Warehouse robotics company Exotec has announced the commissioning of two new Skypod systems in Japan with Mitsubishi Shokuhin, a major food distributor, and Trusco Nakayama, one of Japan’s leading industrial distributors.
Deployed in partnership with IHI Logistics Industrial Systems, the new systems further strengthen Exotec’s presence in one of the world’s most advanced markets for logistics automation.
Mitsubishi Shokuhin has commissioned Skypod at its new Food Service Distribution Centre (FSDC) in Soka. The site manages almost 13,000 product references, including food products, alcoholic beverages and professional supplies.
With labour shortages and the need to improve working conditions in its warehouses, Mitsubishi Shokuhin implemented Skypod to reduce operator travel distances, improve picking efficiency, automate ambient temperature operations and maintain a high level of customer service.
The project is part of a broader strategy to build a logistics infrastructure capable of supporting the company’s growth through 2040. The deployment marks an important milestone, as it is the first implementation of Skypod in Japan’s food distribution sector.
Trusco Nakayama also strengthened its industrial logistics capacity with the Exotec Skypod system being fully operational at the group’s new Planet Aichi logistics centre, its largest logistics facility.
Covering approximately 89,000 square meters, the site was designed to support the continued growth of the number of stored product references, which is expected to exceed one million SKUs in the coming years.
Skypod was implemented to automate order fulfilment operations for tools, consumables, safety equipment and industrial supplies. The deployed system includes nearly 32,000 bins, 37 robots and four picking stations to improve productivity, picking accuracy and storage space utilisation.
Both projects highlight the growing adoption of warehouse automation technologies in Japan to address shared challenges, including labour shortages, increasing throughput requirements, improved productivity and better working conditions for warehouse operators.
Romain Moulin, CEO of Exotec, says: “Japan is one of the world’s most demanding and innovative markets when it comes to logistics. The new systems at Mitsubishi Shokuhin and Trusco Nakayama demonstrate Skypod’s ability to meet very different requirements while providing a concrete response to the challenges of productivity, labour availability and service quality. We are proud to support these two major companies as they transform their logistics operations.
“Following the success of our projects with Mitsubishi Shokuhin and Trusco Nakayama, we are excited to continue expanding in Japan and supporting organisations with demanding logistics performance requirements.
“Both projects, spanning the food and industrial distribution sectors, demonstrate Skypod’s strength and adaptability in enhancing logistics operations. We look forward to building on this success and expanding our presence across Japan.”
Skypod is an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS), but it is quite different from the conventional shuttle-based ASRSs you may have seen or heard of before. Exotec itself describes Skypod as a “mobile ASRS”.
The important distinction is that Skypod does not have separate robotic shuttles sitting on each level of the rack. The Skypod robots themselves perform both the horizontal transport and the vertical retrieval.
