Optimize Warehouse Labor with Material Handling Automation

Drew Bruno | 16 April 2025

Labor and resource planning has always been a moving target. Even the most well-run warehouse or fulfillment center can struggle to match staffing levels with demand. When the right people aren’t available at the right time, delays stack up, costs rise, and service levels slip.

Operations teams are up against a familiar set of challenges like fluctuating order volumes, high turnover, and inefficient workflows that create bottlenecks. In the 2024 MHI Annual Industry Report, more than half of material handling leaders cite talent shortages—hiring and retaining qualified workers—as one of their biggest challenges, ranking it as very or extremely difficult to manage. Scaling up often means adding temporary workers or increasing overtime, but that’s not a sustainable strategy. How work is structured and allocated has just as much impact on efficiency as the number of workers on the floor.

Material handling automation provides a way to stabilize operations, improve labor efficiency, and optimize resources without relying on constant hiring cycles. But before looking at the solutions, it’s important to understand where the biggest inefficiencies emerge and why workforce planning remains a challenge.

Labor & Resource Planning Challenges in Warehouses & Fulfillment Centers

Every warehouse, distribution center, and e-commerce fulfillment operation face similar labor and resource planning challenges. These issues affect daily operations, increase costs, strain the workforce, and hinder efficient scaling.

Warehouse Labor Shortages & Workforce Uncertainty

Staffing is unpredictable. Demand fluctuates, hiring cycles are inconsistent, and finding enough skilled workers is an ongoing challenge. E-commerce peaks and seasonal spikes make it even harder to maintain the right balance, often forcing businesses to rely on costly overtime or temporary workers. When turnover is high, training new employees slows down productivity even further.

Warehouse Space Constraints & Inefficient Workflows

Poor warehouse design and outdated processes create unnecessary movement, wasted time, and congestion in critical areas. Workers spend too much time walking between pick locations, handling repetitive tasks, or waiting on materials. When space isn’t used effectively, it adds to operational strain, limiting throughput and increasing fulfillment times.

Lack of Real-Time Inventory & Labor Visibility

When inventory tracking is disconnected from workforce planning, it leads to overstocking, stockouts, and delays in fulfillment. Without real-time visibility, allocating labor efficiently is difficult. Either teams are overwhelmed during peak demand, or resources sit idle during slower periods. These inefficiencies create ripple effects throughout the entire supply chain.

Manual Labor Planning vs. Automated Workforce Optimization

Many operations still rely on manual scheduling, static workforce planning, and outdated systems. Instead of reacting to real-time demand, they’re left reacting to labor shortages or shifting workloads at the last minute. Without data-driven forecasting and automation, efficiently planning labor and resources is nearly impossible.

How Warehouse Automation Bridges the Gap

Material handling automation plays a critical role in stabilizing warehouse and fulfillment operations. By optimizing labor allocation, streamlining workflows, and reducing reliance on manual processes, automation helps businesses overcome staffing shortages, improve efficiency, and scale with demand.

Smarter Workforce Planning with WES AI

Advanced Warehouse Execution Systems (WES) allow businesses to align workforce availability with real-time operational needs. Instead of relying on static schedules, automation dynamically allocates labor based on demand, ensuring that staffing levels are optimized throughout the day. Data captured by a WES helps to:

• Capture pattern recognition and historical data to help with demand forecasting.
• Identify bottlenecks and plan, or release, work around those bottlenecks.
• Provide a granular view of the decisions – system reactions and adjustments based on variable inventory and order data – made in real-time.

AI and machine learning trends can help further prepare for seasonal fluctuations with increased clarity to achieve predictive labor forecasting, automated inventory tracking and faster adjustments.

Reducing Labor Dependency with Robotics & Automation

Automation reduces the physical strain on workers while improving efficiency across warehouse workflows. Goods-to-person systems, Automated Storage & Retrieval Systems (AS/RS), conveyors, and robotic palletizing take over repetitive, labor-intensive tasks, allowing existing staff to focus on higher-value work.

• AS/RS and goods-to-person systems minimize travel time and manual handling.
• Conveyor systems and robotic sorting improve throughput and reduce bottlenecks.
• Robotic palletizing increases order accuracy while reducing reliance on manual stacking and lifting.

Scalable Solutions for Peak Demand

Temporary labor isn’t always the best solution for handling seasonal demand surges. Automation scales dynamically to meet increased order volumes, eliminating the need to expand and contract the workforce constantly.

• Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and conveyor automation absorb order volume increases without additional staffing. Adding additional AMRs to an already existing fleet is very low effort in the event the business outgrows their existing fleet capacity for an upcoming peak season.
• Flexible robotic picking and packing systems handle peak loads without sacrificing speed or accuracy.

Creating Safer, More Engaging Jobs

Automation doesn’t replace workers—it improves job quality by reducing repetitive, physically demanding tasks. Employees can transition to roles focusing on system oversight, troubleshooting, and process optimization, increasing job satisfaction and retention.

• Ergonomic improvements reduce workplace injuries and fatigue.
• Technology-driven roles provide employees with opportunities for upskilling and career growth.
• Less physical strain leads to lower turnover and higher retention rates.

Real-World Examples: How Automation Improves Warehouse Labor Planning

Understanding how material handling automation supports labor and resource planning is best seen in action. Companies can solve workforce challenges with the right automation strategy and a knowledgeable integration partner while improving efficiency and scalability.

Two companies—Friesens Corporation and Mary Kay—faced workforce planning challenges head-on and turned to automation to create more efficient, scalable operations.

Friesens Corporation: Enhancing Efficiency with Collaborative Robots

Friesens Corporation, a book manufacturer and packaging specialist, needed to improve its picking and packing operations efficiency. Space constraints and labor-intensive processes were limiting production capacity and throughput.

Challenges:

• Limited warehouse space restricting workflow optimization.
• Manual palletizing creating labor strain and inefficiencies.
• High product variability requiring a flexible automation solution.

Automation Solution:

Friesens implemented collaborative robots (cobots) to automate palletizing, reducing the physical demands on workers while optimizing space. The integration also included StackOrder GO™ pallet pattern selector software, improving efficiency for diverse product handling.

Results:

• Optimized space utilization by using compact cobots instead of larger industrial robots.
• Reduced labor strain by automating repetitive palletizing tasks.
• Improved throughput with faster, more efficient order fulfillment.

Read the case study.

Mary Kay: Handling Seasonal Demand Without Expanding Workforce

Mary Kay, a global leader in cosmetics, sought to improve efficiency in their order fulfillment process to handle significant seasonal demand fluctuations without increasing labor costs.

Challenges:

• Seasonal demand surges requiring additional temporary labor.
• Manual order fulfillment processes leading to slower processing times.
• The need to maintain consistent service levels while controlling labor expenses.

Automation Solution:

Mary Kay implemented Bastian Solutions' Exacta intralogistics software alongside a pick-to-light system to address these challenges. This integration streamlined their order fulfillment operations, enabling real-time inventory control and more efficient picking processes.

Results:

• 29% increase in operator pick rates, boosting from 650 to 840 units per hour due to ergonomic improvements and system reliability.
• Enhanced labor efficiency, reducing the need for temporary staff during peak seasons.
• Improved job satisfaction among operators, attributed to the system's ease of use and ergonomic design.

Read the case study.

The Future of Workforce and Resource Planning: Why Automation is Essential

Friesens Corporation and Mary Kay demonstrate how warehouse automation reduces labor strain, improves efficiency, and enables smarter workforce planning. Instead of reacting to labor shortages or seasonal spikes, automation creates a predictable, scalable fulfillment strategy that adapts to demand without overextending the workforce.

For warehouses, distribution centers, and e-commerce fulfillment providers, AI-driven workforce planning, robotic fulfillment, and AS/RS systems redefine how businesses allocate labor, optimize space, and scale for growth. However, implementing automation successfully requires the right expertise and strategy that aligns with your facility’s unique operational challenges.

Why Work with a Material Handling System Integrator?

Deploying automation includes selecting the right technology and ensuring seamless integration, maximum efficiency, and long-term scalability. Working with an experienced material handling system integrator like Bastian Solutions provides:

• Tailored automation strategies based on operational needs and growth goals
• End-to-end integration of robotics, AS/RS, WMS, and AI-driven workforce planning.
• Scalable solutions that adapt to labor fluctuations and seasonal demand shifts.
• Industry expertise backed by real-world automation success stories.

Contact a Bastian Solutions engineer to explore material handling automation solutions that alleviate labor and resource planning points.

Author: Drew Bruno