AMRs go mainstream – from point solutions to fleet operations

Autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) are now the fastest-expanding slice of intralogistics automation. Globally, AMR revenues were valued around USD 2.8 billion in 2024 and continue to accelerate on double-digit trajectories, led by e-commerce fulfillment and brownfield retrofits where robots can share space with people. Inside Europe’s warehouses, the big story is interoperability: in January 2025 a new version of the VDA 5050 interface – a common ‘language’ between mobile robots and fleet management systems – was published, making it simpler to run mixed fleets from different vendors on one traffic and mission-control layer. Alongside this, the updated ISO 10218 industrial robot safety standards released in 2025 clarify responsibilities between robot makers and system integrators, smoothing conformity assessment for projects that combine mobile bases with robotic arms.

Safety-by-design – the standard that underpins driverless trucks and tuggers

For autonomous forklifts, tuggers and carts, Europe leans on ISO 3691-4 – the safety rulebook for driverless industrial trucks, including AMRs and AGVs. It sets the baseline for speed limits, braking, detection and validation of safety functions, and it is now widely referenced in EU conformity documentation for in-warehouse vehicles. This standardization matters because material-handling vehicles are among the most hazardous equipment in workplaces such as warehouses and factories; managing risk through engineered controls is a priority for inspectors and insurers alike.

Agentic AI arrives on the floor – with European guardrails

A new wave of ‘agentic’ AI is emerging in logistics – systems that can break down high-level goals into subtasks, re-plan when faced with obstacles and coordinate with other agents. In Europe, deployment must track the staged obligations of the EU AI Act. The law entered into force on 1 August 2024; its first bans on certain practices began applying on 2 February 2025, and the main compliance regime for high-risk AI systems becomes applicable on 2 August 2026. Regulators also confirmed in July 2025 that there will be no delay to the legal timeline, an important planning assumption for operators embedding AI into safety-related control or workforce management. In practice, this means projects pairing AMRs with agentic task-planning software need documented risk management, data governance and human oversight from the outset.

Inventory intelligence – drones and computer vision mature

Indoor drones for automatic cycle counts are moving from after-hours flights to co-working alongside staff, thanks to more robust obstacle detection and indoor positioning. One large European retailer reported operating more than 250 inventory drones across dozens of warehouses in nine countries by 2024, illustrating how aerial robots can raise stock accuracy and reduce working-at-height risks. The broader warehouse drone systems market is also growing quickly worldwide, reflecting a shift from manual counts to always-on inventory intelligence.

Connectivity and edge – why private 5G is entering the bill of materials

As fleets scale, reliable wireless becomes a strategic dependency. The EU’s 5G Observatory tracks rapid expansion of both public and private 5G across the bloc, with the Commission’s digital targets pushing toward pervasive coverage by 2030. Sector reports note that Europe’s 5G migration continues to free up spectrum and improve energy efficiency – a boon for dense robot traffic, machine vision and real-time digital twins that depend on low-latency links. Private 5G, often paired with on-premise edge computing, is therefore entering more RFPs for greenfield facilities and high-throughput brownfields where Wi-Fi contention is a bottleneck.

Regulatory horizon – what integrators must build for now

Two EU-level instruments are shaping procurement and engineering checklists. First, the Machinery Regulation 2023/1230 – which replaces the Machinery Directive – becomes applicable on 20 January 2027, with new provisions around digital documentation, cybersecurity for safety-related control systems and clearer roles in the supply chain. Warehouse robotics projects signed today will still be in service when these rules bite, so future-proofing is prudent. Second, the AI Act’s phased obligations require mapping which software modules fall into ‘high-risk’ scope and designing human oversight and post-market monitoring into the system lifecycle – particularly relevant for autonomous vehicles and agentic orchestration engines that influence worker safety or product quality.

From pilots to networked autonomy – the operating model shift

Analysts caution that although 2025 opened strongly for warehouse automation, macro uncertainty still affects timing of large projects. The direction of travel is clear, however: multi-site rollouts, standardized interfaces such as VDA 5050 to tame heterogenous fleets, and AI-enhanced orchestration that coordinates AMRs, conveyors and goods-to-person stations as one system of systems. For operators, the practical to-do list now typically includes updating risk assessments to ISO 3691-4 and ISO 10218, validating wireless coverage for dense robot traffic, and drafting AI Act conformity plans for any agentic software components in the safety chain. The European market context – steady demand growth, persistent hiring challenges and a tight regulatory cadence – suggests this transition will continue gathering speed through 2026 and beyond.

Key takeaways for 2025 projects

• AMRs and autonomous forklifts are scaling, helped by common interfaces and updated safety standards.
• Agentic AI is viable in warehouses, but deployments must align with AI Act milestones in 2025 and 2026.
• Inventory drones and computer vision are moving into day-shift operations, improving accuracy and ergonomics.
• Private 5G and edge computing are becoming critical enablers for reliable, low-latency robot fleets.

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Pharmaceutical logistics is expanding just as quickly. Sector forecasts see the global pharma cold chain surpassing USD 65 billion during 2025, driven by stricter handling standards for advanced therapies that must move between –70 °C and controlled-room-temperature windows without incident.

Surging Demand Across Pharma and Perishables

The post-pandemic rebound in elective healthcare, combined with a steady rise in biologics approvals, means more medicines require the 2 °C–8 °C band or below. On the food side, European consumers are buying record quantities of chilled ready meals and imported tropical fruit, with much of that demand fulfilled through online grocery platforms. Vacancy for modern cold storage in core hubs remains low and, according to brokerage briefings, is still several percentage points tighter than general industrial space despite a modest rise in 2024. Operators therefore face both a capacity crunch and mounting service-level expectations from shippers who want granular temperature visibility and 24/7 release options.

Flagship Facilities Coming Online in 2025

Developers and third-party logistics providers in Europe are responding with a wave of high-spec projects:

DHL Florstadt 4 (Germany) – Opened in May, the climate-neutral unit adds 30,000 m² and lifts campus capacity past 140,000 pallet positions. It offers modular zones down to –70 °C, integrated clean-rooms and a DGNB Gold sustainability rating, positioning Frankfurt’s hinterland as a new continental pharma hub.

Lineage Vejle Expansion (Denmark) – The Nordic specialist added 6,000 m², taking the site to 93,500 pallet places with automated handling and energy-optimised refrigeration, strengthening north-south food corridors between Aarhus and Hamburg.

Maersk Rotterdam Cold Store (Netherlands) – February saw the first cargo arrive at a 35,000 m² BREEAM-Excellent warehouse offering 34,000 pallet slots, bonded status, and an in-house veterinary checkpoint to speed fruit, meat, and pharma flows.

Network M&A – UPS closed its January purchase of Frigo-Trans and BPL, adding pan-European warehousing that spans cryogenic –196 °C through ambient, and extending UPS Healthcare’s footprint to 17 million ft² of GDP-compliant space worldwide.

Collectively, these projects inject more than 100,000 new pallet positions in 2025 alone and illustrate how automation, multi-temperature zoning, and proximity to seaport or airport gateways are becoming standard design criteria.

Energy-Efficiency Tech Moves Centre Stage

Cold warehouses consume roughly 25 kWh per square foot each year—four to five times the draw of a standard shed—making energy the single largest operating cost line. In response, operators are accelerating green retrofits and specifying low-carbon plants on new builds:

DHL’s Florstadt site runs on rooftop PV, solar-thermal hot-water panels, and air-source heat pumps tied into a smart building-management system.

Star Refrigeration’s recent CO₂ installation in Glasgow demonstrates that natural-refrigerant systems can slash energy use by 49.5 % versus UK best-practice benchmarks, while also future-proofing against F-gas phase-downs.

Such upgrades not only cut emissions but also help tenants meet scope-3 carbon-reporting duties now embedded in many procurement scorecards.

Regulatory Drivers: GDP, F-Gas, and the Energy Efficiency Directive

Compliance, not just commerce, is steering this investment cycle. EU Good Distribution Practice (GDP) guidelines, which guarantee product integrity “at all times,” lost their pandemic certificate extensions at the end of 2024, meaning inspectors are again auditing sites on-premise. Facilities, therefore, need validated temperature mapping, traceability systems, and qualified staff before they can serve licensed medicines.

Environmental policy is equally pivotal. The revised F-Gas Regulation cuts refrigerant quotas sharply from 2025 and introduces an export ban for RACHP equipment using gases with global-warming potential (GWP) ≥ 1000, accelerating the switch to CO₂, ammonia, and hydrocarbons. Parallel to this, the updated Energy Efficiency Directive—whose transposition deadline falls on 11 October 2025 – enshrines an “energy efficiency first” principle and obliges Member States to prioritise high-efficiency solutions when permitting industrial builds. Developers, therefore, face a dual mandate: install low-GWP refrigerants and prove audited energy-management plans, or risk stranded assets.

Market Outlook and Capacity Tightness

Even with the 2025 construction burst, analysts warn of continued imbalance. European cold-chain revenues may be growing at double-digit rates, but new supply is still modest relative to demand and is concentrated in tier-one regions. Food retailers and pharma producers competing for the same temperature bands are already locking in multi-year deals to secure space ahead of harvest peaks, new drug launches, and the next e-grocery promotion cycle. That pre-commitment trend, alongside stricter compliance deadlines, should keep rental growth resilient, even as conventional dry warehouses see a slight tenant-favourable shift. Operators able to blend GDP-certified handling, low-carbon engineering, and pan-European reach, therefore, stand to capture a disproportionate share in the years ahead.

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Warehouse Design

In warehousing logistics, layout features such as narrow corridors, closely packed and high shelving, and hidden cavities increase fire safety risks. For instance, narrow corridors and aisles restrict air circulation which causes heat to become trapped, raises the ambient temperature, and increases the risk of fire.

Similarly, shelving units placed closely together with minimal gaps can restrict vertical airflow and trap heat. Additionally, when shelving units have solid sides or backs instead of open designs, they further impede the escape of heat. With high shelving, even those with open spacing, the issue becomes more pronounced once a fire starts, as it can facilitate the spread of flames vertically.

Furthermore, hidden voids or cavities within walls and ceilings can act as concealed pathways that allow fire to travel undetected. In warehouses, which often feature vast ceiling expanses to accommodate storage needs, these voids above the ceilings can be much larger, which enables fire to spread horizontally over extensive areas. Such extensive concealed spaces may also exist beneath raised floors, inside hollow structural columns, and behind insulation panels or cladding systems.

Excessive Inventory

When excessive inventory is packed into an area, the high concentration of materials provides ample fuel for an intense fire. Moreover, with ample inventory, shelves can become overloaded, and overstressed structures are more likely to collapse when heat further weakens their integrity. Such collapses can scatter burning materials across a larger area and intensify the fire.

Flammable Materials

Warehouses often store a wide range of combustible materials such as paper, plastics, synthetics, and products used in the textile industry. For instance, paper products are highly flammable because they have a fibrous structure that allows air to easily flow between fibers and feed the flames. Similarly, textiles like clothing and upholstery catch fire quickly. Natural fibers such as cotton have a loose, airy structure which allows oxygen to circulate and fuel combustion. Synthetic fibers like polyester contain petroleum-based compounds which burn at high temperatures and release additional flammable gases that further intensify the fire.

Plastics and synthetic materials, used extensively in products and packaging, present another risk. They tend to melt and drip when burning which can spread the fire to other areas. Additionally, rubber products, frequently stored in warehouses as tires, mats, or industrial components, pose a fire risk. Rubber is not only highly flammable but its structure allows it to retain significant amounts of heat. Once it catches fire, rubber burns intensely, is difficult to extinguish, and can re-ignite even after the initial flames are put out.

Lastly, warehouses that store organic materials such as grains and feed face risks from spontaneous combustion. These materials naturally release heat during decomposition and when stored in large piles with limited ventilation, this heat can build up.

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Private Warehousing

Private warehouses are typically owned and operated by large manufacturers, retailers, or wholesalers for storing their own goods. However, freight forwarders can also establish and manage their private warehouses which allows for complete control over their operations, including inventory management, storage space utilization, and distribution timings. Although this option requires a substantial initial investment and entails ongoing operational costs, it can prove beneficial for freight forwarders that manage high volumes of goods. With a private warehouse, logistics companies can provide their clients with dedicated storage space and efficient inventory management, thus enhancing their service offerings.

Bonded Warehouses

These government-regulated facilities store imported goods until customs duties are paid. Bonded warehouses are especially beneficial for businesses dealing with international freight forwarding. They allow companies to defer the payment of customs duties until the goods are sold or leave the warehouse, providing a distinct cash flow advantage.

Cross-Docking Warehousing

At cross-docking warehouses, incoming goods are transferred directly onto outbound trucks with minimal or no storage in between. This option is well-suited to perishable goods or products that require swift transportation. Cross-docking significantly reduces storage time and costs while ensuring quick delivery.

In addition, cross-docking can reduce labor costs as there is less need for staff to sort and store products. This efficiency extends to transportation resources, as the need for multiple trips is reduced due to the quick transfer of goods onto outbound vehicles.

Distribution Warehouses

Distribution warehouses are used for storing goods before they are shipped to retailers or end consumers. These warehouses are often strategically located near key transport hubs in Europe, which might include ports, railway stations, or other areas with good highway connectivity. This strategic placement facilitates the speedy delivery of goods across various markets. Moreover, freight forwarders can choose a distribution warehouse based on its proximity to the markets where the products are to be sold, thus ensuring faster deliveries.

Furthermore, distribution warehouses often provide added services such as order processing, picking and packing, and product labelling, all of which contribute to enhancing the overall efficiency of logistics operations.

Consolidation Warehousing

This type of warehousing is beneficial for logistics companies that manage goods from multiple clients and are destined for similar locations. By combining these individual small shipments into a larger one, consolidation warehouses enable forwarders to tap into the benefits of economies of scale, like reducing shipping costs per unit and improving operational efficiency. Plus, fewer separate shipments contribute to eco-friendly logistics operations and a lower carbon footprint.

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The Consequences of Excessive Inventory

In the warehousing context, excessive inventory involves overstocking goods beyond demand requirements. This results in storage constraints as well as high warehousing costs due to additional handling and associated labor costs. For freight forwarders, an overstocked warehouse could mean a limitation on the number of goods that can be accommodated before their forwarding to the final destination. Furthermore, the inflation in warehousing costs often trickles down to the freight forwarders, thereby escalating the total logistics costs.

Waiting Time

Any idle time in warehouse operations, whether involving workers or machinery, constitutes waiting time. This idle time generates delays that affect freight forwarders’ ability to meet delivery deadlines. Delayed forwarding timelines could result in penalties and detrimental effects on the forwarders’ market reputation.

The Pitfalls of Inefficient Transportation

Inefficient transportation within the warehouse involves unnecessary or inefficient movements of goods. This could mean moving items multiple times or across unnecessarily long distances. Such inefficient practices can lead to delays in the loading and unloading processes. Such delays directly impact freight forwarders by slowing their operations and potentially affecting their ability to meet delivery deadlines. Additionally, the risk of goods damage due to these practices could lead to financial losses and customer dissatisfaction for logistics providers.

The Drain of Unnecessary Motion

Unnecessary motion in a warehouse setting refers to the excess movements by workers, such as excessive bending, walking, or lifting. This form of waste leads to inefficiencies because time and energy that could be directed towards more productive tasks get wasted on unnecessary movement. Moreover, repetitive or excessive bending and lifting can result in health and safety issues for warehouse staff. For freight forwarders, these issues could translate into increased costs due to workers’ compensation claims, productivity losses, and potential staffing shortages due to injury-related absences.

The Price of Defects

Defects in warehousing primarily include errors in picking, packing, and shipping, along with damaged goods. Such mistakes increase costs due to the requirement of returns, packaging, and reshipping. Furthermore, these errors negatively impact customer satisfaction, damaging the reputation of freight forwarders.

The Downside of Over-processing

Over-processing in a warehouse refers to performing more work or more complex processes than necessary. This form of waste can cause unnecessary delays in preparing goods for transport. It directly affects freight forwarders by slowing their operations and increasing the risk of errors in order fulfillment. Additionally, the usage of high-tech machinery for simple tasks can inflate warehousing costs, which could increase the charges for freight forwarders.

This inefficiency encompasses underutilization of both human and material resources. On the human side, this could mean having skilled workers performing routine tasks below their skill level, which leads to wasted potential and lower productivity. On the material side, underutilization can involve underusing warehouse space or equipment. For forwarders, underutilized warehouse space could mean fewer goods being stored and forwarded, affecting their overall throughput.

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Why Are Depots Facing Excess

Depot managers point to the fact that container volume has skyrocketed to the extent that they are unable to accept new customers. Whatever was shipped in and out before is stuck. One reason for the excess of containers is that the shipping peak season, typically starting mid-August, did not happen in 2022. Retailers report high levels of inventory and are cautious about overstocking. While cargo is shipped on time now, there is a slowdown in demand, mainly due to rising inflation.

The onset of the pandemic caused a spike in consumer spending, leaving carriers struggling with insufficient capacity. Many retailers began ordering shipments ahead of time in an attempt to avoid delays and low inventory levels. Yet, now the majority of medium-sized and small businesses are faced with a decline in demand due to consumer spending shifting back to services, combined with inflation.

At the same time, experts point out that once inventories exhaust across Europe and the U.S., businesses will start ordering again, with a corresponding increase in demand for containers. While demand is unlikely to reach maximum Covid-19 levels, we are likely to witness a long-term upward trend.

How Are Depots and Shippers Coping with Excess Container Capacity

To deal with the problem of tightly packed depots, some port service providers like the Port of Houston Authority began to charge fees for containers lying idle in terminals. To facilitate cargo movement, the dwell fee ($45 per unit/day/ will be levied on containers held in the port for 8 days or longer.

Shippers are also faced with excess capacity and are increasingly giving containers away to alleviate pressure on overcrowded depots. As economic and geopolitical risks constrain consumption and drag down demand for containers, more and more carriers either cancel or opt for blank sailings. Additionally, some shippers have been forced to resort to measures like dropping slot capacities, off-hiring smaller ships, and reducing available tonnage on major routes. Some carriers have also chosen to diversify their operations outside the shipping industry, while others are investing their surplus cash across the supply chain. Diversification is mainly done to spread and minimize financial risk.

What Can Be Done to Resolve Excess Capacity

Carriers can take a number of different approaches to excess capacities, such as finding alternative uses for containers, implementing scrappage schemes for older units, off-hiring leased units, as well as slowing down on new unit orders.

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1. Cold Storage

Cold storage warehouses are used to keep temperature-sensitive and perishable goods at a specific temperature. They enable cosmetics, artwork, medicines, plants, and foods to have longer lives and maintain their quality and integrity. The types of items that require cold storage include:

• Aircraft components
• Hides, wool, fur, and other organic textiles
• Disinfectants and reagents
• Candles
• Artwork and books, including film canisters, paintings, and historical documents
• IVs, blood samples, vaccines, medicines, and certain dental materials
• Perishable nutrient products
• Foodstuff, including frozen and processed foods, dairy, seafood, meat, and fresh produce.

A number of industries use cold warehousing as well as refrigeration transport services, including healthcare institutions and pharmaceuticals, frozen food producers, exporters and importers, food service firms, supermarkets, and food outlets and restaurants.

There are also climate-controlled facilities where humidity and temperature are controlled by systems of air conditioning, ventilation, and heating. They are usually used for the storage of foods, electronics, and pharmaceuticals.

2. On-demand Storage

On-demand facilities connect warehouses with excess storage space with users that need it, including shippers, retailers, and e-commerce companies. Businesses typically need extra storage due to seasonal and temporary spikes in sales which on-demand facilities offer on a pay-per-use basis.

There are different alternatives to on-demand storage, including third-party fulfilment companies, contract logistics providers, and in-house distribution capabilities. While building an in-house facility looks like an attractive option that allows for more autonomy and control, the start-up costs are typically high. There are also variable costs, such as packaging supplies, warehouse equipment, and labor.

3. Smart Warehouse

Smart facilities leverage interconnected technologies and automation systems for receiving and picking orders, storage, and shipping. Advanced technologies help decrease errors and improve efficiency, enabling faster shipping. Further benefits include predictive order processing, improved space utilization, better tracking of inventory and assets, and lower operational costs.

Smart warehouses utilize automated systems and technologies such as:

• Collaborative robots
• Internet of Things
• Automated guided vehicles and picking tools
• Drones
• Warehouse management systems
• Predictive analysis and business intelligence
• Electronic data interchange
• Radiofrequency identification
• Collaborative storage and retrieval systems
• Inventory control platforms

4. Distribution Center

A distribution center is a logistics facility designed to receive and keep items over a short period of time. Distribution centers often offer a range of valued added services such as order fulfilment, cross-docking, packaging, and product mixing. As a rule, such facilities combine fulfilment practices such as exchange workflows, product returns, and order processing with standard best practices like quality control, space optimization, and inventory management.  Many distribution centers also leverage mobile data collection, automation, and other smart technology solutions.

Other types of storage facilities include cooperative, consolidated, bonded, and pick, pack, and ship warehouses.

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Warehousing is a must for the majority of businesses which produce, export, import or transport goods. Although it may seem like an unneeded expense, the truth is that successfully selling products is not completed by simply fulfilling an order by a customer. A warehouse like those offered by the European network for transportation allows businesses to have better and closer control over their inventory, as well as ensure that the clients receive the products they have ordered in a timely manner. This service offered by the international freight forwarders association, in fact, brings profit to the businesses due to the improved customer experience.

Warehousing can improve inventory management

However shocking it may seem, nearly 8% of all small businesses do not have a system for tracking their inventory, and 24% do not have inventory at all. This leads to problems with delayed or canceled orders and forwarding and overall poor customer experience.

Thanks to the warehousing, storage and distribution and contract logistics services provide by the members of the freight forwarders association, it is much easier for small and large businesses to track as well as to manage their inventories.

The warehouses provided by the list of logistics companies from the freight forwarders network are perfect for centralizing the location of all products offered by businesses, and thus make tracking and managing them much easier. Businesses which decide to invest in the warehousing services offered by the companies from the European logistics network are able to store, distribute and transport their goods much more efficiently. In case something is out of stock, the business will be alerted right away so that the customers can be provided with alternative options, instead of canceling their orders.

The storage and distribution services offered by IFA can help make packaging and processing more efficient

The European logistics companies are specialized not only in storing, forwarding and distributing the goods of their customers but also in packing them, loading docks and pallet racking. This can save the businesses a lot of money by keeping all of their goods in one secure place.

The businesses can rely on the list of logistics companies to pack and grade their products in accordance with the customer’s request as well as the legal requirements for their forwarding and delivery.

Using a warehousing service offered by the European logistics companies can save businesses a lot of money for hiring personnel for the fulfillment and pickup of their goods.

Warehousing also improves customer service

Statistics show that nearly 65% of all online customers expect to know the estimated delivery time of their orders as well as a guarantee for a timely delivery. And nearly 90% of all customers are ready to pay more for faster delivery.

Businesses need to keep their customers happy if they want to grow and beat the competition. With an excellent storage and distribution service such as that offered by the forwarders throughout Europe, keeping the customers satisfied is easy. The happier their customers are, the better thei revenues and their brand image will be.

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