StoreX Calculator works with actual operational data. Source: Kardex

Planning to deploy an automated storage and retrieval system, or ASRS, can be complex, but tools to help are improving. Kardex Solutions today launched an enhanced StoreX Calculator in partnership with iAutomate.

While many organizations approach automated storage as a fixed installation, Kardex said it approaches AutoStore as a continuously evolving system. AutoStore‘s grid storage is modular, and Kardex said a significant percentage of customers expand their systems within 12 to 36 months.

Expansion is often driven by faster-than-expected throughput growth, SKU proliferation, the addition of new fulfillment channels such as e-commerce and store replenishment, or the consolidation of logistics networks into high-density nodes.

*“*AutoStore systems are not static assets—they’re designed to evolve as businesses grow,” said Fred Fox Jr., president of Kardex Solutions Americas. “With the newly enhanced StoreX Calculator, Kardex is giving customers the same level of data-driven clarity for expansion decisions that they expect when designing a new system.”

“It removes uncertainty around cost and timing, enabling smarter planning and faster, lower-risk scaling, and reflects our commitment to continuously evolving our solutions so customers can extract maximum performance, throughput, and value over the life of their system,” he added.

StoreX Calculator adds planning features

Historically, AutoStore planning has often relied on high-level estimates and limited visibility into cost and timing, noted Kardex. The company said it designed StoreX Calculator to help users evaluate, plan, and justify new ASRS integration.

StoreX replaces any ambiguity with scenario-based modeling that clearly distinguishes between overall project duration and on-site implementation windows, Kardex claimed. With iAutomate, it extended the system’s capabilities into long-term optimization and expansion using real operational data. The calculator shows how expansions can be executed while keeping operations largely live, said the company.

The enhanced tool allows operators to model multiple growth scenarios and understand how changes to grid size, robot count, ports, and supporting infrastructure would affect system footprint, project timelines, and overall investment, said Kardex. It added that its outputs include clear, structured reports that estimate expansion costs, implementation speed, and execution phases. This can help teams align internally and build financially sound business cases.

“Kardex and iAutomate share a common goal: helping customers make informed decisions based on data, not guesswork,” said Christoph Buchmann, founder and managing director of iAutomate. “The new functionality of StoreX gives AutoStore users unprecedented visibility into how their systems can scale—what it will take, how long it will take, and what value it will deliver. That level of insight is a game changer for how businesses plan automation growth long-term.”

iAutomate said it “helps warehouse automation and intralogistics providers scale sales performance — not headcount.” The Toronto-based company said its intelligent sales automation platform digitizes the early concepting and qualification phase, transforming unqualified leads into fully sales-qualified opportunities within minutes.

By automating system design, costing, and return on investment (ROI) analysis, iAutomate said it can eliminate repetitive pre-sales work, accelerate customer-response times, and create a seamless digital buyer experience. Used globally by logistics providers, system integrators, and automation vendors, iAutomate promised to reduce sales cycle time, improve solution accuracy, and enable data-driven, transparent decision-making across the digital buyer journey.

StoreX Calculator allows for modeling of multiple scenarios. Source: Kardex

Kardex sees an industry shift

“The launch of the enhanced StoreX Calculator underscores a broader industry shift toward brownfield optimization and incremental automation, as companies look to maximize existing assets rather than pursue costly greenfield projects,” said Kardex. “By combining expansion modeling, comparative scenario analysis, and executive-ready reporting, the Kardex StoreX Calculator supports this shift with practical, data-backed insight.”

“This significant evolution of the StoreX digital planning tool sets a new benchmark for transparency, performance insight, and lifecycle planning in the ASRS market,” asserted the company.

Kardex also said the tool reinforces its role as a trusted, long-term AutoStore partner, supporting customers from initial concept through ongoing optimization, expansion, and performance enhancement. It deployed its 100th site last month.

Listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange since 1989, Kardex Holding AG offers integrated ASRS, material handling systems, small-parts storage systems including multi-shuttle technology, and automated high-bay warehouses. The Zurich-based company employs about 2,900 people in more than 30 countries.

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