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In the chef's pantry
SSI Schäfer's Flexi Shuttle System was specifically designed for highly dynamic small parts warehouses. At the Finnish ready-meal manufacturer Kokkikartano, the modular system combines shuttles, lifts, and racking systems for 40,000 container storage locations, resulting in an increase in storage capacity of over 50%.
Packaging industry under pressure
On January 28th and 29th, 2026, " Logistics & Automation " and will once again take place together in Bern . The packaging industry is under pressure due to new EU regulations, rising customer expectations, and increasing demands for climate protection. An interview explores the background.
Another 42 eActros for Lidl OE
In addition to the 14 battery-electric eActros 600 trucks already delivered, Lidl Austria has signed a further framework agreement for 42 electric units, which are scheduled to go into operation by mid-2027. At the same time, Austria's most powerful dedicated truck charging network for the retail sector is being built.
Lightning fast in the high-bay
The AirRob, an automated robotic container system, is designed to climb the shelving wall at lightning speed along two rails The system, developed by Libiao Robotics, was initially installed as a "proof of concept" at the logistics provider Geis in Ostrava-Poruba, Czech Republic
Staffing needs almost halved
The US cooperative Associated Wholesale Grocers keeps 54,600 dry goods, fresh produce, and frozen food items in stock for its 1,100 members using a highly automated, full-range logistics center . The facility is designed for a daily picking capacity of more than 460,000 retail units.
Knowledge transfer in the Seychelles
Natural hazards are increasingly occurring worldwide in the form of floods, landslides, forest fires, storms, earthquakes, and rockfalls. Acute crisis management is required, but so are long-term strategies for transportation routes, where Gasser Felstechnik provides assistance in the Seychelles.
German Design Award for Traigo-i
Following the Red Dot Design Award 2025, Toyota Material Handling's new 48-volt counterbalance forklift, Traigo_i, has now also received the German Design Award 2026 in the Excellent Product Design – Industry category. The focus: the complete integration of lithium-ion technology.
Long-term contracts at SBB Cargo
Numerous SBB Cargo Switzerland transport customers, such as Migros, have signed new single wagonload (EWLV) contracts with terms of up to ten years. New contracts have also reportedly been concluded with fenaco, Stahl Gerlafingen, and the Swiss saltworks.
Cooperation with Capra Robotics
Frei Fördertechnik announces its future collaboration with the Danish robotics specialist Capra. "This expands our portfolio to include mobile robot platforms that bring even greater flexibility and efficiency to production and logistics," says Michael Schüpbach, Head of Automation & Robotics. The AMRs are versatile and can be used in a wide range of applications.
SSI subsidiary continues to consistently rely on SAP
Since 2021, the software specialists at SWAN have been part of the SSI Schäfer Group, responsible for the SAP projects of the globally active intralogistics experts and supporting companies in implementing future-proof solutions – from highly automated distribution centers to integrated production logistics. The course is right.
Shipyard without welding work
Shipyard without welding work
Photo: klk.
Humanoid robots were long considered unsuitable for rugged jobs due to balance problems. Logistics wanted to avoid such challenges. AI-supported systems are now helping. At LogiMAT, the Fraunhofer IML presented new insights—as well as a miniature open-source shipyard.
Despite numerous pilot projects and research experiments, humanoid robots appeared rather impractical in recent decades. It was too laborious to keep these sometimes strange creatures in balance just to make them somewhat similar to "homo sapiens"—and then possibly even entrust them with specific tasks. Inventions like the "Segway" put an end to this wobbly behavior some time ago, and balancing systems supported by "artificial intelligence," gyroscopes with latency measurable in milliseconds, are currently paving the way for the further development of humanoid applications.
Building ships with the tablet
At the opening of the trade fair in Stuttgart, Alice Kirchheim, director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (IML), estimated that the expenditure made so far by a well-known robotics AI company in the USA, for example, was 675 million US dollars, while Germany was already lagging behind with just 120 million euros.
As a nation of research and science, Germany certainly doesn't need to hide behind others. The "EvoBOT" (maximum speed 60 km/h and 100 kg), launched by Kirchheim's predecessor, Michael ten Hompel, is often cited here. It will be used in test runs in 2023 at Munich Airport's cargo terminal, performing transport tasks and even being "swarm-capable" with the support of Fraport, Schenker, and Lufthansa Cargo.
At the interface between design, projection, AI-supported simulations, and their implementation in reality, there's now a Fraunhofer project named "Aulis"—after an ancient port city where the Greek fleet once met with its allies to march against Troy. Here, however, without a "horse."
It was developed as a manufacturer-independent fleet management system for automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs). The IML exhibition booth was briefly converted into a mini-shipyard in the form of a matrix production: Aulis orchestrates a fleet of real and simulated AI-enabled mobile robots to produce a ship—albeit one only a few centimeters in size. A laser projection system guides the people involved in production along the right path.
“Shipyard workers” of the modern era
The shipyard scenario simulates a dynamic production environment in which several miniature AMRs move between three production zones on the hall floor. In addition to the real robots, additional AMRs also move from a simulation environment of a digital warehouse to the real exhibition stand area – a laser projection system called LARS and "mixed reality" display the actual routes traveled and those still to be completed. Trade fair visitors can use a tablet to choose between different production variants of the ship – whether they want the sail green or blue – and then experience the production process "live" on screen and in model format. The ship's components are, of course, not welded together here as at the Meyer shipyard in Papenburg, but are 3D-printed and assembled.
EvoBOT in action
The integration of AGVs and AMRs from different manufacturers into an existing IT infrastructure works with little effort according to the plug-and-play principle. The key to this is, of course, the use of VDA 5050 and M2X – two universally applicable, open, de facto standards for communication between vehicles and the operating environment of automated guided vehicle systems (AGVs), as is also known from the IFOY mesh-up. Aulis is available as open source. "The future of intralogistics belongs to autonomous mobile robot fleets. This is increasing the need for holistic fleet management in companies. With Aulis, we have created precisely such a system: It is manufacturer-independent, easy to integrate, and modularly expandable at any time. Everything is based on open source interfaces and basic modules, which significantly reduces integration costs," says IML CEO Alice Kirchheim. "This makes Aulis a solution for everyone – from SMEs to system integrators to
major AMR manufacturer».
klk/J.Jakubiak.
