St. Onge Company was quoted in a recent Modern Materials Handling article about the results of the 2024 Warehouse/DC Outlook Survey. We noted that while the results seem conservative, there’s a lot of continued interest in automation. Use the link below to read the article!
Each year, the survey asks how the present state of the economy is affecting spend on materials handling systems and related technologies. And in this year’s survey, 46% say they are taking a “wait-and-see” approach, up from 34% last year.
Those who say they are proceeding with investments, given the present state of the economy, also fell, from 32% last year to 23% this year. The survey had a 2% decrease this year in those saying they are holding off investing (19%, down from 23%). When asked what they are holding off on, 83% said all capital purchases, with much smaller percentages holding off on specific types of systems or software.
We also ask those proceeding with investments what they are proceeding with, and 67% said materials handling equipment, 55% said automation and related technologies, and 50% named storage equipment, up by 10% year-over-year.
When asked how company spend on materials handling solutions in 2003 compared with 2022, 22% say it increased, down from 38%. Another 55% this year say their 2023 spending “stayed about the same” versus the previous year, whereas last year, 46% answered it stayed level.
Click here to read the article!
