GreyOrange and Technica Announce Truck to Stock Robotic Solution
iTLS - Powered by GreyMatter is an innovative truck loading and unloading solution that provides customers with greater fulfillment efficiency, speed and safety
GreyOrange, a global leader in automated robotic fulfillment and inventory optimization software, and Technica International, a leader in delivering customized, turnkey solutions for product handling, today announced a new partnership and solution that solves for inefficiencies and safety challenges in truck loading and unloading by combining Technica’s iTLS technology with GreyOrange’s fulfillment orchestration platform, GreyMatter™.
Technica’s unique and innovative robotic truck loading and unloading solution iTLS improves dock efficiency and speed by leveraging GreyMatter™, a robot agnostic fulfillment orchestration platform with seamless integration, to orchestrate robots through the activity, enabling workers to focus on higher value tasks. Supply chain and logistics leaders now have another avenue to meet global challenges, including the current labor shortage, as cooperative robotic-human solutions are increasingly recognized by both workers and leaders as essential tools for supporting the workforce.
“By transforming one of the most time-consuming and labor-intensive processes in the warehouse through partnership with Technica, our fulfillment platform now delivers the most comprehensive warehouse solution in the market,” said Samay Kohli, co-founder and CEO, GreyOrange. “We enable smart robotic intralogistics for every process step in the warehouse, offering supply chain leaders a fully integrated solution for significant productivity, speed and efficiency gains in a matter of weeks.”
iTLS - Powered by GreyMatter, enables 99% palletization efficiency and accuracy when forming rainbow pallets, improves ergonomics to eliminate worker fatigue, reduces dock turnaround times by up to 150%, and improves productivity by up to fourfold for truck loading and unloading. The solution is fully CE compliant, compatible with all standard container sizes and has the capability to handle cases, cartons, totes, bags and more.
According to Industrial Safety and Hygiene News, 25% of all industrial accidents occur at the loading dock. The labor-intensive and manual nature of truck loading and unloading, compounded by poor user ergonomics for heavy loads, frequently results in low vehicle fill rates and high dock turn-around times, creating inefficiencies at both ends of the warehouse and taking a toll on workers which can increase accidents and safety issues.
“Due to increasing needs for delivering goods from warehouses to retailers, introducing this new technology with the robot is vital for increasing efficiency, higher profit margins and lowering carbon footprint by decreasing truck traffic,” said Tony Haddad, founder and chairman, Technica International. “We are thrilled to join forces with GreyOrange to help make this labor-intensive part of the fulfillment process safer for workers by enabling smart robots to complete the manual tasks of loading and unloading.”
Facing an evolving supply chain landscape in 2025, companies are being forced to rethink their distribution strategies to cope with challenges like rising cost pressures, persistent labor shortages, and the complexities of managing SKU proliferation.
1. Optimize labor productivity and costs. Forward-thinking businesses are leveraging technology to get more done with fewer resources through approaches like slotting optimization, automation and robotics, and inventory visibility.
2. Maximize capacity with smart solutions. With e-commerce volumes rising, facilities need to handle more SKUs and orders without expanding their physical footprint. That can be achieved through high-density storage and dynamic throughput.
3. Streamline returns management. Returns are a growing challenge, thanks to the continued growth of e-commerce and the consumer practice of bracketing. Businesses can handle that with smarter reverse logistics processes like automated returns processing and reverse logistics visibility.
4. Accelerate order fulfillment with robotics. Robotic solutions are transforming the way orders are fulfilled, helping businesses meet customer expectations faster and more accurately than ever before by using autonomous mobile robots (AMRs and robotic picking.
5. Enhance end-of-line packaging. The final step in the supply chain is often the most visible to customers. So optimizing packaging processes can reduce costs, improve efficiency, and support sustainability goals through automated packaging systems and sustainability initiatives.
That clash has come as retailers have been hustling to adjust to pandemic swings like a renewed focus on e-commerce, then swiftly reimagining store experiences as foot traffic returned. But even as the dust settles from those changes, retailers are now facing renewed questions about how best to define their omnichannel strategy in a world where customers have increasing power and information.
The answer may come from a five-part strategy using integrated components to fortify omnichannel retail, EY said. The approach can unlock value and customer trust through great experiences, but only when implemented cohesively, not individually, EY warns.
The steps include:
1. Functional integration: Is your operating model and data infrastructure siloed between e-commerce and physical stores, or have you developed a cohesive unit centered around delivering seamless customer experience?
2. Customer insights: With consumer centricity at the heart of operations, are you analyzing all touch points to build a holistic view of preferences, behaviors, and buying patterns?
3. Next-generation inventory: Given the right customer insights, how are you utilizing advanced analytics to ensure inventory is optimized to meet demand precisely where and when it’s needed?
4. Distribution partnerships: Having ensured your customers find what they want where they want it, how are your distribution strategies adapting to deliver these choices to them swiftly and efficiently?
5. Real estate strategy: How is your real estate strategy interconnected with insights, inventory and distribution to enhance experience and maximize your footprint?
When approached cohesively, these efforts all build toward one overarching differentiator for retailers: a better customer experience that reaches from brand engagement and order placement through delivery and return, the EY study said. Amid continued volatility and an economy driven by complex customer demands, the retailers best set up to win are those that are striving to gain real-time visibility into stock levels, offer flexible fulfillment options and modernize merchandising through personalized and dynamic customer experiences.
Geopolitical rivalries, alliances, and aspirations are rewiring the global economy—and the imposition of new tariffs on foreign imports by the U.S. will accelerate that process, according to an analysis by Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
Without a broad increase in tariffs, world trade in goods will keep growing at an average of 2.9% annually for the next eight years, the firm forecasts in its report, “Great Powers, Geopolitics, and the Future of Trade.” But the routes goods travel will change markedly as North America reduces its dependence on China and China builds up its links with the Global South, which is cementing its power in the global trade map.
“Global trade is set to top $29 trillion by 2033, but the routes these goods will travel is changing at a remarkable pace,” Aparna Bharadwaj, managing director and partner at BCG, said in a release. “Trade lanes were already shifting from historical patterns and looming US tariffs will accelerate this. Navigating these new dynamics will be critical for any global business.”
To understand those changes, BCG modeled the direct impact of the 60/25/20 scenario (60% tariff on Chinese goods, a 25% on goods from Canada and Mexico, and a 20% on imports from all other countries). The results show that the tariffs would add $640 billion to the cost of importing goods from the top ten U.S. import nations, based on 2023 levels, unless alternative sources or suppliers are found.
In terms of product categories imported by the U.S., the greatest impact would be on imported auto parts and automotive vehicles, which would primarily affect trade with Mexico, the EU, and Japan. Consumer electronics, electrical machinery, and fashion goods would be most affected by higher tariffs on Chinese goods. Specifically, the report forecasts that a 60% tariff rate would add $61 billion to cost of importing consumer electronics products from China into the U.S.
Shippers are actively preparing for changes in tariffs and trade policy through steps like analyzing their existing customs data, identifying alternative suppliers, and re-evaluating their cross-border strategies, according to research from logistics provider C.H. Robinson.
They are acting now because survey results show that shippers say the top risk to their supply chains in 2025 is changes in tariffs and trade policy. And nearly 50% say the uncertainty around tariffs and trade policy is already a pain point for them today, the Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based company said.
In a move to answer those concerns, C.H. Robinson says it has been working with its clients by running risk scenarios, building and implementing contingency plans, engineering and executing tariff solutions, and increasing supply chain diversification and agility.
“Having visibility into your full supply chain is no longer a nice-to-have. In 2025, visibility is a competitive differentiator and shippers without the technology and expertise to support real-time data and insights, contingency planning, and quick action will face increased supply chain risks,” Jordan Kass, President of C.H. Robinson Managed Solutions, said in a release.
The company’s survey showed that shippers say the top five ways they are planning for those risks: identifying where they can switch sourcing to save money, analyzing customs data, evaluating cross-border strategies, running risk scenarios, and lowering their dependence on Chinese imports.
President of C.H. Robinson Global Forwarding, Mike Short, said: “In today’s uncertain shipping environment, shippers are looking for ways to reduce their susceptibility to events that impact logistics but are out of their control. By diversifying their supply chains, getting access to the latest information and having a global supply chain partner able to flex with their needs at a moment’s notice, shippers can gain something they don’t always have when disruptions and policy changes occur - options.”
That strategy is described by RILA President Brian Dodge in a document titled “2025 Retail Public Policy Agenda,” which begins by describing leading retailers as “dynamic and multifaceted businesses that begin on Main Street and stretch across the world to bring high value and affordable consumer goods to American families.”
RILA says its policy priorities support that membership in four ways:
Investing in people. Retail is for everyone; the place for a first job, 2nd chance, third act, or a side hustle – the retail workforce represents the American workforce.
Ensuring a safe, sustainable future. RILA is working with lawmakers to help shape policies that protect our customers and meet expectations regarding environmental concerns.
Leading in the community. Retail is more than a store; we are an integral part of the fabric of our communities.
“As Congress and the Trump administration move forward to adopt policies that reduce regulatory burdens, create economic growth, and bring value to American families, understanding how such policies will impact retailers and the communities we serve is imperative,” Dodge said. “RILA and its member companies look forward to collaborating with policymakers to provide industry-specific insights and data to help shape any policies under consideration.”