Autonomous Warehouse
Inventory Management
Autonomous warehouse inventory management is the use of AI-powered robots to scan barcodes and pallet locations in distribution centers without human operators. Dexory's™ ground robot scans every rack, floor, and mezzanine location with 99.9% accuracy and no fixed infrastructure — a 1-million-square-foot facility in a single day. The Corvus One™ drone is also available for aerial or cold-chain deployments. It is deployed across 3PLs, cold storage operators, and enterprise retailers.
Replace manual cycle counting with autonomous ground robots or inventory drones. Full-facility scans, 99%+ accuracy, direct WMS integration — with little to no change to your facility infrastructure.
Manual Inventory Management Is Broken
Manual cycle counting typically dedicates 2–4 full-time associates to counting, pulls forklifts off productive work, and still leaves accuracy gaps between annual physical inventories.
Most distribution centers operate at 85–95% inventory accuracy on any given day. That 5–15% gap drives failed picks, emergency replenishment, shrinkage, and customer service failures — all from a process that consumes 2–4 FTEs doing nothing but walking aisles with a scanner.
Annual physical inventories require teams of 8–130 people, days of operational disruption, and external auditors — for a snapshot of inventory that starts degrading the moment counting ends. There is a better way.
Autonomous Robots Replace Manual Counting — Entirely
Dexory's ground robot scans up to 15,000 pallets an hour with no fixed infrastructure, and Corvus One's inventory drone flies with no Wi-Fi or GPS — both sync a discrepancy report straight to your WMS.
Autonomous robots scan your warehouse on their own schedule, read every barcode and location, and upload a complete discrepancy report to your WMS before the next shift begins. No pilots. No scanners. No disruption to operations.
Full-Facility Cycle Counts
Every location counted every day. Discrepancies caught the day they occur — not weeks or months later. Your WMS becomes genuinely trustworthy.
Inventory Accuracy in 90 Days
From a typical 85–95% baseline to 99%+ within 90 days of go-live. Documented across enterprise warehouse deployments.
Infrastructure Changes Required
Dexory needs just a power outlet to charge. Corvus One needs a power drop and ethernet connection at each cradle. No racking modification, reflectors, or floor markers either way.
From the Floor to Your WMS — Fully Autonomous
Dexory's ground robot rolls out from its charging dock on a programmed schedule — day, night, or lights-out. No human needed to start, supervise, or land the mission.
LiDAR and camera arrays scan every pallet face, read every barcode, and capture timestamped images linked to WMS location addresses. Forklifts and staff work normally around it.
Monitors its own battery level, returns to dock autonomously, recharges, and relaunches for the next section. No human battery swap. Ever.
Scan data uploads directly to your WMS — SAP, Manhattan, Blue Yonder, Körber, and others. Supervisors review discrepancies and approve adjustments. No manual data entry.
Built for These Operations
Distribution Centers
High-velocity DC operations with 50,000+ locations, multiple SKUs, and daily order fulfillment requirements where accuracy failures directly drive customer service costs.
Cold Chain & Frozen
Cold storage and frozen warehouse operators where human counting in sub-zero environments is slow, expensive, and creates safety exposure. Cold Chain variant operates to -20°F.
3PL Operators
Third-party logistics providers with multi-client accuracy SLAs who need daily verification across all client inventory without dedicating headcount to each client's counting needs.
Retail Distribution
Retailers and grocery DCs where inventory inaccuracy drives out-of-stock conditions and failed replenishment — the accuracy gap that costs sales every day.
Pharmaceutical & Healthcare
FDA-regulated supply chain operations requiring documented inventory accuracy with full audit trail — every count timestamped, location-tagged, and photo-documented.
MRO Storerooms
Maintenance, repair, and operations storerooms at industrial facilities where parts availability directly affects uptime — and where inaccurate inventory drives emergency procurement.
Payback from Under 6 Months.
5-Year ROI of $1.5M+.
Delivered on a Robotics-as-a-Service model — an operating expense, not a capital project. Dexory customers typically see payback under 6 months (219% 3-year ROI, Forrester TEI study); Corvus One deployments typically reach payback in 10–22 months.
The ROI case for autonomous inventory management extends well beyond direct labor savings. When you model the full cost of manual inventory — including MHE diversion, annual PI events, shrinkage from infrequent counts, and failed pick cost — the total is typically 3–5× what operations teams estimate.
Most mid-size distribution centers achieve payback within 6 to 22 months depending on platform and facility profile. The subscription model means no CapEx — your ROI starts from month one with no capital appropriation required.
130 People → 8 People for Annual Physical Inventory
From Assessment to Go-Live
in 1–2 Weeks (or About 90 Days)
Dexory ground robots typically go live in 1–2 weeks. A full Corvus One drone deployment follows the ~90-day path below.
Warehouse Automation Guides
Go deeper on warehouse automation, inventory automation, and the scanning technologies behind it:
Warehouse Inventory Automation — Frequently Asked Questions
What is autonomous warehouse inventory management?
It is the use of AI-powered drones to scan barcodes and pallet locations in a distribution center without human operators. Platforms like the Corvus One fly the aisles on a schedule and report discrepancies to your WMS, replacing slow, hazardous manual cycle counting.
How accurate are inventory drones?
Facilities typically reach 99%+ inventory accuracy within about 90 days of deployment, and hold it with near-continuous counting rather than an annual physical inventory that is stale the day it finishes.
Do inventory drones need Wi-Fi, GPS, or facility changes?
No. The Corvus One localizes with onboard computer vision, so it flies without Wi-Fi, without GPS, and without rails, beacons, or other infrastructure changes to your building.
How much faster is drone counting than manual cycle counts?
Autonomous drone counting is roughly 20× faster than manual cycle counting — scanning on the order of 250 slots per hour, including the high, hazardous top-rack locations, and it can run lights-out.
What is the payback period for inventory drones?
Under a Robotics-as-a-Service model, deployments typically reach payback in about 10 to 22 months. Model your own numbers with our ROI calculators, or see typical ranges in the ROI Benchmark.
Is it safe to have on the floor around my staff and forklifts?
Yes. Autonomous inventory drones and ground robots use 360° obstacle detection and automatically stop, reroute, or ascend around people, forklifts, and other equipment in their path. Deployments follow recognized safety practices for autonomous mobile robots, including standards such as ANSI/RIA R15.08.
What happens if the robot goes down mid-shift?
It simply stops its scan and your operations continue exactly as they would without it — nothing about a robot outage blocks picking, put-away, or shipping. Maintenance and hardware issues are covered under the RaaS support agreement, and Actel's team is notified automatically to resolve it.
