Improving prospects for automated handling equipment

01 Jun 2019 CW Team

Of the sectors demanding material handling equipment for warehousing, Chauhan observes that the ecommerce, pharmaceutical and food industries are doing well while the automative industry is going through a low.

Asim Behera, Chief Operating Officer, Daifuku India shares that, last year, the demand for fully automated material handling systems, the area Daifuku operates in, was lower than the double-digit growth in previous years, mainly coming from the paint, tyre, food and beverage sectors.

Automated material handling involves a number of systems. A typical warehouse of Amazon India spans 400,000 to 600,000 sq ft. In several such distribution centres, Bastian Solutions has provided about 1.0-1.5 km of conveyors and high-speed lifts with a 10-m reach, which have helped increase throughput from 10-15 warehouse bins per minute to 60-120 bins per minute. “What helps is that 80 per cent of the products that Amazon India deals in fit in the standard warehouse container size (600 mm × 400 mm × 400 mm),” explains Chauhan. “So while the actual picking of the product from the bin and packing is still done manually, the automated retrieval significantly speeds up operations.”

At an ITC warehouse in Trichy, rail-guided vehicles and 19 cranes are helping to store and retrieve about 1,500 finished goods at 20,000 locations. “We have helped the FMCG giant achieve a throughput of 250 trucks a day and remain on call to ensure the system is up and running over the 24-hour day,” says Chauhan.

Behera expects manually operated material handlers to see the highest growth rates in the current year, led by companies consolidating their operations to tap the benefits of GST. He expects demand for fully automated systems to come into its own when companies focus on increasing their ability to store and pick goods and improve their throughputs and operational efficiency.

CHARU BAHRI

Demand for sophisticated solutions, such as high-speed conveyors and sorters and automated storage retrieval systems, has been rising for the past four to five years as large companies look to work more productively and blue-collar workers become hard to find, says SPS Chauhan, Director, Asia & Middle East, Bastian Solutions. “We clocked 30-50 per cent growth in the previous year as against the industry average of 20 per cent.” Of the sectors demanding material handling equipment for warehousing, Chauhan observes that the ecommerce, pharmaceutical and food industries are doing well while the automative industry is going through a low. Asim Behera, Chief Operating Officer, Daifuku India shares that, last year, the demand for fully automated material handling systems, the area Daifuku operates in, was lower than the double-digit growth in previous years, mainly coming from the paint, tyre, food and beverage sectors. Automated material handling involves a number of systems. A typical warehouse of Amazon India spans 400,000 to 600,000 sq ft. In several such distribution centres, Bastian Solutions has provided about 1.0-1.5 km of conveyors and high-speed lifts with a 10-m reach, which have helped increase throughput from 10-15 warehouse bins per minute to 60-120 bins per minute. “What helps is that 80 per cent of the products that Amazon India deals in fit in the standard warehouse container size (600 mm × 400 mm × 400 mm),” explains Chauhan. “So while the actual picking of the product from the bin and packing is still done manually, the automated retrieval significantly speeds up operations.” At an ITC warehouse in Trichy, rail-guided vehicles and 19 cranes are helping to store and retrieve about 1,500 finished goods at 20,000 locations. “We have helped the FMCG giant achieve a throughput of 250 trucks a day and remain on call to ensure the system is up and running over the 24-hour day,” says Chauhan. Behera expects manually operated material handlers to see the highest growth rates in the current year, led by companies consolidating their operations to tap the benefits of GST. He expects demand for fully automated systems to come into its own when companies focus on increasing their ability to store and pick goods and improve their throughputs and operational efficiency. CHARU BAHRI

Infrastructure Urban

13 Apr 2026

Credibility of Dispute Resolution System Key to Investor Confidence: CJI Surya Kant

Hon’ble Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said the credibility of India’s dispute resolution mechanisms will play a growing role in shaping how global investors evaluate the country as a dependable destination for long-term investment.Speaking at the 5th edition of the ICA International Conference on “Arbitration in the Era of Globalization - Legal Technology, Economic Development & Cross-Border Disputes” in New Delhi, the CJI underlined that stable and predictable dispute resolution is essential for global commerce.“Globalization ultimately depends not only upon the movement of ..

Real Estate

13 Apr 2026

CREDAI-MCHI Felicitates Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde

CREDAI-MCHI, the apex body representing real estate developers in Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), hosted a felicitation ceremony to honour Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and Maharashtra Advocate General Senior Advocate Dr Milind Sathe on their appointments.The event, organised under the leadership of CREDAI-MCHI President Sukhraj Nahar, was held to recognise the importance of these constitutional and civic offices in shaping Mumbai’s governance and real estate ecosystem. The association also reaffirmed its commitment to working closely with both offices to support the city’s plan..

Infrastructure Urban

13 Apr 2026

Meghwal Pushes Arbitration, Decriminalisation Reforms

Union Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said the Government is committed to strengthening institutional arbitration, decriminalising minor offences and modernising outdated laws to improve regulatory efficiency and support ease of doing business.Addressing the valedictory session on the concluding day of the International Conference on “Arbitration in the Era of Globalisation”, organised by the Indian Council of Arbitration (ICA) in New Delhi, the Minister underlined the need for structured dispute resolution mechanisms in a rapidly changing global economy.Emphasising a shift away..