Exedy announced on December 3rd that two of its AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robot) "Neibo Powerful Robots" have been installed at LIXIL Logistics' Kanto Logistics Center since January and have continued to operate without any malfunctions.
<Neibo, the robot that automatically transports luggage>
The Kanto Logistics Center handles products such as residential window frames and entrance doors that can reach up to 6 meters in length, and because multiple such items are transported together, the overall weight of the shipment is extremely heavy.
Transportation is primarily done using forklifts, which require qualifications and skills to operate. However, in recent years, securing qualified personnel and the reliance on individual expertise in the work have become challenges, raising concerns about future labor shortages.
When introducing AMR robots, LIXIL Logistics prioritized "ensuring safety," requiring precision to accurately detect people and other forklifts and to stop or avoid them reliably. They also needed power to handle heavy loads and the ability to overcome obstacles in the warehouse without floor modifications.
After comparing products from several companies, we decided to introduce two "Neibo Powerful Robots" because only they met our requirements and had specifications that could flexibly respond to the detailed needs of the site.
After multiple test runs, it was officially introduced in January 2025 and has been operating stably with zero failures even in harsh environments exceeding 40 degrees Celsius during the summer. The fact that the standard application can be operated intuitively without any programming knowledge has also been highly praised.
LIXIL Logistics plans to add four more "Neibo" forklifts this fiscal year. In the future, they plan to reduce the number of forklifts they currently use by more than a dozen by utilizing a total of six Neibo units and improving the overall efficiency of their forklift operations.
Furthermore, the company anticipates expanding this successful model from the Kanto logistics center to other locations in areas such as Kyushu and Okayama, and is also considering integration with a WMS (Warehouse Management System).
Robot Bank/AMR to implement "towing function" for cage trolleys and other vehicles.
