Automation Built for Aftermarket Parts Complexity
Deliver the best customer experience with industry-leading speed and flexibility
Trusted by more than 50 leading brands, including:
Built for Urgency, Long-Tail Inventory, and Same-Day Expectations
Aftermarket part distribution is defined by complexity, urgency, and extreme service-level expectations. Operational bottlenecks can immobilize a delivery, delay a job site, or cost you customer loyalty.
Exotec helps aftermarket and industrial parts distributors build warehouses that stay fast, dense, and reliable, even as your SKU counts grow, demand remains unpredictable, and service expectations rise.
Aftermarket Parts Push Traditional Automation Past Its Limits
Most automation systems are built for predictable flows. But the aftermarket parts industry is anything but predictable:
- SKU counts continue to grow, with thousands of slow movers that must remain accessible.
- Urgent orders spike near the cutoff, forcing systems not built for speed to fail.
- Inbound is chaotic between mixed pallets, partial arrivals, and a high decanting workload.
- Outbound staging consumes valuable floor space just to manage end-of-day peaks.
Avoiding these pitfalls is mission-critical in order to maintain a competitive edge in the industry. To address these challenges, Exotec delivers a new approach: an end-to-end solution built for the natural flow of aftermarket distribution — from inbound to outbound — without multiplying zones, labor, or complexity.
The Exotec Warehouse
Designed, Delivered, and Integrated as One Unified Warehouse Solution
Aftermarket warehouses can’t rely on disconnected subsystems to manage thousands of SKUs.
Exotec integrates inbound, high-density storage, buffering, and outbound operations into one single system built meticulously for aftermarket needs.
Extended Cutoff Time For Customer Deliveries
Aftermarket parts operations are strained by recurring cutoff-driven peaks.
Exotec’s native buffering absorbs demand surges without oversizing for demand peaks. The result: longer cutoff windows, better order consolidation, and efficient outbound execution — even with frequent, small multi-cycle orders.
Store More SKUs. Access Any Part.
The challenge with SKU growth in aftermarket distribution is not only storing more inventory, but also retrieving any SKU quickly.
Exotec provides high-density vertical storage with a consistent sub-two-minute response time across the full SKU range. Fast-moving and long-tail inventory operate in a single coordinated system, so you don’t have to choose between density and accessibility.
Designed for Mixed Pallets and High Inbound Variability
Mixed-SKU pallets and unpredictable replenishment cycles are structural challenges in the aftermarket industry.
Exotec’s integrated decanting and bin interface enables fast, low-touch put-away and immediate pick availability — no secondary storage, rack feeding, or added automation required.
What Our Customers Say
“It was critical for us to choose a partner that would minimally disrupt operations and grow, we’re able to add another presentation for outbound picking over a weekend, we can provide double the throughput for receiving in a weekend. And if need be to increase the throughput of products going out the door, we can add more robots within an hour.”
Learn How We Design and Deliver Systems for Aftermarket Parts
As an end-to-end systems integrator and OEM, Exotec has delivered automated warehouse solutions for complex, high-SKU environments worldwide.
Want to see how we handle long-tail inventory, late cutoff pressure, and other common industry challenges? Let us walk you through our approach and real-world results.
Aftermarket Parts Customer Stories
Insights
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the benefits of warehouse automation within the industrial sector?
In the industrial sector, the adoption of warehouse automation provides substantial advantages, particularly through the implementation of goods-to-person systems. These automated solutions optimize operational efficiency by streamlining repetitive and labor-intensive tasks, such as order picking and packing. Consequently, there is a significant boost in productivity and a reduction in order fulfillment times. The implementation of automation not only expedites processes but also minimizes the likelihood of human errors, ensuring a heightened level of accuracy in order fulfillment within industrial settings.
Moreover, the implementation of industrial warehouse automation solutions leads to significant advancements in storage capacity. These automated systems are meticulously engineered to optimize space utilization, utilizing techniques like maximizing vertical storage with tall racks and minimizing aisle space. In addition to space optimization, they facilitate advanced inventory management through real-time visibility, enabling precise tracking of the movement of industrial goods within the facility.
Ultimately, the integration of warehouse automation in the industrial sector enables businesses to adapt to changing market demands, enhance customer satisfaction, and maintain competitiveness in the dynamic industrial landscape.
Can the Skypod system be easily scaled up or expanded in industrial warehouses?
The Skypod system is designed with scalability in mind, catering to the dynamic and rapidly evolving landscape of the industrial sector. Its modular design enables seamless integration and expansion by decoupling throughput from storage. This innovative approach empowers the system to expand storage capacity without the simultaneous need to increase throughput capabilities, resulting in a more cost-effective and customized approach to capital expenditure savings.
Beyond scalability, the system’s versatility plays a crucial role in facilitating omnichannel fulfillment within the industrial sector. Whether incorporating an e-commerce channel, adjusting SKU numbers and structures, or transitioning from B2B to B2C fulfillment, our system adeptly addresses current requirements and adapts swiftly to evolving business models. Its inherent scalability is purpose-built to align precisely with the expanding needs of industrial warehouses, providing a solution that is both adaptable and efficient.
How does Exotec’s Skypod system enhance industrial distribution fulfillment efficiency?
The Skypod system revolutionizes the operational efficiency of industrial warehouses by employing autonomous mobile robots capable of three-dimensional navigation between storage racks and picking stations. This innovative goods-to-person approach to industrial distribution fulfillment eliminates the need for cumbersome, stationary machinery or inefficient digging to retrieve goods, thereby optimizing the storage and retrieval process.
The result is a substantial improvement in operational efficiency, with the system demonstrating the capability to reduce order processing time by up to 5X compared to manual methods.
What support does Exotec offer its customers?
As providers of industrial warehouse automation solutions, we are proud of our dedication to being dependable partners and providing steadfast customer support. Our committed teams ensure comprehensive maintenance, consistent software updates, and operational guidance. The contractual guarantee of our system’s performance for 10 years is upheld through robust and modular system designs, routine maintenance, and continuous 24/7/365 monitoring from our global control centers.
Our proven track record as a trusted partner is featured in our Partners You Can Trust article, showcasing our unwavering commitment to reliability.
Where does Exotec stand in technology and innovation for industrial warehouses?
Exotec stands as a trailblazer in industrial distribution fulfillment innovation, boasting a rich portfolio of over 100 international patents, underscored by a strong commitment to advancing research and development. A distinctive feature of our innovation endeavors is the allocation of 70% towards enhancing software, a direction steered by direct feedback from our industrial sector clients. This iterative process ensures a continuous evolution of our systems, adeptly addressing the ever-shifting demands of the dynamic industrial sector landscape.
Our commitment to technological innovation has garnered recognition, exemplified by recent accolades and our inclusion in esteemed lists like the CNBC Disruptor 50 for both 2022 and 2023.
See Our Full Range of Services
Let’s Transform Your Warehouse
Reach out to one of our team members to learn how our elegant robotics solutions maximize efficiency and provide the scalability needed in the aftermarket parts industry.