AUTOMATION & ROBOTICS R
apidly changing trade rules and unclear policy direction generated significant hesitation among supply chain managers, forcing companies to delay investment decisions, reroute shipments, and
reassess sourcing strategies. This marked a sea change following the relative calm seen in 2023 and early 2024. From 2025 into 2026, stress has remained elevated, driven not only by ongoing geopolitical tensions but also, increasingly, by structural trade fragmentation and persistent tariff uncertainty, which continue to raise costs, extend lead times and increase operational complexity across global supply networks.
“3PLs throw up the most complex challenges where the adoption of warehouse automation is concerned.”
Greater supply chain complexity tends
to be associated with higher revenue and capacity requirements for major 3PL providers, as supply chain challenges encourage more companies to outsource logistics to specialised partners. When the Global Supply Chain Stress Index climbed from roughly 0.5 in 2020 to above 2.0 in 2022, combined quarterly revenues for DHL Group, Kuehne + Nagel, CEVA Logistics and A.P. Moller Maersk doubled from about €32Bn to nearly €58Bn. As supply chains become ever more complex, lead times become longer, volatility rises and operational risks grow, to manage. In response, more and more companies appear to be outsourcing supply chain operations to 3PLs.
construction forecast, which shows 3PL providers expanding faster than the overall market. While the total warehouse construction index declined from 107 in 2022 to 103 in 2024 and will remain largely strongly, rising from 103 in 2024 to 112 in 2026. This divergence indicates that 3PL
warehouse investment remains structurally elevated despite weaker overall construction activity. CEVA Logistics, for instance, is developing a new warehouse in Singapore
3PLS ARE RAMPING UP WAREHOUSE CONSTRUCTION: HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS FOR AUTOMATION
By Matthieu Kulezak, Senior Analyst, Interact Analysis
Global supply chains are in another period of high stress and are becoming increasingly complex. In April 2025, the Global Supply Chain Stress Index saw a dramatic rise as the dual shocks of tariff measures and heightened policy uncertainty disrupted global trade flows
that will increase its total warehouse footprint to around 4 million square feet. In parallel, Kuehne+Nagel has opened a new 108,000 square foot healthcare distribution centre in Germany to support complex, EMEA. Both of these companies mentioned that the need to increase their footprints was a direct result of increasing demand.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR WAREHOUSE AUTOMATION INVESTMENTS? 3PLs throw up the most complex challenges where the adoption of warehouse automation is concerned. This is because the nature of their operations means they facilities, changing SKU mixes and shorter contracts. This translates into a demand for mobile automation that can scale or be redeployed quickly, as has been evident in recent deployments, with DHL Supply Chain expanding its partnership with Locus Robotics to deploy up to 2,000 autonomous utilised during peak periods. In parallel, companies such as DSV have deployed AutoStore systems across their networks.
22 APRIL 2026 | FACTORY&HANDLINGSOLUTIONS
DSV has plans for a global roll-out of
where mobile robot revenue from 3PL the overall market, increasing nearly sixfold between 2023 and 2030 compared to a roughly threefold increase for the total market, highlighting the structurally rising role of 3PLs in driving mobile automation demand.
HOW WILL THIS AFFECT SYSTEM INTEGRATORS? A strategic convergence between 3PLs and system integrators is increasingly plausible as their value propositions begin to overlap. System integrators no longer just design automation architectures; many now deliver turnkey warehouse environments that include software, equipment, maintenance and in some cases, on-site operational support. Functionally, this moves them closer to managing the warehouse itself rather than simply enabling it. At the same time, 3PLs are investing
heavily in automated facilities to improve productivity and differentiation. As automation becomes central to warehouse
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