Exotec SAS today announced that Oxford Industries Inc. has chosen it to automate a new, large-scale distribution center in Lyons, Ga. The facility will support Oxford Industries’ ongoing business growth and boost the productivity of its existing workforce.
“As the largest Exotec deployment to date, the Oxford Industries project not only showcases the performance and scalability of our system, but also the sophistication of our integration capabilities,” said Romain Moulin, co-founder and CEO of Exotec.
“Having a client like Oxford Industries select Exotec as the integrator for a project of this complexity speaks volumes about the trust they put in our ability to deliver end-to-end warehouse automation that goes beyond our standard Skypod system,” he added.
Oxford Industries speeds inbound, outbound shipments
Oxford Industries is a leader in the apparel industry and owns several brands, including Tommy Bahama, Lilly Pulitzer, and Johnny Was. It designed the new 560,000 sq. ft. (52,025.7 sq. m) facility to process more than 20 million units a year.
The Next Generation Skypod system deployed at Oxford will serve as the picking engine for the whole warehouse. It will consist of over 450,000 storage locations and more than 450 robots.
Exotec said it will integrate its hardware and software with third-party machinery to offer “end-to-end” warehouse automation and support receiving, decanting, sorting, and packing, as well as outbound shipment.
“We are excited about making this large investment in an expanded facility in Toombs County which, together with the great workforce we already have here, has been a great place for Oxford for many years,” said Mark Kirby, Oxford’s senior vice president of operations. “This new facility, with convenient access to Southeastern U.S. ports, will be supported by Exotec’s next-generation Skypod system and ensure best-in-class direct-to-consumer throughput capabilities for our brands.”
The system will also enable Oxford Industries to effectively handle returns. It can significantly cut the amount of time and labor needed to inspect, sort, and store returned items, streamlining the process of making them available for resale, Exotec said.
The multi-brand, omnichannel distribution facility is expected to open in late 2025, and will Oxford said it will play a critical role in supporting its future operations.
Exotec improves Skypod system
Exotec said it has previously found success in several market verticals, including e-commerce, grocery, retail, healthcare, and industrial. The company has deployed Skypod to more than 20 customers, according to Arthur Bellamy, chief revenue officer.
In February, Exotec launched its next-generation Skypod system. The automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) comes with several design improvements including a new and more compact Skypod robot, a workstation for robot-to-robot picking, a high-throughput Exchanger, and denser storage.
Exotec plans to show its latest Skypod system at Booth N7116 at ProMat 2025 this week.
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