The 2026 outlook: caution now, more automation later

Modern Materials Handling’s 2026 Outlook Survey reports a cautious near term and a stronger two-to-three-year view. Of companies proceeding with investments, 59 percent are spending on information systems such as a warehouse management system, 41 percent on automation technologies, 40 percent on lift trucks, 40 percent on storage, and 38 percent on conveyors and sortation.

Asked about the next two to three years, 42 percent said materials-handling spending would increase, compared with 35 percent in the prior survey. Average planned spending over the next 12 months is reported at $541,670, up from under $402,000 the year before. The survey also notes new systems that miss their expected rate, which sends some operators back to look at controls software.

On mobile equipment, 16 percent said they are using AMRs or automatic guided vehicles, up from 10 percent the year before, and 27 percent said they will evaluate them within one to two years. Industrial robots were in use at 21 percent, up from 13 percent. Named AMR and AGV jobs include storage, each pick-and-place, bin picking, and part-to-picker fulfillment.

A rate that was promised and not met is often a controls and mechanical problem on equipment that is already installed. That is the work a crew does after the project team has left.