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As someone who attends multiple tradeshows every year, I’m still perpetually astounded by the sheer size and scale of MHI’s ProMat. This year’s installment was no exception!
In March, ProMat 2025 spread out across THREE separate show halls in Chicago’s McCormick Place. More than 1,160 exhibitors showcased their solutions across 659,000 square feet of booths — making it the largest ProMat ever, according to MHI. More than 52,000 attendees from 143 countries packed the aisles to see the latest supply chain technologies. Many exhibitors featured automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI).
Innovations in automation and robotics for supply chains were literally around every corner… so many that MHI presents four separate Innovation Awards to companies showcasing a unique new technology, an updated existing solution, a groundbreaking information technology, and a product that improves sustainability. ProMat also includes a StartUp Pavilion, allowing brand new companies to share their emerging solutions to supply chain challenges.
DCS’ Partners Showcase New Technologies
Because DCS is a brand-agnostic systems integrator — that is, unaffiliated with specific material handling equipment suppliers — the solutions we provide are always the best fit for each customer’s specific application. Our design and engineering team is free to use the optimal technology that meets an operation’s specific needs and constraints, regardless of the manufacturer or the brand.
Because of that independence, I always feel like our team is even more enthusiastic to roam the ProMat aisles than other attendees — who are clearly excited to be there. My colleagues zoom around the show floor, scouting out the latest developments and newest robotics and automation technologies for supply chains that can help our customers meet their business objectives today, and scale to accommodate future changes. Some of the exhibits they were most enthusiastic about happened to belong to current DCS technology partners. They included:
Eurosort
To eliminate the need for manual packing, Eurosort showcased its fully automated Zero Touch Packout solution for finished orders. With the system, conveyors and automated doors seamlessly move products to their final destinations without any manual intervention. Instead of transferring sorted items from chutes into outbound cartons or totes, associates can be reassigned to more complicated tasks. Eurosort also highlighted its Cross Tray Sorter in its booth, a sortation conveyor designed to gently handle the smallest, lightest, and least conveyable items. It can also sort small to medium parcels, e-commerce items, fashion, shoe boxes, sportswear, and pharmaceutical products.
Knapp
Knapp debuted its new AeroBot to the North American market at ProMat 2025. Designed to operate at heights up to 12 meters (39 feet), it can be deployed in both new and existing spec-built buildings and can be delivered in short lead times. The AeroBot moves in multiple directions and navigates independently through any storage environment, using simple floor guidance to deliver products to pickers filling orders. Built with standardized components for easy installation, the AeroBot has minimal space requirements and flexible rack construction options. DCS is one of just two systems integrators in the U.S. authorized to deploy AeroBot systems.
URBX
DCS was the first material handling systems integrator authorized to implement URBX’s high-density/high-throughput goods-to-person robotic automated storage and retrieval solution. Ideal for high-speed, omni-channel order fulfillment, URBX is a vertical storage system that reaches heights up to 125 feet with 75 levels of double-deep-stored totes. Cases and totes are accessed by multiple, free-roaming, dual-robots. This enables the system to fill orders up to eight times faster than competitors’ equipment. Thanks to the system’s ability to access all inventory at random and its high volume capacity, 50-line orders can be filled in less than 3 minutes.
Beumer Group
A variety of labor-saving automated solutions for loading and or goods receiving, were displayed in the Beumer exhibit, including the new AutoDrop function for the company’s BG Pouch System sorter. The new feature enables automated, space- and weight-optimized unloading of conveyed items at rates up to 10,000 pieces per line per hour. Adding robotic assisted solutions to load the pouches, automatically pick the products from bulk flow, empty containers, and pack orders further automates the process. Beumer showcased its use of standard robots combined with advanced image recognition technology and AI to ensure precise product identification and handling.
Geek+
Autonomous mobile robot (AMR) supplier Geek+ exhibited robotic goods-to-person picking solutions for handling totes, shelves, and pallets. Among them were the RoboShuttle tote-to-person system that easily shifts to handle both steady and variable throughput, making it ideal for peak periods. The PopPick shelf-to-person AMR delivers 67% higher efficiency than traditional picking in a 50% smaller footprint and incorporates a dynamic slotting feature for smarter inventory management. Finally, ideal for large-scale, cross-floor operations, the pallet-to-person SkyCube supports up to 35% higher storage density than traditional automated systems and up to 8 times greater efficiency than floor storage.
DATUM Unifies Disparate Technologies into Synchronized System
Tying together all these technologies — and many more new and legacy systems and software — is DCS’ proprietary warehouse execution system (WES), DATUM. Engineered with a flexible, secure API gateway and integration bridge, DATUM easily interfaces with a broad range of warehouse management system (WMS) softwares. It also streamlines workflows across multiple automated technologies, improving visibility, and enabling data-driven decision-making.
We showcased DATUM in the DCS ProMat 2025 exhibit, highlighting all the ways it can significantly boost an operation’s productivity and profitability. If you didn’t get a chance to drop by our booth, we’d love to discuss how DCS can design a system with any of the automation and robotics for supply chain solutions mentioned above, along with DATUM, to transform your facility and benefit your business.
What technologies at ProMat 2025 caught your eye? Connect with us and let us know.
AUTHOR:
Megan Taylor
Marketing Manager
megan@designedconveyor.com
