Overview
Dematic Multishuttle: Mastering the flow of modern logistics
The Dematic Multishuttle is an automated storge and retrieval system that actively manages inventory and streamlines warehouse operations to provide fast, accurate storage and buffering. Automated shuttles move independently across multiple levels, making it easier to handle changing order volumes and priorities.
The Dematic Multishuttle provides a solution for high throughput requirements and unpredictability by offering a scalable architecture that adapts to the fluid nature of global commerce. With its flexible, scalable design, the Dematic Multishuttle supports dynamic buffering and sequencing to organize inventory and make it quickly accessible. This ensures your operation runs smoothly, even as your business needs shift.
Typical application and uses of the Dematic Multishuttle
The Dematic Multishuttle functions as the high-velocity core of many operations. Its versatility allows it to serve multiple critical functions simultaneously:
Serves as the engine delivering items to operators at high-speed picking workstations, which eliminates non-value-added travel time and drastically increases pick rates.
Excels at buffering and re-sequencing inventory, releasing loads in the exact order required for mixed-case palletizing or route-specific truck loading.
Acts as a dynamic reservoir, automatically replenishing active pick slots to ensure zero downtime in manual picking areas.
Stages raw materials and kits for manufacturing environments, delivering them to assembly lines in perfect synchronization with production schedules.
Provides a temporary holding area for completed orders, consolidating diverse items before final dispatch to maximize shipping efficiency.
Connects conveyor to existing flow lanes for inventory replenishment in brownfields facilities, saving expenses on additional conveyor.
Orchestrates the convergence of parts for operations requiring the assembly of multiple components into a single unit. The Dematic Multishuttle retrieves all necessary SKU components from disparate storage locations and delivers them simultaneously to a kitting workstation, streamlining assembly for manufacturing or promotional retail packs.
Solves the complex puzzle of building stable, mixed-SKU pallets by buffering diverse inventory and releasing cases in an exact sequence — heavy items first, lighter items last to ensure stable, store-ready pallets without manual sorting.
Key benefits of the Dematic Multishuttle in supply chain automation
Supply chain automation solutions that feature the Dematic Multishuttle come with several advantages:
High-velocity throughput
Achieves throughput rates up to 10x higher than other automated systems by decoupling vertical lifting from horizontal movement.
Increased density
Increases the vertical cube of your facility, significantly reducing the footprint required for storage and allowing operations to expand capacity by up to 4x without expanding real estate.
Error-free picking
Software nearly eliminates picking errors typically generated by manual operations through automated replenishment and integrated validation.
Increased productivity
High-speed shuttles working with high-throughput goods-to-person workstations eliminates unnecessary travel time for operators to increase productivity up to 5x.
Improved sustainability
Aligns with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. The Dematic Multishuttle 2 manufactured for the European market is the only shuttle AS/RS in the industry to be certified from the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute.
Dematic Multishuttle applications by industry
The Dematic Multishuttle delivers automation benefits for a wide range of industries by optimizing storage, buffering, and sequencing of inventory.
General Merchandise
The Dematic Multishuttle provides true omnichannel fulfillment, managing individual items for direct-to-consumer shipping alongside case handling for store replenishment. Order fulfillment operations featuring the Dematic Multishuttle handle peak seasons with agility and without the need for excessive temporary labor.
Case Study
BIG W’s DC features Australia’s first Dematic Multishuttle GTP system
See how general merchandise retailer, BIG W, fulfills orders quickly and efficiently at its new distribution center featuring a Dematic Multishuttle that buffers, sequences, and delivers items to goods-to-person (GTP) workstations.
How Dematic works in the real world
Dematic Multishuttle components
The Dematic Multishuttle has five main system components:
Shuttle
Automated vehicle that runs on rails within a racking structure to store and retrieve items
Rack
Standardized structure to store inventory that can scale by adding aisles or levels to meet growing inventory needs
Conveyor
Transfers items into/from shuttles for storage and retrieval
Lift
Raises or lowers item into/from conveyor to allow for storage and retrieval
Software
Orchestrates product flow and throughput
Dematic Multishuttle shuttle types
The Dematic Multishuttle has three types of shuttles:
Fixed Body
Application: High storage density for fixed sizes of storage and retrieval
Storage Depth: Single for narrow body, multi-deep for wide body
Adaptive
Application: High storage density for variable and oversized cartons with or without trays or containers
Storage Depth: Multi-deep
Belted
Application: Replenishment and transfer car between processes
Storage Depth: N/A
Handbook
Evaluation of Goods-to-Person Solutions for Optimized Item Order Picking
This eBook explores in detail the challenges supply chains currently face and compares the leading systems available today. Learn more about:
- The megatrends currently impacting businesses and their supply chains
- How automated goods-to-person systems provide highly efficient order fulfilment
- A detailed analysis and comparison of the technologies, plotting how they fit throughput and storage requirements
- Real-world examples of goods-to-person item order-picking solutions in action
Why choose Dematic as your automation partner
Built for continuous improvement
Our partnership continues long after go‑live. Dematic Lifecycle Solutions & Services refine, modernize, and expand systems as your business evolves. Assessment, optimization, training, and upgrades extend equipment life, improve performance, and reduce waste. Ongoing support featuring modular technologies and adaptable software allow you to grow your operations without disruption, securing long‑term value.