ForwardX Robotics

ForwardX Robotics builds vision-first autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) for the manufacturing, warehousing, automotive, retail, and 3PL industries. The company’s diverse robotics portfolio includes solutions for picking, packing, point-to-point transport, pallet movement, multi-floor fulfillment, finished goods movement, and storage management. ForwardX’s product family includes the Max 1500-L Slim, a point-to-point material movement robot with a 360° obstacle detection and avoidance system and a payload capacity of over 3,300 pounds. Newest additions include the Flex 300-SCB Mini and Flex 300-L Mini, specifically designed to traverse ultra-narrow aisles (800-1000 mm) safely and efficiently; and the Apex 1500, a forklift made for ground-to-ground and point-to-point scenarios that doubles as an automated pallet jack.

While ForwardX offers its customers outright sale and renting options, it also offers a subscription-based robots-as-a-service (RaaS) model. Customers have access not only to the company’s equipment, but also to its f(x) Fleet Manager software, which orchestrates the robots’ movements in concert with one another and serves up real-time fleet visibility, data, and KPIs. The RaaS model allows customers along the supply chain to innovate and upgrade their facilities without the large upfront investment typically associated with automation projects.

“Investing millions into a system with limited flexibility often isn’t an option for supply chain operations,” says Founder and CEO Nicolas Chee, “especially in a post-pandemic environment. Supply chain operations are under a lot of pressure to deliver, and our customers needed a solution better-suited to their operational goals. RaaS was a logical step to align our company with the needs of the market.”