New Zealand’s warehouse and fulfilment operators are under mounting pressure. Space is tight, industrial rents continue to rise, and labour availability remains unpredictable. At the same time, customers expect faster, more accurate delivery. According to JLL, more than 90 percent of APAC warehouses are still heavily manual, yet most businesses plan to automate by 2030, a clear signal that the modern warehouse needs to evolve quickly.

AutoStore™, integrated and enhanced by Kardex, is leading that evolution. Its high-density Grid delivers up to 400 percent more storage capacity, enabling New Zealand businesses to scale without expanding their footprint. Accuracy consistently exceeds 99 percent, with full traceability – a critical advantage for pharmaceuticals, manufacturing and high-value goods where errors carry serious cost.

But the real shift is happening in how Kardex is advancing AutoStore to meet the demands of today’s warehouse. Over the past four years, Kardex has released a series of innovations tailored to the pressures warehouse managers face; speed, labour efficiency, maintenance reduction and safer work environments.

The Intuitive Picking Assistant (IPA) uses intelligent visual cues at the pick location to guide operators and dramatically reduce human error. The Sensor Cleaning Station prolongs robot lifespan and maintains consistent system performance with less hands-on maintenance. Automated Bin Induction streamlines one of the most labour-intensive tasks, making induction safer, faster and significantly more efficient. These enhancements are not incremental add-ons, they directly improve day-to-day throughput, reliability and staff experience.

Douglas Pharmaceuticals’ installation of New Zealand’s first AutoStore system shows the impact in real terms. The company increased storage by 30 percent, compressed its footprint to 10 percent of traditional racking, and achieved a fourfold increase in picking speed. All implemented alongside live operations, without power upgrades or major disruption.

Scalability further strengthens the value proposition. New Robots or Ports can be added without shutting down operations. As Jason Wu, Business Development Manager for AutoStore ANZ, puts it: “We scale while the customer keeps running. That’s the benefit of true modular automation.”

For New Zealand warehouses navigating rising costs, labour constraints and the need for greater accuracy, automation has become more than an efficiency tool. With Kardex driving continuous innovation, it is now one of the most powerful strategic investments for building resilience and turning the warehouse into a genuine competitive asset.