Logistics Manager Magazine

For years, warehouse digitalisation has focused on systems that register transactions, manage inventory and coordinate material flow. Yet, one crucial part of day-to-day operations has remained largely outside the digital picture: what is actually happening physically on the warehouse floor between system events. A pallet may be delayed for several minutes before a scanner records the next process step. A route may become congested long before throughput indicators reveal a problem.

Packaging and load optimisation were especially prominent at IntraLogisteX 2026, and not just within the Sustainable Supply Chain Exhibition. Sealed Air demonstrated ProPad Mini, ProPad Horizontal and AUTOBAG systems, while also running an interactive packaging-speed challenge on the stand.

Infrastructure and enabling technologies also had a stronger presence at IntraLogisteX 2026. PULS discussed decentralised FIEPOS field power supplies and industrial wireless charging via Wiferion for automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), presenting both as part of a wider conversation around robust power architectures and simpler charging concepts for mobile systems.

One of the clearest shifts at this year’s IntraLogisteX was in the role of software, artificial intelligence and execution platforms. Much of the event pointed away from wholesale systems replacement and towards modular improvement on top of existing infrastructure. This reflects a broader industry move towards enhancing, rather than replacing, existing warehouse environments. That same logic came through strongly in the conference programme.

The physical automation on display at IntraLogisteX 2026, which took place on 18-19 March, was increasingly framed through adaptability and integration rather than engineering spectacle alone. KNAPP presented a portfolio spanning its AeroBot rack-climbing bot, Pick-it-Easy Robot fulfilment system, Evo Shuttle storage system, Open Shuttle autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) and KiSoft software suite, with particular emphasis on the depth of its integrated automation and software stack.

IntraLogisteX 2026 suggested a sector moving beyond automation hype and towards something harder, and more useful: systems, software and sustainability strategies that can be implemented, integrated and justified in the real world. Bringing together IntraLogisteX, Robotics and Automation, the Sustainable Supply Chain Exhibition and Fulfilment & Last Mile Expo, the event combined around 200 exhibitors, more than 60 conference sessions and some 10,000 visitors across the two days.

The winners of Robotics & Automation Awards 2026 were announced on 18 March at the NEC Birmingham, with the ceremony taking place live on the show floor during day one of the co-located IntraLogisteX event platform. Staged within the Robotics & Automation Theatre, the awards sat at the centre of a wider exhibition bringing together intralogistics, robotics, sustainability and fulfilment under one roof. The 2026 format also marked an important change for the programme.

How real-time IoT tracking and smart reusable packaging from Peak Technologies and Sensolus is helping Whitecroft Lighting reduce waste, improve logistics visibility and scale its circular economy ambitions. Whitecroft Lighting, part of the Fagerhult Group, is a leading provider of smart and sustainable lighting solutions.

For many years, digitalisation in logistics has focused on automation, efficiency and visibility. Warehouse management systems, transport platforms and control towers have helped organisations standardise processes, increase throughput and gain transparency across increasingly complex networks.

Japanese company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has taken a 15% stake in Singapore food cold chain logistics company, Commonwealth Kokubu Logistics (CKL). A signing ceremony took place in Tokyo on 9 December. Singapore-headquartered food conglomerate Commonwealth Capital Pte is the majority shareholder of CKL post transaction, with a 51% stake. Japanese food distribution company Kokubu Group has a 34% stake in CKL, with remainder owned by MOL.