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The Importance of Warehouse Automation Design
Warehouse automation design is where ambition becomes operational reality. Rising labour scarcity, increasing service expectations, and footprint pressures make smarter storage, movement, and picking essential. Hatmill aligns business goals with the right combination of robotics, AMRs, shuttles, sortation, and software – engineering layouts that optimise space, throughput, and safety while reducing cost‑to‑serve.
Our approach is independent and data‑driven: we map processes, model demand, and develop concepts tailored to SKU profiles, handling units, and growth scenarios. We structure market engagement through RFI, RFP, and RFQ to compare options, validate ROM costs, and refine solution architectures. We build resilience with phased delivery, rigorous test protocols, and MF/1 contracting discipline, while embedding sustainability measures to reduce energy use, waste, and emissions.
The result is an automated warehouse design that scales with your business and integrates seamlessly with WMS, ERP, and control systems. With Hatmill, warehouse automation becomes a competitive advantage – future‑ready, adaptable, and proven in practice. From brownfield upgrades to greenfield builds, we right‑size storage density, pick paths, and material flow, to align with business risk, seasonality, and peak demand. We facilitate design workshops, review CAD and 3D models, and coordinate suppliers to ensure interfaces, safety standards, and operability are locked down before investment decisions and compliance.
Warehouse Automation Design Process
Our warehouse automation design capability turns opportunities into executable plans. We begin with objectives, data, and process mapping, then quantify pain points around travel, picking, dwell, congestion, and space. We size technologies – AMRs, shuttles, cranes, sorters, and GtP – to true demand, building concept options that balance throughput, availability, safety, and resilience.
Using discovery and innovation frameworks, including Hatmill’s Orange Book, we challenge assumptions and surface practical ideas early. We progress concepts into layouts, flows, and integration points, and test them through structured market engagement: RFI to explore solution space and ROM costs, RFP to develop detailed designs and commercials with a shortlist, and RFQ to confirm best‑value final quotations.
In parallel, we establish contracting baselines and MF/1‑aligned terms, define test regimes, and agree on phased delivery and readiness criteria. We facilitate CAD reviews, 3D model walkthroughs, and software workshops to lock down interfaces, data, controls, and safety.
Finally, we produce an implementation roadmap and handover pack that sets projects up for build, commissioning, and change – ensuring automated warehouse design integrates seamlessly with people, processes, and systems, and remains adaptable as your business evolves. The outcome is a clear, investable design that de‑risks decisions and prepares teams for delivery, testing, ramp‑up, and steady‑state operations.
Step 1 -
Automation Concepting & Discovery
We lead discovery to pinpoint where automation will create value and determine the form it should take. Using innovation frameworks such as Hatmill’s Orange Book of Logistics Innovation, we explore operational opportunities, challenge assumptions, and develop clear concept options that align business goals with technology.
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Step 2 -
RFI Request For Information
We engage a broad supplier base to explore the solution space, outline high‑level designs, and gather ROM (Rough Order of Magnitude) costs. The RFI phase enables early comparison of approaches, refinement of requirements, and shortlisting of candidates before deeper design work begins.
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Step 3 -
RFP Request For Price
With a shortlist in place, we run a structured RFP to develop detailed designs, pricing proposals, and commercial terms. We coordinate workshops, clarify assumptions, and ensure submissions align with throughput, integration, and safety criteria.
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Step 4 -
Contracting
We align contracts across suppliers and stakeholders to ensure a clean project start, using MF/1‑aligned baselines, defined test regimes, and agreed readiness criteria. This contracting discipline mitigates risk and establishes clear delivery standards.
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Step 5 -
Recommendations
We evaluate options across technology fit, capacity, flexibility, operability, cost, and risk, then recommend the most suitable solution and supplier set; grounded in data, scenarios, and structured market evidence (RFI/RFP/RFQ).
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Step 6 -
RFQ Request for Final Quote
We run an RFQ to confirm best‑value final quotations for the selected solution, validating scope, performance criteria, and commercial terms before business‑case sign‑off.
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Step 7 -
Support Business Case Development
We build financial justifications (hurdle rates) – ROI, NPV, IRR, and payback (yrs) – by combining demand modelling with supplier data and implementation phasing to quantify benefits and risks.
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Step 8 -
Signing Contracts & Negotiations
Hatmill’s team supports contract finalisation and negotiations, including the MF/1 contract role and contract administration, delivered by specialist MF/1 Engineers. We have an Engineer who is part of the MF/1 drafting panel for the IET, providing expert advice as an IMechE representative.
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Step 9 -
Detailed Warehouse Design
We refine the selected automation solution with suppliers. This includes reviewing CAD drawings and 3D models, and facilitating workshops to finalise layouts, interfaces, and software integration. We also lock down safety, testing, and operability criteria before build.
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What is the purpose of the design phase in a warehouse automation project?
To convert strategy into an investable, build‑ready plan, we size technologies to real demand. We engineer layouts and flows that optimise performance. We validate solutions through RFI, RFP, and RFQ processes. We also structure MF/1‑aligned contracting and test regimes that de‑risk delivery.
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Can you design around specific technologies or vendors we’ve already selected?
Yes. We’re independent and routinely evaluate or refine designs around pre‑selected technologies, stress‑testing capacity, integration, and safety while negotiating terms that protect outcomes.
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How do you ensure the warehouse design is scalable and future-proof?
We model scenarios, right‑size for peak demand and seasonality, adopt modular technologies, and embed phased delivery and testing plans. This ensures capacity can expand and systems can evolve without rework.
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What level of cost and ROI analysis is provided during the design phase?
We develop full business‑case models with ROI, NPV, IRR, hurdle rates, and payback. These models combine supplier inputs with demand modelling and implementation phasing to quantify outcomes.
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What happens after the design phase is complete?
We can provide implementation support through project management, operational design, flow room design and setup support, MF/1 Engineer, testing support and transition support when your system goes live.
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