The Questions That Determine the Right Automation Investment

Carte+ is designed for warehouses that need materially more throughput and productivity but cannot justify shutting down, rebuilding the facility or replacing serviceable infrastructure.

Instead of treating the existing racks, layout and operating processes as obstacles, the platform uses them as the foundation for automation. This can make advanced storage and retrieval automation more practical for brownfield warehouses, expanding 3PLs and facilities with limited tolerance for disruption.

The ROI model should compare the total investment against measurable improvements in labor productivity, throughput, storage utilization, service performance and operating capacity.

Typical inputs include:

• Current labor hours and cost by workflow.
• Orders, lines, units and inventory movements per hour.
• Peak-volume requirements and overtime exposure.
• Error, rework and exception-handling costs.
• Facility expansion or relocation costs avoided.
• Revenue that could be supported with additional capacity.
• Implementation, integration, maintenance and support costs.

The most useful ROI model is based on the warehouse’s actual order history and operating constraints rather than generic industry averages.

Under two years is the target positioning for suitable Carte+ applications, but it should not be treated as an automatic outcome for every facility.

Payback depends on labor cost, utilization, shift structure, throughput, deployment scope, workflow complexity and the amount of productive capacity created. Cartesian uses operational data and digital-twin analysis to determine whether the target is supportable before the final solution is approved.

The business case is broader than simply replacing labor. Value can come from several areas working together:

• More output from the same building footprint.
• Reduced walking, travel and non-value-added handling.
• Improved labor productivity and labor predictability.
• Lower overtime and temporary labor exposure.
• Faster order-cycle and inventory-response times.
• Reduced need for major facility reconstruction.
• Ability to support new customers or higher service levels.

AMRs are generally easy to introduce and can reduce walking, but many AMR workflows still depend on people to access, handle and pick inventory. They often improve a portion of the process rather than automating storage and retrieval across the full rack structure.

Traditional ASRS can deliver high performance, but frequently requires specialized storage structures, extensive construction, longer implementation programs and substantial upfront capital.

Carte+ is positioned between these alternatives: retrofit-oriented like flexible automation, but designed to deliver rack-level storage and retrieval capabilities closer to an ASRS.

Carte+ is specifically designed to work with existing warehouse infrastructure whenever the rack condition, geometry and structural capacity are suitable.

During assessment, the team reviews rack type, shelf depth, bay dimensions, clearances, load characteristics and structural condition. Any reinforcement or modification requirement is identified before the installation plan is finalized.

The platform is intended for a range of brownfield environments, including standard selective racks, pick modules, mezzanines, high-bay storage and very narrow aisle configurations.

Final suitability depends on the physical dimensions, inventory profile, required throughput, fire and life-safety constraints, rack condition and the workflows being automated.

A full-facility shutdown is generally not the intended deployment model. Carte+ can be installed progressively by zone, aisle or operating area so the remaining facility can continue functioning.

Installation work may be scheduled during off-shifts, weekends or planned low-volume windows. The exact approach is developed with site operations, safety and facilities teams.

The retrofit approach is designed to avoid the large-scale floor work and structural replacement associated with many traditional automation systems.

Bot paths are mounted in relation to the existing rack structure, helping keep robotic traffic above normal floor operations. Site-specific electrical, safety, guarding, access or structural work may still be required and is identified during engineering.

The process begins with site and workflow assessment, followed by digital-twin development, detailed engineering, installation, integration, testing and operational ramp-up.

Initial design can be developed in days, digital validation in weeks and a production deployment in a phased program over the following months. The exact timeline depends on scale, procurement, rack condition, software integration and the number of workflows included.

Yes. Progressive scalability is one of the core design goals of Carte+. A deployment can begin with a priority workflow, aisle, customer account or operating zone and then expand as demand and the business case justify additional capacity.

The expansion roadmap should be planned during the initial design so controls, lifts, bot paths, software capacity and interfaces support future phases without unnecessary rework.

Carte+ is designed for low-touch integration with existing warehouse and enterprise systems. The integration layer can exchange orders, inventory, task status, exceptions and completion events with the host environment.

During discovery, Cartesian documents the current system of record, available APIs or files, latency requirements, data ownership and exception-handling rules. The integration approach is then matched to the customer’s technology maturity rather than requiring a complete platform replacement.

A modern enterprise WMS is not necessarily a prerequisite. CarteCloud can operate as a focused warehouse-management layer for the automated area while connecting to a legacy WMS, ERP or order-management platform.

For some applications, this creates a “warehouse-within-a-warehouse” operating model that limits the amount of change required in the host environment.

The software architecture is organized across three operating layers:

• CarteCloud: inventory, order and warehouse-management functions for the automated area.
• CarteEdge: execution, task orchestration, resource optimization and robotic path planning.
• CartePLC: edge control and coordination of hardware devices.

Together, these layers connect business-level demand with real-time robotic execution.

The digital twin models the proposed physical layout, workflows, inventory movements, resource requirements and operating rules using customer-specific information.

It can be used to evaluate:

• Expected throughput and cycle times.
• Robot, lift and workstation requirements.
• Congestion points and resource bottlenecks.
• Peak-volume and shift scenarios.
• Phased deployment options.
• Expected operational and financial outcomes.

This allows the design and business case to be challenged before equipment is installed.

Typical inputs include order history, order lines, SKU dimensions, inventory locations, velocity profiles, storage rules, replenishment activity, staffing, shift schedules, service requirements and facility drawings.

Data does not need to be perfect before the assessment begins. Gaps can be documented and supplemented through site observation, sampling and operational interviews. Better data, however, produces a more defensible design and ROI model.

The platform can be configured around several storage and material-flow workflows, including:

• Order picking.
• Replenishment.
• Inbound receiving and putaway.
• Storage and retrieval.
• Returns processing.
• Inventory consolidation and repositioning.

The right starting workflow is usually the one with the clearest combination of volume, repetitive travel, labor pressure and measurable service impact.

Yes. Carte+ is designed with multi-tenant operating environments in mind. Inventory, workflows, service rules, users and reporting can be separated by customer while using shared automation resources.

This is particularly valuable for 3PLs that need to onboard new accounts, support different service-level agreements and allocate shared capacity without building an isolated automation system for every customer.

Exception workflows are defined as part of solution design. Depending on the operation, an exception may be redirected to a manual station, quality-review area, supervisor queue or alternate fulfillment path.

The objective is not to pretend exceptions will disappear. It is to identify them, make them visible and prevent them from disrupting the primary automated flow.

A support program can include preventive maintenance, condition monitoring, remote diagnostics, software support, spare-parts planning and on-site service procedures.

Carte+ is designed around standardized, commercially available components where practical, helping reduce dependence on highly specialized proprietary parts. The final service model is established according to operating hours, response requirements, site capability and system scale.

Training is role-based. Operators learn normal workflow, workstation interaction and exception procedures. Supervisors learn monitoring, prioritization and escalation. Maintenance teams learn inspections, preventive tasks, safe access, diagnostics and recovery procedures.

Training should be completed before go-live and reinforced during ramp-up using standard operating procedures and scenario-based practice.