Trends in Czech Logistics 2025 Study: Automation Is Essential

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Automation, the collection, evaluation and utilisation of data, the deployment of AI tools, and sustainability. These are the pillars of future growth – and the solution to logistics' most urgent problems, such as the manpower crunch, wage growth pressure and increasing regulation from the EU. These are the conclusions from the Trends in Czech Logistics 2025 study, prepared for SKLAD by the Ipsos agency.

The survey, performed among 200 logistics managers, confirms the growing automation trend in this field. A manpower shortage, which is producing pressure to increase wages, efficiency and flexibility, lies behind it. Ninety-nine percent of the respondents plan at least partial automation of their operations within the next five years. The acquisition of autonomous handling technology (AGVs and AMRs) and picking and sorting technologies is one significant trend.

Time Horizon: Trends in Warehouse Automation (in %)

	Now	1–3 Years	3–5 Years
Automated Handling Equipment (AGVs/AMRs)	47	31	16
Picking or mobile sorting robots	35	33	16
Artificial intelligence (AI)/machine learning (ML)	18	40	26
Fully automated warehouses (ASRS)	23	24	17
Robotic Cubes	25	26	15
Digital twins	9	26	24

Even with growing automation, people will remain a part of logistics. Smart wearables, voice-activated technology etc. can help them to achieve greater efficiency. Within this study, Aimtec Supply Chain Solutions Director Rostislav Schwob note, “There is no expectation that people will be replaced completely in logistics and the warehouse in the near future. However, their work roles will change significantly. Operators will have to perform fewer routine tasks, and they also will no longer just be ‘bearers’ of goods. Employees will focus more on specialised activities and the handling of non-standard situations that are still disadvantageous to fully automate.” This means that the demand in this sector for qualified labour capable of operating automated processes will increase.

The new gold

Data is the new gold – people have been saying it for years. Today, companies can obtain detailed data from their operations in real time and reveal various dependencies and hidden reserves based upon them that would otherwise go unnoticed. If data is collected, cleansed and structured properly, it will find use in reporting and in visualisation tools such as digital twins and other analytics that significantly support the smoothness and efficiency of logistics processes. But that is not all. “The prediction of future trends is a key issue for management today. Not just retrospective analysis, but also prediction of results, simulation and verification of solution variants are becoming a standard part of every project, especially large ones connected with automation,” Schwob believes.

An orientation on the future

More and more logistics firms are realising it pays off to work with the latest technologies. Forty percent of those approached plan to deploy one or more AI tools within one to three years. Alongside AI, sensorics and other technologies are also making their way into warehouses; integration of these will be the foundation for future optimisation of logistics processes. Aimtec’s Schwob adds, “In the past, requests for us to manage processes and technologies on the customer side optimally were common. At present, with the use of artificial intelligence, it’s finally possible to include a wide range of viewpoints into the shared algorithm and mathematically calculate the best realistic variant, for example what arrangement of goods will be the most beneficial tomorrow or in a week. So in the coming period, we will much more frequently be guided by the future.”

Do you want a better grasp of the possibilities for implementing advanced technologies, or learn how to choose a supplier for automation and digitalisation solutions, and which criteria to prioritise?

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