DHL Supply Chain has initiated a major automation deployment across its global warehouse network with the rollout of SVT Robotics’ SOFTBOT® platform. The move builds on an already extensive robotics footprint, with more than 8,000 collaborative robots currently in operation worldwide. By introducing the plug-and-play platform, the company can now execute robotics integrations up to 12 times faster than traditional custom coding methods, significantly accelerating automation deployment strategies. This shift is designed to streamline implementation timelines and enable faster scaling of automation initiatives across multiple sites.
Before adopting the technology-neutral solution, DHL’s automation projects required individual custom coding for each new technology integration, with deployment timelines stretching to six to eight weeks just to initiate new systems. This approach made large-scale rollouts both time-consuming and costly. The SOFTBOT platform addresses these constraints through prebuilt connectors, allowing DHL to transition from rigid, monolithic systems toward modular warehouse environments. These setups are designed to accommodate a range of automated technologies and can be adjusted as operational requirements evolve. As a result, the company is advancing a more flexible model for automation deployment, enabling quicker adaptation to changing customer demands and emerging technologies.
Beyond speed and flexibility, the platform introduces enhanced operational oversight. It offers a centralized, multi-site dashboard that enables teams to monitor performance across facilities more efficiently. The unified data layer embedded within the system provides deeper visibility into both workforce activity and automation performance. This capability allows DHL to better coordinate hybrid operations where human workers and robots operate side by side, supporting improved safety and efficiency without adding complexity. The SOFTBOT platform is currently active in 30 DHL Supply Chain locations globally, with plans in place to extend the automation deployment to more than 100 sites over the next three years.
Highlighting the operational impact, Tim Tetzlaff, Global Head of Digital Transformation, DHL Supply Chain, said, “As a standard integration layer, the SOFTBOT platform provides the glue between our warehouse management system (WMS) and our digitalization agenda. It has enabled us to replicate Goods to Person solutions across Europe with integration work completed in just three hours. We’ve also added new operational technology to live operations in Asia Pacific with zero downtime. The platform’s global, real time data access also unlocks significant opportunities to scale logistics AI.”
