In a recent episode of the “Warehouse Automation Matters” podcast, I spoke with Mike Geiger, VP of IT at KSP Fulfillment, about how his operations crossed the 10 million pick threshold in just over a year. Below is a playbook built from KSP’s lessons, enriched with industry benchmarks, to help 3PLs scale efficiently without burning out people, losing margin, or sacrificing quality. 

Step 1: Anchor Through Labor Predictability 

When volume spikes, labor costs often spike more, but KSP’s robotics deployment helped flatten that curve. Robots provided repeatable performance, and human teams became more resilient because they weren’t constantly compensating for unpredictable shifts. 

“It helps us to stabilize our labor and our labor spend. And it helps make things easier for the workers that are here.” – Mike Geiger 

Your Move: 

• Audit your current labor volatility by looking at seasonal highs, overtime, and turnover.

• Identify parts of the workflow ripe for robot automation (e.g. high-walk zones, restocking, replenishment).

• Project people-to-robot ratios to model future throughput and labor spend. 

Step 2: Build Employee Buy-In from Day One 

Change is hard. Even when the change helps. 

“Even before we were live, there was such a buzz amongst the associates.” – Geiger 

Your Move: 

• Hold training sessions, demos, and feedback rounds before live launch.  

• Create communication channels so associates can ask questions and voice concerns.

• Set up performance visibility: dashboards, scoreboards, and metrics that are visible and meaningful. 

Step 3: Prioritize Accuracy & Metrics Visibility 

Accuracy is a warehouse quality metric and also cost avoidance. Errors downstream (returns, customer complaints, re-pick) erode margin and trust, so KSP uses metrics to monitor performance, error rates, and throughput. 

Your Move: 

• Track error rates and return data pre-automation as baseline.

• Use automation tools with built-in validation (barcode scanning, vision, confirmation).

• Display accuracy and throughput metrics to the team; make them part of daily standups. 

Step 4: Embrace Continuous Improvement 

Implementing warehouse automation shouldn’t be a finish line for your facility. Instead, it should be a platform for continuous iteration and a true ongoing partnership with your provider.  

KSP is constantly asking: What’s next? Which process could be refined? Which workflow is the bottleneck now? 

Your Move: 

• Establish a cadence: monthly or bi-monthly performance reviews.

• Create cross-functional teams (ops, IT, safety) to identify improvement areas.

• Allocate a “small wins” budget for minor automations or workflow tweaks. 

Step 5: Scale Flexibly with Methods that Match Your Rhythm 

Deploying dozens of robots at once isn’t realistic for every 3PL. KSP uses Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) and staggered rollouts to match customer demand, seasonality, and budget constraints. 

Your Move: 

• Model peak demand vs. base demand; plan robot fleet growth accordingly.  

• Explore subscription, leasing, or rental models for robot units.

• Ensure your infrastructure (WMS, WiFi, space layout) is robotics-friendly so ramps up are smoother. 

Step 6: Manage Cost, but Plan for 2-3 Year ROI 

Robotics deployments often require significant upfront cost. In many cases, businesses see ROI in a short period of time with strong execution in labor savings, error reductions, and improved throughput.  

Your Move: 

• Build full cost models and include not just robots, but installation, change management, training, and downtime risk.

• Collect baseline cost metrics of labor cost per pick, error cost, return rate, and throughput.

• Track ROI milestones over time for when robot deployment pays back cost and when improvements hit target thresholds. 

The Takeaway 

Crossing the 10 million pick threshold is about embedding automation into all facets of your operations, including labor, culture, metrics, scale, and continuous improvement. 

Hear the full playbook directly from Mike Geiger in our podcast episode of Warehouse Automation Matters. 

BIO:

Written by Mary Hart, the Senior Content Marketing Manager at Locus Robotics. With 10+ years of experience covering technology and warehouse automation trends, Hart helps logistics leaders understand how fulfillment automation can transform operations.

When I sat down with Mike Geiger, VP of IT at KSP Fulfillment, for an episode of the “Warehouse Automation Matters” podcast, one number kept coming up: 10 million robotic picks in just over a year. That milestone tells a story that’s not just about volume, but about labor stability, culture evolution, tech scalability, and what’s ahead for the 3PL industry. 

Why 10 Million Picks Matters 

For KSP, that figure translates to roughly 1 to 1.5 million picks per month, which is a pace that can expose inefficiencies in manual workflows, labor variability, and forecasting risk. But robotics have helped the company tame those risks. Associates who once walked long distances daily are now seeing less fatigue and throughput is becoming predictable enough that planning and resource allocation happen weeks in advance. 

That kind of scale isn’t unique in aspiration. According to Boston Consulting Group, well-executed automation programs achieve 20-50% improvements in service levels and 25-50% reductions in fulfillment costs among leading consumer-oriented businesses.  

Labor: From Volatility to Predictability 

Labor in fulfillment has always been a wild card with turnover, seasonal spikes, absences, and variable skill levels combining to make labor spend unpredictable. KSP’s approach with robotics delivered something different. As Geiger put it, robotics are a “no-nonsense solution” that helps stabilize labor costs and reduce training spend, while lifting the burden off workers. 

Culture Shift and Buy-In 

In order to guarantee a smooth adoption of robotics, KSP prepared the people side of their organization with training before go-live, transparency in what change would look like, and giving associates ownership over metrics. 

“Even before we were live, there was such a buzz amongst the associates,” Geiger told me. Visible scoreboards, real-time metrics, and framing automation as a tool, and not a threat, helped shift attitudes. 

That echoes findings from broader automation case studies showing that error rates drop sharply when workers adopt systems designed with visibility and feedback in mind. With robotic picking systems, accuracy often reaches 99+%, which in turn reduces returns, rework, and exception handling costs. 

Continuous Improvement & Scalability 

KSP treats automation not as a fixed event, but as a journey. One of Geiger’s key refrains was “What’s the next thing we can automate?” That perspective allows them to iterate, adjust, and scale. 

Flexible models like Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) have played a big role. For instance, a Packaging Technology Today article by our CEO, Rick Faulk, states that RaaS enables many 3PLs to scale capacity seasonally without permanently increasing fixed costs.  

In recent months, KSP added 25 robots at a time through the RaaS model to match peak demand, with more on the way. This plug-and-play flexibility allows the team to flex up for seasonal spikes while maintaining stable ratios between people and robots 

That agility serves internal operations and strengthens customer relationships. Clients can trust that fulfillment capacity won’t be the limiting factor, no matter the season. 

What This Means for 3PLs Looking Ahead 

• Automation is a competitive necessity. 3PLs falling behind will face eroding margins, overworked labor, and inconsistency.

• The investment must go beyond hardware. Culture, training, metrics visibility, flexible capacity planning matter just as much.

• Using flexible business models like RaaS can lower barriers to entry and reduce risk. 

KSP’s story illustrates a truth that extends across 3PLs: automation is the foundation for success. And milestones like 10 million picks are about robots, people, processes, and customers aligning toward continuous improvement. 

Listen to my full conversation with Mike Geiger on Warehouse Automation Matters to hear how KSP Fulfillment reached 10 million picks, and what comes next. 

BIO:

Written by Mary Hart, the Senior Content Marketing Manager at Locus Robotics. With 10+ years of experience covering technology and warehouse automation trends, Hart helps logistics leaders understand how fulfillment automation can transform operations.

When most leaders think about warehouse automation, they focus on throughput, efficiency, and ROI. But beneath those metrics lies a quieter transformation in how automation reshapes the day-to-day experience of warehouse associates. 

In recent conversations on the Warehouse Automation Matters podcast, leaders from Staples Canada, Radial, and Motivational Fulfillment & Logistics Services shared how their organizations are using automation to not only move faster but also to make warehouse jobs more rewarding, less stressful, and more sustainable. 

Building Better Workdays for Humans with Robots

At Staples Canada, automation was about efficiency, but it was also about building a better workday. 

“Our priorities were to improve the quality of our associates’ lives as well as provide exceptional service to our customers,” said Mert Selcuk, Senior Manager of Supply Chain Strategy and Capabilities at Staples Canada. 

That perspective shaped every decision that Selcuk made with his team. Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) were chosen not only for flexibility and scalability, but because they could be integrated with minimal disruption and empower associates rather than burden them. Frontline workers were involved from the beginning, helping to shape the proof-of-concept process so adoption felt like a shared success, not a top-down mandate. 

The payoff was tangible. Selcuk recalled an associate who assumed the facility had a slow day when work finished early, only to learn the team had hit its usual volume more quickly. That extra time meant more balance for workers, a reminder that automation can create space in the day rather than compress it. 

Motivational Fulfillment echoed this philosophy as President and CEO Tony Altman described automation as a tool for reducing employee strain. “We see automation as a way to improve the employee experience,” he said. “Automation can reduce physical strain and fatigue, improve safety, and create opportunities for skill development and career growth”. 

In both organizations, robots are practical teammates that help associates be more efficient and achieve more without sacrificing their well-being. 

Training That Builds Confidence 

For many warehouses, onboarding is one of the most stressful bottlenecks. Traditional systems require days or even weeks of training, leaving seasonal hires overwhelmed and managers scrambling, and automation has begun to flip that script. 

At Radial, the difference was immediate. “The graphical user interface was very intuitive, very easy to use,” said David Welsh, VP of Fulfillment Services Delivery. “A traditional picker may take days and weeks to train, but with automation, we were down to minutes and hours”. 

Motivational Fulfillment saw the same pattern, and Altman noted that associates can be trained on Locus robots in less than 10 minutes, which makes scaling up during peak season dramatically easier. The ability to flex the workforce quickly doesn’t just serve customers; it also reduces the stress of steep learning curves for employees. 

Faster training also fosters confidence. When associates feel competent and effective sooner, their morale improves, and productivity accelerates. In both companies, automation transformed training from a hurdle into a confidence-building experience. 

Inclusion, Engagement, and Recognition 

Warehouse automation has also opened new opportunities to engage diverse workforces. 

At Radial’s Brownsburg, Indiana site, many associates are Haitian Creole speakers, so multi-language functionality in the robots’ user profiles made a powerful difference. “It’s tailored to their individual needs in both language and preference,” Welsh said. “We’re seeing early adoption, faster buy-in, more engagement from everyone”. 

Motivational Fulfillment approached inclusion through communication, as Altman emphasized that new technology is never “sprung” on employees. Instead, management meets with teams to understand pain points and explain why the change matters. “We want to explain how it’s going to make their job easier, improve safety, and improve quality,” Altman explained. That clarity helped employees to see automation as an ally and not a threat. 

For Radial and other companies, workforce engagement doesn’t end with training. Radial has introduced dashboards that let associates track their productivity in real time, benchmark themselves against peers, and celebrate progress together. Recognition programs for top performers and most improved employees turn data into pride as associates don’t just see numbers; they see their impact. 

Health, Safety, and Retention 

Another shared benefit of warehouse automation is employee safety. In Motivational’s facilities, injury rates dropped once robots reduced the amount of walking and repetitive strain tasks required. Associates reported feeling less physically worn down, which in turn boosted morale and retention. 

By prioritizing adoption and ownership, companies ensure that safety gains translate into lasting workforce improvements. Retention is harder to measure immediately, but leaders are already seeing promising signals. At Radial, Welsh noted higher associate satisfaction tied to automation, particularly as employees embraced multifunctional roles that broaden their skills and career opportunities. For Motivational, morale and retention were measurably stronger in facilities with robotics compared to those without. 

Shared Lessons for Leaders 

Taken together, the experiences of Staples Canada, Radial, and Motivational Fulfillment highlight a set of principles any warehouse leader can apply: 

• Design automation with people in mind. From solution design to rollout, involve associates early to foster ownership and adoption. 

• Simplify the training curve. Make onboarding intuitive and short so new employees feel confident quickly. 

• Invest in inclusion. Language accessibility, clear communication, and cultural awareness unlock faster engagement. 

• Measure what matters. Productivity dashboards, retention rates, and safety metrics reveal how automation affects both performance and people. 

• Think beyond efficiency. Robots reduce strain, open new career pathways, and create a better work-life balance, which are outcomes as valuable as throughput. 

The Bigger Picture 

As warehouses confront labor shortages, rising costs, and seasonal peaks, automation offers more than a productivity boost. Done thoughtfully, it improves the quality of work life: less strain, faster training, greater inclusion, and stronger engagement. 

Across Staples Canada, Radial, and Motivational Fulfillment, the message is consistent. Robots are teammates and that shift may be the most important transformation of all. 

Listen to the full episodes of Warehouse Automation Matters with Mert Selcuk of Staples Canada, David Welsh of Radial, and Tony Altman of Motivational Fulfillment to hear more about how warehouse automation improves both operations and the associate experience. 

When Tony Altman, President and CEO of Motivational Fulfillment & Logistics Services, joined me on Warehouse Automation Matters, our conversation centered on a theme every warehouse leader wrestles with in how do you implement automation without losing the human touch? 

For Altman, the answer lies in continuous improvement, flexible systems, and above all, a people-first culture. His perspective offers a practical roadmap for leaders considering their next move. Here’s a playbook drawn from that conversation. 

Start with Continuous Improvement, Not Just Technology 

Altman explained that customer service has always been the foundation of Motivational Fulfillment, but scaling required a more structured commitment. In 2023, the company created an executive-level role for continuous improvement to ensure safety, quality, efficiency, and on-time delivery were prioritized every day. 

“At Motivational, we’re big advocates for continuous improvement,” Altman said. “We’ve always worked to stay agile, efficient, innovative.” 

Your Move: 

• Appoint a clear owner for continuous improvement in your organization.

• Define improvement in terms of measurable outcomes: safety incidents, order accuracy, delivery times. 

• Treat continuous improvement as an ongoing discipline, not an ad hoc reaction to problems. 

Use Automation to Improve the Human Experience 

When Motivational launched its Mississippi facility, they introduced Locus Robotics to support picking operations. The results were clear in faster picking rates, shorter training times, improved accuracy, and higher throughput. But the impact that mattered most was on the workforce. 

“We see automation as a way to improve the employee experience,” Altman said. 

By reducing strain and fatigue, Locus Robots improved morale, lowered injuries, and helped employees pursue new skills and advancement opportunities. 

Your Move: 

• Frame warehouse automation as a tool to help employees.

• Track metrics like employee retention, training time, and job satisfaction alongside throughput.

• Involve your workforce in automation rollouts by showing how it makes their work safer and easier. 

Make Change Management About Communication 

Resistance to new technology is natural, but it’s not inevitable. Altman emphasized that change works best when communication is front and center. 

“We don’t just implement new systems and kind of spring it on the employees,” he explained. “We meet with the customers, the management team, and the teams on the floor.” 

By explaining why changes matter and how they improve both safety and efficiency, Motivational secures buy-in from employees and customers alike. 

Your Move: 

• Start every warehouse automation rollout with listening sessions to surface employee and customer pain points.

• Train “for context” and show employees not just how to use new tools, but why it matters.

• Celebrate early wins with the team to reinforce momentum and buy-in.

Prioritize Flexibility in Your Systems 

One of Motivational’s biggest differentiators is its proprietary WMS and OMS, built in-house to allow rapid iteration. Altman recalled a moment when a customer requested the same change from Motivational and another 3PL. Motivational delivered in a week at no cost; the competitor quoted six months and $80,000. 

“We wanted to offer flexibility and nimbleness,” Altman said. “That’s been a huge competitive advantage for us in the market.” 

Your Move: 

• Audit your current systems for agility. How quickly can you integrate new APIs or update workflows?

• Quantify the customer impact of faster iterations, whether in cost savings or responsiveness.

• Avoid relying solely on off-the-shelf solutions if they limit customer-specific flexibility. 

Tailor Automation to Customer Needs 

The biggest mistake, Altman warned, is treating automation as a one-size-fits-all solution. 

“Automation isn’t one size fits all,” he said. “Build a solution to fit the customer.” 

Too many 3PLs invest in massive automation systems and then force customers to adapt. Motivational flips that approach by designing automation around specific needs. 

Your Move: 

• Map customer pain points before deploying automation.

• Design flexible workflows that adapt to different customers, not the other way around.

• Evaluate automation investments not by scale alone, but by fit for your customer base. 

Altman’s message is clear that automation succeeds when it’s grounded in people, flexibility, and continuous improvement. Robots and systems may drive throughput, but trust, communication, and customer alignment are what make automation sustainable. 

Listen to the full episode here. 

When we talk about warehouse automation, the conversation often leans toward the technology of robots, software, data streams. But beneath all of that is something more human in the people who run these operations, who adapt to change, and who keep promises to customers every single day. 

That was the thread running through my conversation with Tony Altman, President and CEO of Motivational Fulfillment & Logistics Services, on the latest episode of Warehouse Automation Matters. For nearly five decades, Motivational has grown by saying “yes” to customers and then following through. Altman shared how that mindset has shaped the company’s adoption of robotics, continuous improvement, and system flexibility and how each decision ultimately ties back to people. 

This wasn’t a technical demo of automation or a case study in ROI. While those serve their purpose and are beneficial, this conversation was a deeper look at how leaders in our industry think about balancing innovation with the culture of trust and service that customers expect. 

The Origins of a Human, Customer-First Philosophy 

Altman’s story begins with family, as his father started Motivational Fulfillment over 48 years ago as a small, customer-centric operation. From the beginning, he trained the team to be a “yes company” but not at the expense of quality. 

“If you say yes, you better deliver on that yes. Because if you don’t, you’re not going to have that customer or any customer for very long,” Altman said. 

That philosophy has shaped how the company evolved. Altman himself worked nearly every role in the business, from loading containers to managing sales and HR, before becoming CEO. That experience, he said, gave him a perspective on both customer needs and employee realities. 

Why Continuous Improvement Needs Structure 

In logistics, continuous improvement is often used as shorthand for “always finding a better way.” But Altman explained that for Motivational, it became important to formalize the practice. 

In 2023, the company hired a Vice President of Continuous Improvement to create an executive role specifically tasked with ensuring safety, quality, efficiency, and on-time delivery were constantly evaluated and enhanced. 

“At Motivational, we’re big advocates for continuous improvement,” Altman said. “We’ve always worked to stay agile, efficient, innovative.” 

The lesson for warehouse leaders is that improvement can’t just be a vague aspiration. It needs ownership, accountability, and a direct link back to the customer. 

Automation as a Human Experience Strategy 

When Motivational launched its Mississippi facility, the leadership team decided to embed automation from day one. Locus Robotics became a core part of the operation, and the results were immediate in faster picking rates, shorter training times, higher accuracy, and more throughput. 

But what stood out most besides the productivity gains was the impact on employees. 

“We see automation as a way to improve the employee experience, but not replacing our employees,” Altman explained. 

He went on to describe how Locus Robots reduced physical strain, improved safety, and even created opportunities for career growth. Facilities with Locus saw higher morale, lower injury rates, and better retention. 

Instead of treating automation as a cost-saving measure, Altman framed it as an investment in people. The result was technology adoption that employees embrace rather than resist. 

Flexibility as a Competitive Advantage 

Another recurring theme in the conversation was flexibility. Motivational built its own proprietary WMS and order management systems to ensure they could adapt quickly to customer needs. 

Altman shared a striking comparison that one customer requested a system change from Motivational and another 3PL and Motivational completed the change in a week, at no cost. The other provider quoted six months and $80,000. 

“We didn’t want to force our customers to fit into a box,” Altman said. “We wanted to offer flexibility and nimbleness… That’s been a huge competitive advantage for us in the market.” 

For warehouse leaders, the takeaway is clear: unmatched flexibility isn’t just a technical capability. It’s a trust-builder with customers who need solutions now, not quarters down the road. 

Automation Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All 

Toward the end of our conversation, Altman offered advice for other 3PL leaders. His warning: don’t treat automation as a plug-and-play solution. 

“Automation isn’t one size fits all,” he said. “Figure out what the customer’s needs are and then develop the solution to meet those needs instead of putting an automated solution in your warehouse and then trying to fit the customer into it.” 

It’s a point worth repeating that true success comes not from chasing the shiniest technology, but from aligning warehouse automation with real customer problems. 

Why This Conversation Matters 

The story of Motivational Fulfillment is less about one company’s journey and more about how leaders can navigate the intersection of culture, technology, and customer service. Altman’s perspective reframes warehouse automation as: 

• A driver of customer trust through flexibility 

• A tool for improving the human workforce 

• A discipline for continuous improvement grounded in accountability 

For anyone evaluating automation, these aren’t just operational insights. They’re reminders that warehouse success is still a people business. 

Listen to the full episode here. 

Legacy warehouse systems weren’t built for today’s pace. From e-commerce pressure to labor shortages to increasingly complex fulfillment models, the warehouse floor demands more flexibility than ever, and low-code application platforms (LCAPs) are emerging as the bridge between operations and innovation to give managers the power to adapt without waiting for IT or signing up for months-long development cycles. 

In our recent Warehouse Automation Matters podcast, Datex’s Bryan Batchelder and Dave Castanon shared how LCAP changes the rules and how warehouse managers can take advantage. 

Diagnose Your Legacy System’s Limitations 

Many warehouse leaders know their systems are aging but hesitate to change. As Castanon explained, “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it” has kept too many warehouse operations stuck. But when delivery timelines shrink and product lines expand, those limitations become risk factors. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Conduct a 30-minute “legacy pain audit” with your warehouse operations and IT teams and identify 3–5 areas where your current WMS slows down or prevents new capabilities (e.g., adding new workflows, launching an e-commerce channel, or integrating robotics like autonomous mobile robots from Locus Robotics). 

• Create a “can’t do list” of things your WMS should support but doesn’t and revisit it quarterly. 

Understand the Warehouse Power of Low-Code 

A low-code platform lets users configure workflows, UIs, and integrations without heavy custom code. It brings software building blocks into the hands of operators, and not just developers. 

Batchelder described it as building with LEGOs: “Swap the pieces you need and remove what you don’t.” 

Actionable Advice: 

• Request a low-code demo (from vendors like Datex) focused on your use case and watch how a UI or workflow is changed in real time without custom development. 

• Ask your team: If we could configure our own processes, what would we fix first? 

Streamline Warehouse Operations with Modular Thinking 

Instead of buying an entirely new WMS for each new sales channel or business model, LCAP allows you to build what you need, when you need it without affecting core functionality. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Map out a recent business pivot like taking on a new product category or fulfillment model and then ask: What changes were required in the WMS? How long did they take? 

• Identify where modular configurations (like drag-and-drop fields or adjustable workflows) could have saved time. 

Make Automation Integration Faster 

EVERSANA used Datex Studio to integrate with Locus Robotics’ robots (Origin and Vector) for both case picking and pallet building without requiring custom-built middleware or separate project teams. 

Actionable Advice: 

• List current or planned automation systems (e.g., robots, conveyors, rate-shopping APIs). Ask your WMS vendor how easy integration is and whether they support custom API endpoints. 

• Pilot a single integration using a low-code approach and track time saved vs. traditional methods. 

Empower Non-Technical Team Members 

One of the biggest LCAP benefits is putting control in the hands of warehouse managers and process owners and not just developers. 

Batchelder noted that with Datex Studio, even complex logic can be implemented by managers using AI agents like OpenAI to help write TypeScript code. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Choose one warehouse supervisor to be your “low-code champion” and give them access to a sandbox environment and task them with modifying one screen or process. 

• Build a playbook of repeatable UI or workflow changes your team can handle in-house. 

Accelerate Time-to-Value 

LCAP dramatically shortens the cycle from “idea” to “solution.” As Batchelder shared, teams can implement a change, review it, and revise it, sometimes all in one meeting. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Use “low-code sprints”: Set aside one day each month to gather feedback, update a workflow, and test it live. Treat it like an agile development cycle. 

• Prioritize fixes that improve pick speed, accuracy, or onboarding time and track performance before and after. 

Customize Without Breaking the System 

Many 3PLs support wildly different workflows of e-commerce, pharma, and hazmat, all in one facility. With legacy systems, customizations can break upgrades and LCAP keeps everything within a safe, upgrade-compatible sandbox. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Ask your current vendor: Can we customize workflows without going off the upgrade path? 

• If evaluating a new platform, demand documentation showing how sandboxed changes are preserved during system updates. 

Reframe the ROI Equation 

As Batchelder noted, “The ROI math changes.” With LCAP, enhancements that were too expensive before, like custom UIs or new workflow logic, are now fast and affordable, which means more operational improvements become justifiable. 

Actionable Advice: 

• Review past enhancement requests that were tabled due to cost or complexity and re-evaluate those using a low-code framework and reassess ROI. 

• Track how quickly changes are implemented and share these “wins” with leadership to justify continued investment. 

LCAP is about making your WMS work for you instead of replacing your WMS. For warehouse managers facing constant change, it offers a faster, smarter, and more scalable way to solve problems and seize opportunities. 

Want to hear how Datex and EVERSANA made it work? 

Check out our Warehouse Automation Matters episode featuring Datex’s Bryan Batchelder and Dave Castanon. 

For all the headlines about artificial intelligence (AI) changing warehouses, the reality on the ground is more nuanced, with many leaders asking the same questions: Where does AI actually help? How do we separate the hype from real ROI? And what can we do today that sets us up for tomorrow? 

That’s why I sat down with Oscar Mendez, Head of AI and Data Science at Locus Robotics, on the Warehouse Automation Matters podcast. Our conversation focused not on future promises, but actionable ways to make AI work right now, which resulted in this playbook based on that discussion. 

Start with the Business Value of AI in the Warehouse

Mendez made it clear that AI should be framed around business impact, not just clever capabilities. 

“You’re not just asking, 'does the robot do the thing?'” he said. “You’re asking, 'does the thing make sense for the business?'" 

That shift in mindset drives everything at Locus, where AI exists to improve throughput, reduce walking, optimize labor, and increase safety. 

Your Move: 

• Audit your top warehouse KPIs and think UPH, LPH, travel time, training time 

• Identify where AI can have measurable impact on those metrics, not just where it might look impressive 

Build AI Like a Ladder: One ROI Step at a Time 

One of the most powerful frameworks Mendez shared was the "AI complexity ladder." Rather than leap straight to foundation models or LLMs, Locus focuses on atomic building blocks that solve one clear problem at a time, with each unlocking the next. 

For example: 

• An object detector helps a robot avoid a forklift (value: improved safety) 

• That powers better navigation (value: smoother traffic flow) 

• Which enables dynamic rerouting (value: improved throughput) 

• Which sets the foundation for warehouse-wide orchestration 

Your Move: 

• Start by deploying AI in narrowly scoped tasks with clear business metrics 

• Use each win to justify the next step up the ladder 

• Ask your vendors to show how each AI feature delivers ROI today 

Prioritize Physical AI That Works in Your Real Environment 

"Physical AI" was another core theme. At Locus, AI is embodied in the robots, adapting on the fly to unexpected changes in the warehouse. 

Mendez put it plainly: “This adaptability is key for brownfield sites. AI can navigate noise, blind spots, even shifts in sunlight that affect sensors." 

Your Move: 

• Assess how adaptable your current tech stack is to unexpected inputs (like traffic, changes in lighting, or congestion) 

• Consider solutions that have been field-tested in brownfield warehouses, and not just purpose-built demos 

Use AI to Orchestrate Labor, Not Just Machines 

AI isn’t just about smarter robots. It’s about smarter collaboration. 

One of the most direct examples of this at Locus is system-directed labor. At the end of each pick, the robot tells the associate where to go next, which reduces decision fatigue, boosts productivity, and helps balance labor across the floor. 

“It’s team-based optimization,” Mendez explained. “We’re orchestrating people and robots together." 

Your Move: 

• Look for ways to integrate labor guidance into your AI roadmap 

• Track metrics like walking time, idle time, and training time before/after rollout 

Make Trust and Explainability Non-Negotiable 

The more AI influences decisions, the more critical it becomes for that AI to be explainable. 

“We want our customers to trust the system,” Mendez said. “That means being able to explain what the AI is doing, why, and how it’s making those decisions." 

Locus AI is designed to be interpretable, externally explainable, and ultimately self-explainable. Imagine a future where bots give real-time commentary: "Rerouting due to congestion near Aisle 4." 

Your Move: 

• Ask how your AI vendors enable interpretability for your team 

• Consider how explainability could shorten training time or speed up response during peak 

Leverage Real-World Data at Scale 

Finally, Oscar emphasized what makes Locus’ AI engine powerful: volume and quality of data. 

• 30 GB per second of data from 15,000+ bots 

• 100,000+ human-robot interactions across 350+ cities 

• 5+ billion units picked and analyzed 

This depth of real-world, live warehouse data is what allows the AI to adapt and improve rapidly. The added benefit of using real warehouse data is better results, as synthetic or small data sets can lead to erroneous conclusions.  

Your Move: 

• Ask your partners what data their AI is trained on: simulation or real-world picks? 

• Look for a track record of AI improving over time with scale 

The Warehouse AI Bottom Line: Don’t Wait for the Future 

The best part about this playbook? You don’t have to wait years for the promise of AI to pay off. Locus is proving that it can deliver real results right now. 

“Each step along the way should deliver ROI,” Mendez said. “That’s how you know it’s working.” 

Want to hear the full breakdown from Oscar Mendez himself? Listen to our full conversation on Warehouse Automation Matters. It’s packed with ideas you can apply immediately. 

This summer, Locus Robotics welcomed a dynamic group of interns across departments from engineering and IT to marketing, HR, and sustainability. As one of those interns, I had the privilege to not only contribute to exciting projects but also to capture the voices of my fellow interns and share what made this experience so impactful.  

From day one, the culture at Locus stood out as welcoming, focused, and goal-oriented. Whether you were designing accessories for robots, streamlining onboarding processes, or building communication platforms, every intern was allowed to make a real impact.  

Real Projects, Real Impact  

Will Kupris, an IT Operations intern, described a pivotal moment when he collaborated with multiple departments to improve the sales order process. “I got to directly involve myself with some high-level stakeholders,” he said. “That’s where I felt like more than an intern.”  

Julian Henry, who worked in Enterprise, Security, Risk, and Compliance, helped build a SharePoint site to centralize security resources and developed a third-party risk management procedure. “It helps streamline our solution acquisition process,” he explained, “and how we review the security of any vendor that we're taking on.”  

Mechanical Engineering Intern Abi Dixon designed an accessory for Locus Vector to meet customer needs. “This is something that customers have been asking for and expressed would be useful, and so the CCE department is answering those pleas with this solution,” she said.   

Learning Through Collaboration  

Interns consistently mentioned the collaborative spirit at Locus. “It feels like we're all collaborating to achieve one common goal, like a championship,” Kupris said, comparing the team culture to a sports team. “We're all just trying to improve the company and make things go more efficiently.”  

UX Design Intern Jenna Sorror echoed this, saying how her work on the Site Targets tool helped stakeholders visualize warehouse performance. “Collaborating with the marketing team helped me learn how branding and illustrations are adapted and curated to different audiences, and how UX decisions work in tandem with the marketing team,” said Sorror.  

For many, mentorship played a key role. Jennifer Kaur, a Global Talent Acquisition Intern, credited her manager, Catherine DiMartino, for inspiring her. “Whether it was shadowing her for recruiter screens or seeing what her day-to-day looked like, she showed me the realms of talent acquisition, and it really solidified my passion for it.” Kaur shared.  

Similarly, Haris Custovic, who interned in HR, found meaning in leading onboarding sessions, noting that “helping a new hire settle into their role made me realize I was making an impact.” He also praised Annie Giovanetti, the Senior HR Generalist, for being “a great mentor and supporting me throughout my internship since day one.”  

Growth Beyond the Desk  

Along with the technical skills that interns gained, they grew personally and professionally. Carissa Miller, who worked on ESG initiatives, said, “It was a very informative internship, and every single day I learned something new, and it was very applicable to what I would be doing in the real world and in a career in ESG and sustainability.”  

Brenda Asevedo, an Accounting Intern, discovered the scope of her field. “I didn't have a super great understanding of what the industry is actually like,” she admitted. “Now working here all summer, I've really realized all the different types of accounting you can go into, and that there's so many different options for me in my future.”  

Mechanical Engineering Intern Jessica Hart encouraged future interns to take ownership. “Don’t be afraid to take ownership of your projects and drive them forward,” she advised. “As interns, we are typically given tasks but take the time to see how those tasks fit into the bigger picture and how you can further your impact.”  

Perks and Pick-Me-Ups  

Of course, no internship is complete without a few perks, and the espresso machine was a favorite among many, as nothing beats a fresh cup of coffee to kickstart your day. Others loved the daily food stipend, the endless snack fridges, and especially the weekly ice cream truck.  

Data Science Intern Ryan Bentley shared, “I'd have to say my favorite freebie and perk would probably be the ice cream truck on Thursdays. Getting that sweet treat after a long day was really nice.”  

These little pick-me-ups helped interns recharge and connect during their internships.  

Final Thoughts  

Interning at Locus Robotics is not just about learning; it’s also about contributing, growing, and creating lasting relationships. As I reflect on my experience creating marketing content, I feel proud of the work we've accomplished and the insights we've gained. 

To future interns, I advise that you come with curiosity, stay open-minded, and don’t hesitate to ask questions. At Locus, you’ll find a supportive team and a work environment where your contributions truly matter. 

BIO: 

Chris Barrett is a Digital Media and Marketing Support Intern at Locus Robotics, where he contributes to the company’s marketing strategy through the development of LinkedIn carousel posts, production of video content showcasing Locus’s innovative automation technology, and promotion of the company’s internship program. Drawing on a foundation in the warehouse and 3PL industry as well as digital and product marketing, Barrett uses his industry knowledge and creative expertise to highlight Locus’s proven results and customer impact. Outside of work, Barrett enjoys traveling, photography, spending time with family and friends, and staying active through watching and playing sports. 

Peak season in warehousing is about increased volume and orders, but for smart warehouses, it’s also about velocity, variability, and visibility. As Austin Feagins of Staci Americas put it on the “Warehouse Automation Matters” podcast, “The day we’re coming through the current peak is the day we need to start preparing for the upcoming.” That mindset is what separates reactive fulfillment from resilient warehouse operations. 

This year, warehouses that succeed won’t be the ones with the most labor or the newest tech, but the ones with the best planning. Here’s how to start. 

Treat Peak Like a Year-Round Warehouse Strategy 

If planning only begins in Q4, you’re already behind, so the most effective warehouses treat peak like a 12-month cycle with an opportunity to learn, adjust, and iterate every year. 

What to do now: 

• Review last year’s operational pain points: not just order volume, but throughput, labor churn, and error rates 

• Build peak-specific process maps that highlight handoffs, dependencies, and likely bottlenecks 

• Use post-peak data as your starting point, not an afterthought 

Feagins advises teams to “really think about as many factors that could push your plans out and just try and be prepared to handle those.” That means building in buffers – not just in labor, but in inventory, equipment, and training. 

Model Volume and Build for Flexibility 

Peak season isn’t just “more orders.” It’s more items per order, more picking complexity, and higher expectations. Demand can double or triple overnight, but SLAs stay the same. 

That’s why warehouse modeling isn’t optional. It’s how you anticipate volume spikes, map capacity limits, and pressure-test workflows before you’re in the thick of it. 

What to do now: 

• Run simulations using last year’s peak data as a baseline 

• Identify threshold points where pick paths break down or packing areas back up 

• Plan contingency shifts, zone expansions, or temporary automation support 

In 2024, Locus Robots picked over 500 million items during peak, which was a 40% increase over the previous year, but the real takeaway isn’t the number. It’s that warehouses prepared for that scale ahead of time by automating year-round instead of waiting until peak to do so.  

Simplify Training for Seasonal Warehouse Teams 

Seasonal workers are essential, but short training windows often mean long learning curves. The best preparation is simplicity. 

As Feagins said, “In an ideal world, I would love to teach somebody in under 30 seconds how they’re going to do their job for the day.” That’s where intuitive tech, clear SOPs, and automation designed with humans in mind come in. 

What to do now: 

• Audit training materials: are they video-based, step-by-step, and easy to follow? 

• Choose tech platforms that reduce cognitive load instead of adding to it 

• Use gamification or visual cues to drive speed and engagement 

Even small tweaks like on-device instructions or color-coded pick zones can pay big dividends during crunch time. 

Automate What Drains Your Team Most 

Peak stress isn’t just about order spikes. It’s about repetitive, physically demanding tasks that wear down your workforce. The average Locus Robot traveled 3.8 million miles last year during peak, which is an equivalent of 152 times around the Earth — a distance those warehouse teams didn’t have to walk. 

Warehouse automation, like autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) from Locus, absorbs the physical work of traveling that distance and allows your workers to mainly stay in one place, which improves productivity and preserves your people. 

What to do now: 

• Identify high-walk or high-fatigue workflows 

• Consider increasing your AMR fleet for peak orders to help out your workers 

• Free up skilled labor to handle exception orders, returns, or complex fulfillment tasks 

And don’t forget the morale factor. As Feagins noted, gamification features in automation platforms, like friendly pick competitions, can turn peak season from a grind into a game. 

Ask Now, Not Later 

If you’re still evaluating options, don’t wait. “Ask now and start reaching out to these vendors,” Feagins advised. It doesn’t have to be a massive overhaul to make a meaningful difference. Sometimes, a single workflow change or a targeted warehouse automation rollout is enough to tip the balance. 

Whether you’re preparing for your first peak with automation or refining your tenth, the message is the same: Plan early, plan often, and plan smart. 

Want more insights from Austin Feagins? 

Catch the full episode of “Warehouse Automation Matters” to hear how Staci Americas approaches peak with a mix of planning, people, and technology that keeps operations moving, no matter how intense the surge. 

For years, warehouse management systems (WMS) have functioned like mission control in that they’re powerful and essential, but often inflexible and intimidating to operate. Customizing them required long development cycles, specialized expertise, and a willingness to take on technical debt that could derail upgrades down the line. For many warehouse leaders, that meant making do with “good enough” systems, even when their operations were evolving in real time, but that’s no longer sustainable. 

In a recent episode of Warehouse Automation Matters, I spoke with Bryan Batchelder and Dave Castanon of Datex about how low-code application platforms (LCAPs) are fundamentally shifting what’s possible in the warehouse, and why they’re no longer just a future trend, but a present-day necessity. 

The Legacy WMS Trap: Stable, But Stagnant 

As Castanon explained, many operations are still stuck on legacy systems because they’ve been reliable until now. 

“If it’s not broke, don’t fix it,” is a mindset many warehouses adopt, especially when older systems have supported pallet-based fulfillment for years without major issues, but the world has changed. With the e-commerce boom and growing demand for same-day or next-day delivery, warehouses can’t afford the limitations of systems designed for slower, less complex workflows. 

Customers expect speed and precision, and warehouse leaders are under pressure to adapt without hiring exponentially more labor. 

“Warehouses are now expected to ship smaller packages faster, connect to shopping carts, do rate shopping, and support automation like Locus Robotics,” Castanon said. “That shift is what’s driving the urgency to modernize.” 

What Low-Code Really Means and Why It’s Not a Trend 

Low-code platforms give users the ability to build, adjust, and personalize their systems without needing to touch the core codebase. As Batchelder described, it’s like working with LEGO bricks that are modular, intuitive, and tailored to the task at hand. 

Historically, customizing a WMS meant navigating a dense, developer-heavy interface, which is something that Batchelder compared to sitting at the cockpit of a 747. “It was intimidating,” he said. “Even for experienced users.” 

Datex flipped that model with Datex Studio, giving warehouse teams a drag-and-drop UI, configurable workflows, and a flexible architecture that supports rapid iteration. Want to add a new field? Rearrange a screen? Change how orders are released or routed? It’s all possible without waiting months for a development cycle or falling off the vendor’s upgrade path. 

Castanon emphasized that LCAP is becoming foundational for warehouse management success. “Microsoft, SAP, and Salesforce are all building low-code platforms. It’s not just for startups anymore. This is the next evolution of enterprise software.” 

Real-World Example: EVERSANA’s Seamless Integration with Locus 

One of the most compelling use cases discussed in the episode was EVERSANA, a major pharmaceutical 3PL that recently integrated Locus Origin and Vector robots into its operation. 

With Datex Studio’s LCAP, EVERSANA was able to support complex, serialized pharmaceutical fulfillment while integrating seamlessly with Locus’s robotics system. The teams jointly created custom API endpoints to validate serialized data and implement advanced countback workflows, all within a few configuration steps. 

“Locus ONE allows for embedded calls to custom endpoints as part of its workflows,” Bryan explained. “And because we could quickly spin up those endpoints in Datex Studio, the entire integration was refreshingly smooth.” 

What stood out for EVERSANA was the speed because the integration didn’t require a complete overhaul or months of development. Instead, it worked out of the box, with custom tweaks layered on top. 

Why LCAP Is a Strategic Advantage and Not Just a Technical One 

One of the most powerful insights Batchelder shared was how LCAP reshapes the ROI conversation. 

In a traditional WMS, making even minor changes might require significant investment and often, the benefits weren’t worth the cost, but with low-code, that equation shifts. “The ROI math changes,” he said. “You can justify improvements you previously would’ve skipped. And when you stack those up, you get real transformation.” 

In some cases, customers are using Datex Studio to expand into entirely new lines of business. One client used it to build a port and vessel management system alongside their WMS, which blurs the lines between warehouse software and broader enterprise tools. 

It’s not just about internal gains, either, as LCAP’s flexibility is a selling point. “More than one customer has told us their win rate went up because they could say yes to custom requests from prospects,” Batchelder noted. 

For 3PLs, Flexibility Isn’t Optional Anymore 

Many third-party logistics providers (3PLs) operate multiple business models under one roof: e-commerce, wholesale, pharma, hazmat, and more. A traditional WMS forces users into one-size-fits-all interfaces or bloated systems where everyone sees every option, whether they need it or not. 

With LCAP, users only see what they need. One associate might operate in a “Tesla-like” experience, while another handles a totally different workflow just a few feet away. 

That modularity is where the real value lies, especially for 3PLs trying to differentiate in a crowded market. “We haven’t met a 3PL yet that isn’t juggling multiple workflows,” Castanon said. “LCAP lets them tailor each one without building separate systems.” 

Where It’s All Going 

Going forward, Batchelder sees even greater opportunities with generative AI. Datex Studio’s LCAP already supports TypeScript, and because AI models are strong in that language, even non-developers can work with AI coding agents to configure complex logic. 

Meanwhile, the pressure on warehouses to do more with less isn’t going away. From tighter SLAs to denser inventory to seasonal surges, the need for flexibility is only going to grow. 

Warehouse managers who want to stay ahead need tools that adapt as fast as their business does and LCAP is one of those tools that is proving its value not just in theory, but in live, high-performance environments. 

Don’t Miss the Inflection Point 

If your warehouse is still running on a rigid WMS, now is the time to re-evaluate. Low-code platforms like Datex Studio offer a way to modernize without overhauling and to integrate seamlessly with technologies like Locus Robotics that improve warehouse fulfillment. 

LCAP is an operational shift that enables warehouses to scale, adapt, and lead. 

Want to hear more about how low-code is transforming warehouse management? Listen to the full episode of Warehouse Automation Matters featuring Datex’s Bryan Batchelder and Dave Castanon.