Robotics & Automation News

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Material handling

The view from Zasche: Where human skill meets smart automation – the case for semi-automated bin picking

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By Ulrich Schäfer, project engineer, Zasche Handling

Manufacturers today are navigating an increasingly complex balancing act. High-mix production, persistent labour shortages, and stricter safety and ergonomic standards are stretching both operators and processes.

Manual handling can no longer keep pace without risking fatigue or injury, yet fully robotic systems are often rigid, costly, and hard to adapt to changing part types. Between these extremes lies a growing opportunity for solutions that blend human expertise with targeted automation.

Semi-automated bin picking sits squarely in this middle ground. It offers a practical alternative when full automation would require disproportionate investment, yet manual lifting and handling exceed what is safe or sustainable over time. [Read more…] about The view from Zasche: Where human skill meets smart automation – the case for semi-automated bin picking

From Manual to Fully Automated: The Evolution of Loading Dock Workflows

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Loading docks are finally seeing the same automation treatment that so many components of warehouses have been receiving.

The change is not theoretical, as in 2025 and 2026, large operators started buying and deploying robots specifically for the hardest dock-adjacent job: unloading trailers.

UPS, for example, committed to buying 400 truck-unloading robots from Pickle Robot Co. as part of its broader automation program. [Read more…] about From Manual to Fully Automated: The Evolution of Loading Dock Workflows

Aptiv and Vecna Robotics to develop next generation autonomous mobile robots

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Aptiv, an industrial technology developer, and Vecna Robotics, a provider of AI-driven autonomous material handling solutions, have announced a strategic collaboration to co-develop next-generation Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) solutions designed to deliver cost-efficient automation.

This partnership combines Aptiv’s industry-leading portfolio, with Vecna Robotics’ advanced autonomy and orchestration platform to provide safer, more efficient, and scalable material handling systems.

Javed Khan, executive vice president, Intelligent Systems, Aptiv, says: “Automation is transforming the way goods move through warehouses and factories, with devices that sense, think and act in real time. [Read more…] about Aptiv and Vecna Robotics to develop next generation autonomous mobile robots

Cognibotics and Boozt team up for advanced AutoStore automation

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Nordic e-commerce company Boozt has launched a pilot of Cognibotics’ HKM1800 material-handling robot, aiming to accelerate AutoStore-connected pick-to-pack operations.

The initiative targets fewer manual touches, faster operator onboarding, and higher throughput, key challenges in today’s tight labor market and seasonal volume peaks.

Fredrik Malmgren, CEO, Cognibotics, says: “Automation isn’t only about cost; it keeps operations running when demand spikes. [Read more…] about Cognibotics and Boozt team up for advanced AutoStore automation

From Manual Tracking to Intelligent Monitoring: Modernizing Warehouse Oversight

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Warehouses have not always looked the same. A few years ago, many still relied on paper logs, walkie-talkies, and human memory for tracking inventory and activity. As long as volumes were stable, this rough system, though imperfect, got the job done.

Today, things are different. With rising sales, tighter deadlines, and more complex operations, those same warehouses often find themselves caught off guard when delays, stock mismatches, or bottlenecks appear. It becomes difficult to know what is happening on the floor until a problem is already visible, sometimes too late to avoid disruption.

That is why many operators are moving from manual tracking to real-time monitoring. Instead of waiting until the end of a shift to review what happened, they now rely on live signals that show stock movement, equipment status, and workflow progress as work unfolds. [Read more…] about From Manual Tracking to Intelligent Monitoring: Modernizing Warehouse Oversight

MIT alumni build robots that spare warehouse workers the heavy lifting

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By Zach Winn, MIT News

Founded by MIT alumni, the Pickle Robot Company has developed machines that can autonomously load and unload trucks inside warehouses and logistic centers.

There are some jobs human bodies just weren’t meant to do. Unloading trucks and shipping containers is a repetitive, grueling task – and a big reason warehouse injury rates are more than twice the national average.

The Pickle Robot Company wants its machines to do the heavy lifting. The company’s one-armed robots autonomously unload trailers, picking up boxes weighing up to 50 pounds and placing them onto onboard conveyor belts for warehouses of all types.

The company name, an homage to The Apple Computer Company, hints at the ambitions of founders AJ Meyer ’09, Ariana Eisenstein ’15, SM ’16, and Dan Paluska ’97, SM ’00. The founders want to make the company the technology leader for supply chain automation. [Read more…] about MIT alumni build robots that spare warehouse workers the heavy lifting

Getting a grip on efficiency: Choosing the ideal manipulator

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By Ulrich Schäfer, project engineer, ZASCHE handling

Industrial manipulators are essential tools for lifting, moving, and positioning heavy or complex components.

They improve safety, reduce operator strain, and support higher productivity across companies of all sizes – from small manufacturers to major players in sectors such as automotive, printing, and heavy industry. But with several different designs available, how do you know which manipulator is the right fit for your task?

Here we review the key considerations for specifying a manipulator, with a side-by-side comparison of articulated and parallelogram systems – the two designs most commonly found in industry today. [Read more…] about Getting a grip on efficiency: Choosing the ideal manipulator

5 Signs it’s Time to Upgrade Your Packaging Line

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In the contemporary competitive cart package business, efficiency, accuracy, and speed are all that matter. Your packaging line is the blood pump of your business whether you are making corrugated cartons, folding boxes, or e-commerce-specific packaging. However, there is no shelf life even in the best system.

Machines belabor, technology changes, and market demands change. You may be losing a daily amount of money without knowing it, in case your line is aging. It is also important to note that it is equally important to know when to upgrade as well as what to upgrade.

The following are five outstanding indications that it is time to upgrade your packaging line – and how upgrading your packaging line can radically transform your production performance, product quality, and profit margins. [Read more…] about 5 Signs it’s Time to Upgrade Your Packaging Line

Startup Sort A Brick looking to raise €3 million to scale up ‘world’s first’ automated LEGO sorting conveyor

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Lithuania-based tech startup Sort A Brick has launched what it says is “the world’s first automated industrial-grade system for recognizing and sorting pre-owned LEGO bricks”, setting a new standard for the reuse and upcycling of one of the world’s most popular toys.

This launch comes as the company aims to raise €3 million in its next seed round to scale up its operations.

The company’s inaugural system combines custom-built hardware, software and proprietary artificial intelligence to tackle a long-standing challenge in the toy reuse sector: processing mixed piles of LEGO bricks quickly, reliably, and at scale. [Read more…] about Startup Sort A Brick looking to raise €3 million to scale up ‘world’s first’ automated LEGO sorting conveyor

Carolina Handling opens new $23 million facility in South Carolina

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Carolina Handling, the exclusive Raymond Solutions and Support Center for South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida’s central time zone, has opened its new 264,544-square-foot facility in Pickens County, South Carolina.

Located at 285 Speedway Boulevard in Easley in the new Speedway Business & Technology Park, the new building consolidates the Upstate operations of the Charlotte, NC-based intralogistics company. It combines the warehouse and office space from four facilities in the Upstate region of South Carolina under one roof.

Carolina Handling was the first tenant at Speedway Business & Technology Park, which is being developed by RealtyLink, and broke ground on the facility in 2024. The $23.2 million investment from Carolina Handling and RealtyLink will create 100 new jobs in South Carolina over five years. [Read more…] about Carolina Handling opens new $23 million facility in South Carolina