The 5 stages of AMR selection: A complete overview

Choosing the right technology—and vendor—to improve your manufacturing processes is a critical decision that impacts both immediate results and long-term company success. This blog will provide an overview of the five key stages for selecting the right autonomous mobile robot (AMR) solution, helping you navigate critical decisions with confidence. To dive deeper into each stage of the journey and gain actionable insights, download the full guide, “The manufacturer's playbook for AMR selection: A 5-stage guide.”

Stage 1: Define the problem and explore potential solutions

In this stage, your goal is to align your company’s objectives with the right solution. What operational challenges exist in your manufacturing processes? Are there any bottlenecks impacting efficiency or safety? What goals are you looking to achieve through automation? Identifying the key bottlenecks in your material handling process will help ensure that you select the right technology to address your specific operational inefficiencies. AMRs, for example, can help connect your islands of automation to combat labor shortages, improve safety and increase efficiency. Learn more on page 6 of the full guide.

In this stage, you will:

• Start by confirming the specific KPIs the automation solution needs to achieve (e.g. improve overall efficiency via increased uptime)
• Identify areas or processes in your facility that directly impact these KPIs (e.g. material transport delays)
• Identify potential solutions within those areas or processes that best address the inefficiencies (e.g. AMRs, conveyors, AGVs or other material handling automation)
• Validate that the automation solution can effectively address your use case and meet your success metrics before evaluating further

An easy way to begin evaluating automation solutions is at upcoming events, including LogiMAT in Stuttgart, DE from March 11-13 and ProMat in Chicago, US from March 17-20. If you’re considering AMRs, these events are a great way to compare vendors by watching live demos, interacting with software, and speaking directly with material flow experts.

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Video 1: Attending trade shows is the most efficient way to compare multiple AMR solutions at once. By evaluating the demos alone, you can build a stronger understanding of each vendors’ software capabilities, safety features and robustness within minutes. Watch this video to learn how you can quickly evaluate AMR solutions by looking for these six signs of confidence on the exhibition floor.

Stage 2: Independently research vendors to pre-qualify solutions

With AMRs now identified as the right solution, the next step is to filter vendors based on their ability to meet your specific operational and technical requirements. This stage is about pre-qualifying vendors based on their ability to achieve your goals while meeting key technical needs, such as workflow compatibility, payload capacity, and infrastructure requirements.

This preliminary qualification ensures you only focus on solutions that align with your use case, facility constraints, and long-term goals—allowing you to focus on more in-depth conversations in the next stage.

Stage 3: Meet with your chosen vendor to validate the solution

At this stage, direct engagement with your chosen vendor(s) is essential to validate your independent research and ensure their solution can truly meet your goals. Through discussions, demonstrations, and real-world insights, you’ll assess vendors’ technical capabilities and their ability to support your long-term success.

A critical milestone in your early vendor conversations is to ensure the solution is compatible with your unique needs. To confirm this, your vendor may ask for key details about your facility, workflows, and requirements, such as:

• Your current material transport process: What’s working well and what is not?
• Your goals and success metrics: What challenges are you trying to solve and what metrics do you want to achieve?
• Your operational requirements: What kind of environment will the AMRs be operating in, and what integration is required?
• Your payload considerations: What are the AMRs moving—including weight, dimensions, wrapping, pallet type and material?
• Your workflow details: What is the location and height of the pick-up and drop-off? What is your current and ideal throughput?
• Your facility conditions and layout: How much manual traffic is in the area where the AMR would operate? Are there any ramps, grades, or slopes?
• Your facility’s IT infrastructure and connectivity: Is there consistent WiFi coverage across the facility?

While the vendor confirms if the solution is compatible with your needs, it's important for you to ask the vendor about their implementation capabilities, including:

• Timeline feasibility: Can the vendor meet your implementation timeline?
• Resource allocation: Does the vendor provide the necessary deployment resources to keep your project on schedule?
• Operational continuity: How will the deployment impact your current operations? Can disruptions be minimized?
• Transition support: Does the vendor provide guidance on how to socialize this culture shift to your employees? Do they provide training to ensure your workforce is ready to adopt these new processes and technologies?
• Budget alignment: Can the vendor deliver the solution within your allocated budget while meeting your implementation and support requirements?

In this stage, you’ll also evaluate the vendor’s ability to support your long-term needs, including their industry experience, integration capabilities, and support options. Discover key questions to consider on page 14.

Stage 4: Build a tailored business case to gain stakeholder buy-in

With a validated vendor solution in hand, the next step is securing internal alignment by determining your ROI and the key components of your business case.

To build a strong financial case and calculate an accurate ROI timeframe, request these key inputs from your vendor and compare them against the cost of your legacy solution (see page 17):

• Expected number of AMRs (fleet size) and cost per AMR
• Cost of software and upgrades
• Cost of deploying the solution (installation, commissioning, testing)
• Cost of chargers and their infrastructure
• Training costs for operators and maintenance teams
• Post-implementation service and support costs
• If applicable, cost of attachments required for the workflow, additional network infrastructure costs, and any possible WMS/ERP integration or system integrator costs

To help you build confidence in your investment and a more compelling business case, it's critical that you request simulation as part of this process. This service not only helps validate projected ROI, but it also helps you visualize how the solution will be customized to your facility’s unique requirements to enhance material flow. Simulation is especially essential if your fleet size is expected to be large, as simple spreadsheet calculations are often imprecise and unreliable at scale.

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Video 2: Simulation of an AMR deployment.

Securing buy-in from key stakeholders is one of the most crucial stages of building a successful business case for AMRs. For example, your Health and Safety team likely cares about reducing workplace incidents and ensuring compliance with safety regulations. To secure their support, ensure your business case outlines how the AMR solution reduces material handling risks, decreases forklift-related accidents, and helps maintain a safer working environment by complying with safety regulations. Discover what other stakeholders in your organization may care about and how to secure their buy-in on page 20 of the full guide.

Stage 5: Submit business cases for vendor selection

Once your business case is approved and key stakeholders are aligned, the next step is to finalize vendor selection and move forward with procurement. At this stage, the purchasing team will manage the process, collaborating closely with engineering and operations teams to ensure the final selection aligns with the technical, operational, and long-term strategic goals outlined earlier in the process.

Choosing the right AMR solution for your manufacturing process is crucial for long-term success. To ensure you're making the best decision, explore each stage of the process in greater detail by downloading the full guide, “The manufacturer's playbook for AMR selection: A 5-stage guide.”