Automate Your Existing Warehouse - No New Building, No Downtime
Retrofit your shelf warehouse with autonomous mobile robots - no construction, no capital investment, no operational disruption. Go-live in 6-8 weeks.
NEO is a warehouse automation retrofit solution by NEOintralogistics. Autonomous mobile robots (AMR) navigate existing shelf-warehouse aisles, retrieve bins, and deliver them to an ergonomic goods-to-person picking station. No construction, no capital investment - you pay per pick. Go-live in 6-8 weeks in your existing facility.
Why Retrofit Instead of Building New?
Most warehouse automation projects - mini-load AS/RS, shuttle systems, cube-based robotics - require purpose-built facilities, seven-figure capital expenditure, and 12-36 months of lead time. For companies operating out of leased or existing shelf warehouses, that is rarely a viable path.
A warehouse automation retrofit takes the opposite approach. Instead of replacing your facility, NEO deploys directly into your current infrastructure:
Your shelving stays
No demolition, no structural changes, no new racking.
Your operations continue
Installation happens alongside live warehouse operations - zero downtime.
Your WMS stays
NEO:os integrates with your existing warehouse management system via a standard interface. No ERP migration, no IT overhaul.
No capital investment
NEO operates on a pay-per-pick model - robots, software, and maintenance included. Pure OpEx.
The result: automated goods-to-person picking in your existing warehouse, operational within one quarter.
Best fit for
- Operate shelf-based warehouses (Fachbodenregal / bolt-less shelving) with manual person-to-goods picking
- Process 5,000+ picks per day and face labor shortages or rising labor costs
- Need to automate without disrupting ongoing fulfillment operations
- Want to avoid CapEx and long implementation timelines
- Operate leased facilities where structural modifications are not permitted
Not ideal for
- Your warehouse uses pallet racking exclusively (no shelf-level bin storage)
- Aisle widths are below 85 cm
- Items regularly exceed 380 x 270 x 140 mm or 5 kg per unit
- Your volume sits materially below the recommended threshold of 5,000 picks per day
What Stays, What Changes?
A NEO retrofit leaves most of your warehouse infrastructure unchanged.
The changes are deliberate and minimally invasive.
What stays the same
- Shelving and racking - your existing shelf warehouse infrastructure remains untouched
- Warehouse layout - no reconfiguration of aisles, zones, or storage locations
- WMS and ERP - NEO:os connects to your existing systems; no migration required
- Inventory - no relabeling, no re-slotting, no inventory freeze
What changes
- Picking method - from manual person-to-goods walking to automated goods-to-person delivery
- Labor allocation - pickers stay at ergonomic NEO:pickstations instead of walking aisles
- Throughput - AMR fleet scales with demand; add robots and stations without construction
- Accuracy - system-guided picking with digital confirmation reduces error rates
The NEO:runner robots navigate autonomously through your existing aisles (minimum 85 cm width), retrieve the target bin from shelving up to 250 cm height, and transport it to the goods-to-person station. The picker confirms the pick; the robot returns the bin. No walking, no searching.
Requirements: Is Your Warehouse Compatible?
| Shelving type | Bolt-less shelving / Fachbodenregal | Standard commercial shelf warehouses |
| Aisle width | >= 85 cm | Measured between shelf faces |
| Usable shelf height | <= 250 cm | Top accessible shelf level |
| Item dimensions | Max 380 x 270 x 140 mm | Per bin/tote |
| Item weight | Max 5 kg | Per bin/tote |
| Daily pick volume | 5,000+ picks/day recommended | Lower volumes possible but less cost-effective |
| WMS | Any WMS with API or file-based interface | SAP, Oracle, Dynamics, custom - all supported |
| Floor | Standard warehouse flooring | No special surface treatment required |
If your warehouse meets these criteria, a NEO retrofit is technically feasible. If you are unsure, book a free 30-minute call - we assess your site remotely or on-site within one week.
NEO Retrofit in Numbers
NEO is not a concept - it is running in live warehouse operations today.
Versandmanufaktur (GLS Group) walked the path from pilot to live operations:
- Pilot: A single NEO system installed during ongoing warehouse operations.
- Proof of concept: Validated performance in day-to-day operations - picking efficiency, error rate, throughput.
- Daily operations: NEO became part of the regular warehouse logistics.
- Scaling: Expansion from 1 to 3 systems - no further construction, no operational interruption.
No other provider combines such a simple automation solution with higher storage density like NEO. We see great potential to significantly support our fulfillment strategy with NEO.
Currently, there is no other provider besides NEO that offers goods-to-person automation specifically for shelf-racking environments.
Typical Timeline: 6-8 Weeks to Go-Live
A NEO warehouse retrofit follows a structured deployment in three phases.
Your warehouse operations continue throughout.
Week 1-2: Feasibility and Planning
Site assessment, aisle and shelf audit, WMS interface specification.
Week 3-6: WMS Integration and Preparation
NEO:os connects to your WMS. The robot fleet and picking station are prepared and configured for your warehouse layout.
Week 7-8: Deployment and Go-Live
Hardware installation during live operations. The system goes productive. Pick strategies and sequences are optimized in the first days.
Compare this to conventional automation projects (mini-load AS/RS, shuttle systems, cube-based systems) that typically require 12-36 months, a construction phase, and a full warehouse shutdown.
FAQ
Do I need to stop warehouse operations during installation?
No. NEO is designed for live-environment deployment. The NEO:runner robots, picking station, and software are installed and commissioned while your warehouse continues to operate. There is no shutdown period. Orders continue to be fulfilled throughout the entire deployment process.
What types of shelving are compatible?
NEO works with standard bolt-less shelving (Fachbodenregal) - the most common shelf type in European warehouses. The shelving must allow aisle widths of at least 85 cm and a usable shelf height of up to 250 cm. Specialized racking systems (pallet racking, cantilever, drive-in) are not compatible.
What happens to the existing WMS?
Your WMS stays in place. NEO:os integrates with your existing warehouse management system via a standard API or file-based interface. It receives pick orders from your WMS, coordinates the robot fleet, and confirms completed picks back to your system. No WMS replacement, no ERP migration. Integration typically takes ~4 weeks.
How quickly is an automated warehouse operational?
With NEO, the full deployment - WMS integration, robot fleet, G2P station, and software - is completed in 6-8 weeks from contract signature. The first automated picks happen on go-live day. By comparison, conventional automation projects (AS/RS, shuttle systems) require 12-36 months and a construction phase.
Can I start with a pilot and scale later?
Yes. Most customers start with a single picking station and a small robot fleet covering one warehouse zone. Once results are validated, scaling is straightforward: add more robots and stations without construction or downtime. Versandmanufaktur, for example, started with one system and expanded to three.
The next step for your shelf-racking warehouse
Find out whether your warehouse qualifies for a NEO retrofit. In a short consultation, we assess your shelving type, aisle dimensions, item profile, and daily volume - and give you a clear answer. No commitment. No cost. Typically completed within one week.
See NEO in action