How to Stress-Test Your Automation Business Case Before the Board Signs Off

A former DHL executive who oversaw as many as 500 automation projects a year explains why so many warehouse automation business cases fall apart after go-live. Adrian Kumar spent more than two decades at DHL in third-party logistics, designing and evaluating automation solutions across hundreds of projects a year. Now working independently, he brings a bias-free view of where mobile automation pays off and where it quietly fails. Chapter Markers 00:00 Cold open: the risk of large automation write-offs 00:32 Guest introduction: Adrian Kumar's 3PL background 01:20 What the automation market gets wrong today 02:51 Why solution design assumes ideal conditions 05:13 Go-live surprises that expose bad assumptions 08:13 Cookie-cutter rollouts versus bespoke automation builds 10:35 How automation decisions changed over 20 years 12:53 Are automation success rates actually improving 15:31 Where customer assumptions go wrong upfront 18:08 Starting small before a big-bang investment 20:53 Lighthouse sites versus multi-site pilot testing 23:43 Where suppliers overstate achievable productivity 26:39 The vendor questions every customer should ask 30:24 Auditing automation performance years after go-live 34:41 The pick-to-belt system that got ripped out 36:13 Ergonomics and the human case for automation 38:13 Has brownfield-friendly automation caught up 40:43 Evaluating new mobile robot technology 43:14 Where automation wins are today: travel, pick, storage 46:06 How bad inventory data breaks automated systems 49:20 The assumption to stress-test before sign-off 51:50 Designing for peak volume versus staying flexible 54:51 The McDonald's lesson in balance and ergonomics 57:48 Closing thoughts: the vendor question that reveals honesty Useful Links & Resources Adrian Kumar on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriankumar/ Rocrich AGV Solutions: https://www.rocrich.com Connect With the Show LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rocrich/ Website: https://rocrich.com/contact/