading of trucks has been a challenge because every trailer and pallet load is different, says A.K. Schultz, co-founder and chief executive officer with SVT Robotics, which provides interoperability software.

“But advances in robotics, AI, and machine vision are making it possible to automate more of this process, improving throughput and reducing bottlenecks at the dock,” he explains.

Additional challenges include the narrowness of the space within a truck and how close the pallets are to each other, Hinckeldeyn says. That can make it hard to distinguish one object—like a pallet—from another or even a person.

A new solution is helping to address this. KION’s STILL AXL truck enables the loading of trailers using autonomous forklifts. KION uses an AI model that incorporates a camera stream to determine whether a person is present in the trailer. Only if no person is within the trailer will the autonomous forklift enter it and begin loading. Given the safety considerations, the solution must work with impeccable accuracy.

AGV Technology Boosts Reliability and Effectiveness

Big Joe Forklifts’ latest model incorporates onboard vision and embodied AI to allow the forklift to “see” a pallet at the point of pickup and adjust as needed, in real time.

A current challenge for many forklifts is reliably picking a pallet that’s slightly off position, damaged, or blocked by an item such as stretch wrap, says Nick Malewicki, general manager, autonomous solutions with Big Joe Forklifts. A new model from his company incorporates onboard vision and embodied AI to allow the forklift to “see” a pallet at the point of pickup and adjust as needed, in real time. In live deployments, pallet engagement tops 95%, Malewicki says.

That reliability is critical. “It’s the difference between automation you can staff around and automation you have to babysit,” he says.

As these examples show, the technology used within autonomous guided vehicles continues to improve. In many cases, it’s becoming both less expensive and more flexible. For example, advances in both computer vision and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) are adding to autonomous forklift capabilities.

Both technologies address safety-related concerns, although in different ways. LiDAR uses lasers to calculate distance and can work well in dark or “lights out” facilities. Computer vision is software-driven technology that interprets 2D images and works well to identify colors and signs and to distinguish people from fixed structures. Many providers are evaluating using a combination of the two technologies.

Targeted Automation Helps B2B Operations

Much of the attention on flexible warehouse automation has been focused on ecommerce, says Cody Upp, chief commercial officer with Vecna Robotics, a provider of intelligent robots. That’s understandable, given the growth in ecommerce transactions. However, research shows the average ecommerce package is a parcel that weighs between one and three pounds. That’s a big difference from many business-to-business (B2B) shipments.

The CaseFlow solution from Vecna is geared to B2B operations. It synchronizes both human labor and robots that can handle pallets. By intelligently pairing warehouse workers with mobile robots, CaseFlow can slash the time workers would otherwise spend traveling to pick items, Upp says.

CaseFlow Voice, which was recently announced, embeds voice capabilities directly into case picking workflows so workers can do their jobs hands-free. This is helpful in cold storage and similar environments, where gloves and condensation make it difficult to use screens or scanners.

Integration and Orchestration Build a Scalable Foundation

SEER Robotics’ orchestration solution includes a controller, software systems, and a platform that allows intelligent robots to be developed, deployed, connected, and continuously improved.

Many material handling technologies are becoming incredibly capable on their own. “The next challenge is integrating those technologies in a way that ensures information flows between them,” Schultz says. The biggest hurdle to implementing materials handling solutions is integration complexity, finds a recent Interact Analysis survey. This even tops concerns about budget and cost.

A warehouse that implements autonomous mobile robots, automated guided vehicles, and automated storage and retrieval systems, for instance, runs three or four different technology solutions, Allen notes. To truly streamline operations, these tools need to communicate and work together.

The team at SEER Robotics is focusing on what it calls the “robot brain,” Gong says. This includes the controller, software systems, and a platform that allows different types of intelligent robots to be developed, deployed, connected, and continuously improved.

In addition, the company’s software helps manage robot fleets in warehouses and manufacturing environments, which speeds deployment and allows warehouse operators to manage various robot types through a more unified architecture. Instead of treating every robot as a separate project, this helps customers build a more scalable automation foundation.

Artificial intelligence may also help bring cohesion to disparate solutions. While most people naturally optimize the area for which they’re responsible, AI has the potential to look across departments and recommend what’s best for the enterprise as a whole, even if it isn’t the best decision for a single area, Schultz says.

This will be key moving forward. The warehouse of the future won’t be defined by a single breakthrough technology, Schultz says. Instead, it will depend on how effectively multiple technologies exchange information, provide operational context, and empower people to make better decisions.

Moving Past the Hype

While advances in materials handling equipment can significantly improve warehouse operations, they’re not automatic panaceas. Warehouses running a single shift may find it difficult to justify some investments, given their expense, says Gary Allen of Ryder System. The cost of an autonomous forklift, for instance, can run into the low- to mid-six figures.

Along with the upfront investment in technology, organizations need to budget for the skills and expertise required to integrate, implement, and operate the solutions, or what Allen calls maintenance, repairs, and optimization. This generally requires a mix of mechanical, robotic, and systems engineering expertise.

Another challenge is the gap between what a solution seems to offer in a demonstration and what it can deliver on a warehouse floor, where it has to contend with congestion, damaged pallets, and other challenges. “There’s no shortage of automation,” says Nick Malewicki of Big Joe Forklifts. “There’s a shortage of automation that survives contact with a real warehouse.”

That’s particularly true in cold chain operations. The batteries on autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) die more quickly in frozen environments. Similarly, forklifts and other devices often have to be built slightly differently to withstand the cold, as well as the changes in temperature and humidity. That can add cost, time, and complexity.

Solutions for Narrow Warehouse Aisles

The rise in ecommerce is boosting product volume and variety, forcing many warehouses to use space as efficiently as possible. One solution is to narrow the aisles. However, this can lead to damage from equipment as it travels through increasingly tight spaces.

To help address this, Raymond Corporation is enhancing the technology suite for its automated swing reach trucks, which are already designed for narrow aisles, says Shawn Donahue, product marketing manager of automation.

A camera mounted on the truck can help it determine what it’s seeing, such as a pallet, as well as the pallet’s size and dimensions. As a result, when the automated guided vehicle (AGV) picks up the item, it’s less likely to have any unintended contact with the shelves or racking.

If human intervention is required, a remote operator can assist the AGV. Over time, the algorithm will learn from these situations, so it can handle more potential problems without asking for help.

“With fewer interventions, things can move faster,” Donahue says. The enhanced technology suite is not yet commercially available.