The major American materials handling trade show, ProMat, wrapped up in Chicago last week, and while Forkliftaction News was not able to attend, we did catch up with many of the major participants and share their observations in our report this week.
The key issues for all participants in the North American market seem to be unchanged from a year ago - concerns about labour shortages, supply chain disruptions, and a growing focus on safety and the environment.
Those factors have combined to further propel the thrust towards automation - and this was evident in the plethora of new solutions on show in Chicago.
It looks like the adoption of robotic solutions - either as stand-alones or combined with traditional moving equipment - is no longer a question of 'if', but rather 'when'. This is also prompting debate about 'how' - and we see this as a major opportunity for logistics/materials handling consultants and integrators while it also promotes the need for interoperability (the ability of components to work together seamlessly).