After this spring’s trade shows including Manifest, ProMat, and Automate, not to mention our own Robotics Summit & Expo, industry observers have a lot to absorb and share about warehouse automation. The electrification of fleet vehicles, increasing levels of autonomy, and the potential for long-term savings are helping with adoption, according to ZAPI GROUP.
Founded in 1975, ZAPI provides motion controllers, electric motors, high-frequency battery chargers, and navigation software. The Italy-based systems integrator said it has more than 1,700 employees worldwide, annual revenue of more than $600 million, and 18 offices in 13 countries.
ZAPI’s units include autonomous navigation technology (ANT) supplier BlueBotics, battery charging and control company ZIVAN, and founding motion-control firm Zapi Spa.
Automated Warehouse spoke with Rod Dayrit, global director for business development at ZAPI GROUP, about his observations from recent trade shows and conferences, as well as his company’s direction.
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Growing shows demonstrate shift to automation
Now that we’re past all that business travel, what were impressions from events such as ProMat?
Dayrit: I thought that there has been more change at ProMat than at MODEX. ProMat used to be [co-located] with Automate, and it featured a lot of OEM truck providers. All the big names were there — Toyota, Raymond, Heinrich, Clark, etc.
As time went on, a lot of robotics came in on both the A3 [Association for Advancing Automation] and the Material Handling Institute [MHI] sides. MHI’s ProMat has continued to grow, filling 3 halls, and A3’s Automate will move from Detroit to Chicago.
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ZAPI GROUP. Source: LinkedIn
The biggest difference is not the big industrial OEMs, but now on the automation side and the service providers.
The period since the COVID-19 pandemic has been challenging for autonomous mobile robot (AMR) providers, including some consolidation and layoffs. What do you see changing?
Dayrit: There has been some pullback of material handling OEMs. They want fewer vehicles, and it’s now more about capabilities — such as autonomy, service-based offerings, and anti-collision solutions — to make the quality and operations of their vehicles stand out.
How has the hardware for AMRs and self-driving vehicles evolved?
Dayrit: In prior years, ZAPI had two booths at these shows — one for autonomy through BlueBotics, and the other part focusing on hardware components.
This year, we had one booth showcasing the potential of our components through BlueBotics’ vehicle navigation. This supports the notion of a full system.
In BlueBotics’ booth at ProMat and LogiMAT, we had OEMs that have integrated our solution to show what we have available with this implementation of our autonomous navigation suite. It’s not just a service, but it’s also already incorporated with the OEMs’ offerings.
ZAPI, BlueBotics show shared ecosystem
What were some noteworthy products at ZAPI’s booth this year?
Dayrit: We exhibited new products. BlueBotics showed that its autonomous navigation can be integrated into OEM trucks.
It’s a solution they’ve had, but it incorporates all telematics as well. This takes our offerings further down the road—how to use it and manage it. Telematics brings the ability for fleet management.
It was really a great piece to showcase in our booth. It enables different manufacturers of trucks to use the same ecosystem. Whether they’re from Bastian or Primark, they can incorporate into one system.
From autonomous navigation to telematics, it sounds like data and the ability to analyze are becoming market drivers.
Dayrit: The key to all of that is analyzing what’s important and harvesting the right data to optimize operations.
Last October, ZAPI GROUP acquired UBIQUICOM, another company that not only does telematics and fleet management, but it also does anti-collision and positioning awareness. By making systems autonomous, we can improve efficiency.
With these and artificial intelligence, we can make sure that systems operate in a safe environment and that they are able to work in an ecosystem. Our platform is not just one proprietary warehouse management system [WMS]; it’s evolving.
Adding that to our arsenal on the component side helps us provide a holistic solution of hardware, software, and cloud-based data analytics. It’s a work in progress.
How does ZAPI GROUP’s experience with integration complement its hardware, software, and analytics?
Dayrit: As we maximize hardware, we’ve started to offer services as a means to optimize efficiency. In 2023, ZAPI acquired systems integrator 4E-consulting.
Looking ahead to a holistic approach
How was the reception to ZAPI’s displays at this year’s ProMat?
Dayrit: This year, because we went down to booth, we focused more on solutions side. We got over 400 leads, which pretty significant, even compared with the two booths we had in the past.
There was a lot of increase from commercial B2B [business to business] and more on B2C [business to consumer] looking at the solutions side. Prospective customers were not just looking at how to integrate their operations with a truck or an AGV [automated guided vehicle] or AMR.
It was very interesting — we had a lot of private meetings with Fortune 500 companies. We got a good sense that they understood that we could provide a holistic solution.
It wasn’t only big OEMs, but also their customers. We had several conversations with large rental companies on the construction and materials handling side.
ProMat has evolved so dramatically over past 20 years. The quality of leads has gotten better, and we’re not just selling to truck or systems providers; we’re now selling solutions to the market.
With the pandemic, wars, and tariffs, what’s your economic outlook?
Dayrit: Uncertainty is never a good thing, and companies plan for scenarios in which they can expect success. There’s opportunity, but the risk level has elevated.
We’re monitoring tariffs, and we have manufacturing in North America, Europe, and South and East Asia. Thanks to our global footprint, we’re pretty flexible for different applications and dynamic situations.
What was your biggest warehouse automation takeaway from this year’s events?
Dayrit: We got a clear message from ProMat — customers want a holistic approach. They’re looking at improving operational efficiency — that’s the trajectory of the materials handling space as operational costs and availability have ups and downs.
Robotics is stable. The ability to operate them and costs don’t fluctuate as much as taking manufacturing from region to region. If you take labor costs and make it broad-based — if it’s autonomous, it makes things the same wherever you operate, other than power.
Depending on where your manufacture, costs will be the same everywhere. The shows demonstrated the evolution of how manufacturing is moving toward more autonomy.
