Manufacturers are being urged to look beyond isolated automation projects and target the hidden delays, handling tasks and bottlenecks within their internal logistics.
Birol Esmer, director of software product and applications at Mobile Industrial Robots (MiR), said logistics and intralogistics are becoming increasingly important areas for businesses seeking greater efficiency, flexibility and resilience.
While industrial automation has traditionally focused heavily on production lines, cycle times and individual machines, he said significant inefficiencies can build up between different stages of manufacturing.
These can include material transfers, workstation replenishment, pallet movements, end-of-line handling, empty returns and waiting times.
Esmer argues that collaborative robot arms, commonly known as cobots, and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) can address different parts of the same process.
Cobots can automate individual handling tasks, while AMRs can move materials between production areas.
The biggest gains, he said, can come when the two technologies are considered as part of the wider manufacturing process rather than installed as standalone automation.
For businesses considering investment, Esmer said the starting point should be identifying where delays, repetitive movements and low-value manual work are occurring.
That includes examining where staff spend time moving materials rather than carrying out productive tasks, and where changing products or layouts make conventional fixed automation difficult to justify.
He said collaborative automation works best when it is introduced to solve specific operational problems rather than simply for the sake of deploying new technology.
The aim, he argued, should be to improve production continuity, manage greater product variation, reduce repetitive work and improve ergonomics and safety.
End-of-line operations are among the areas where MiR sees growing interest in collaborative robotics.
Activities such as pick-and-place, packing, case loading, sorting and pallet building can involve repetitive and physically demanding work.
Collaborative systems can also offer flexibility where batch sizes, products and production mixes change regularly.
According to Esmer, characteristics including fast reconfiguration, compact footprints and the ability to work within existing factory layouts can sometimes be more important than outright robot speed or payload capacity.
Line feeding and replenishment of assembly areas is another area identified as suitable for automation.
Here, the challenge is often ensuring materials reach the right place at the right time.
Delays can slow production or result in skilled operators spending part of their working day moving components, containers or pallets.
AMRs can be used to automate those repetitive movements and help maintain a more consistent material flow.
Esmer said they should not simply be viewed as “forklift replacements”, but as a way of stabilising internal logistics and reducing routine handling work.
The technology may also appeal to manufacturers dealing with greater production volumes, changing product mixes and restricted factory space.
Traditional fixed automation can require significant changes to layouts and dedicated infrastructure, while collaborative systems can potentially be introduced into existing production environments with less disruption.
This can be particularly relevant for smaller and medium-sized manufacturers that lack specialist robotics expertise or cannot justify highly rigid automation systems.
MiR highlighted Italian furniture industry manufacturer Vibo as an example of this approach.
The company, which operates production and sales activities across more than 70 countries, identified pallet transport within its assembly operation as a bottleneck.
Manual handling had relied on electric forklifts, but charging requirements meant transport capacity was not always available throughout the shift.
Vibo introduced a MiR1200 Pallet Jack in 2025 to automate some of those pallet movements.
The system was designed to work within an open environment shared with employees, without requiring fencing or major changes to the existing layout.
According to MiR, the project improved continuity and flexibility while reducing repetitive manual handling.
It also allowed employees previously involved in routine transport work to spend more time on higher-value tasks.
Esmer said the project demonstrated that the value of collaborative automation comes from practical integration rather than automation for its own sake.
Five areas are emerging as particularly relevant for collaborative logistics automation, according to MiR.
These include end-of-line palletising and depalletising, particularly where manufacturers handle frequently changing product mixes.
Packing and order preparation is another potential application, especially for businesses managing e-commerce operations or large numbers of smaller, varied shipments.
Line feeding and assembly replenishment can also benefit where maintaining reliable and punctual material flows is critical to production.
Handling full and empty pallets is another area where automation can help prevent congestion and downtime.
The fifth involves integrating machine automation with internal logistics, allowing cobots, workstations and material transport systems to operate as parts of a connected process.
Collaborative robots can also be used for handling, packaging, palletising and machine-tending tasks.
Their relatively compact size means some systems can be redeployed between production areas where workloads or seasonal requirements change.
Esmer stressed, however, that there is no single starting point suitable for every manufacturer.
Some businesses may see the quickest gains by automating physically demanding tasks, while others may prioritise areas where congestion, inconsistent material flows or production variability are creating problems.
For others, the priority may simply be ensuring materials continue moving reliably throughout a shift.
The key, he said, is ensuring investment reflects a company's actual production constraints, workflows and performance objectives rather than purchasing automation simply to “do robotics”.