December 7, 2025

Getting an AS/RS system wrong costs money. A lot of it. The good news? Most problems come from missing basic planning steps, not from the technology itself. Here’s what you need to know before you start an ASRS systems integration project. Your Building Matters More Than You Think AS/RS systems are tall. Some reach 100 feet high. That means your building needs to handle the weight and the height. Start with a structural engineer. They need to check your floor’s load capacity. Concrete floors often need reinforcement. Steel buildings might need extra support columns. Older warehouses sometimes can’t support modern AS/RS at all. Don’t skip this step. We’ve seen projects delayed six months because the floor wasn’t ready. One client had to pour a new foundation. Another needed to add 12 support columns. Both could have been avoided with early planning. Your ceiling height sets your storage capacity. Every foot of height means more inventory you can store. But you also need room for fire suppression systems, lighting, and HVAC. Plan for at least 18 inches of clearance at the top. Your Current WMS Needs a Health Check An AS/RS talks to your warehouse management system constantly. Every pick, every putaway, every inventory move goes through that connection. If your WMS is old or custom-built, integration gets harder. Some older systems can’t handle the speed of automated storage. Others lack the API connections modern AS/RS systems need. Ask these questions about your WMS: Sometimes the WMS needs an upgrade before you add AS/RS. Sometimes you need WES (warehouse execution system) software to sit between your WMS and the automation. Sometimes you need both. Figure this out early. WMS upgrades can take 3-6 months. That affects your whole project timeline. Power Requirements Are Bigger Than Expected Some AS/RS systems can use a lot of power. The cranes run constantly. The conveyors never stop. The control systems need clean power without interruptions. Your electrical system needs three things: Enough capacity. A typical AS/RS uses 200-400 amps. Small warehouses sometimes need a complete electrical upgrade. Budget for it. Clean power. Control systems hate power fluctuations. You might need dedicated circuits, surge protection, or even a UPS backup system. The right locations. Power needs to reach the crane rails, the conveyor motors, and the control panels. Running new lines through an operating warehouse costs more than installing them in an empty building. Get an electrical contractor involved in month one, not month six. Fire Suppression Gets Complicated Fire codes for AS/RS are strict. Storage racks that reach the ceiling create fire hazards. Automated systems can’t evacuate themselves. Most AS/RS installations need in-rack sprinkler systems. That means sprinkler heads inside the storage structure, not just on the ceiling. The cost varies, but plan for $50,000 to $200,000 depending on system size. Your local fire marshal needs to approve the design. In some cities, this approval process takes months. Start it early. Some AS/RS designs use ESFR (early suppression fast response) sprinklers. Others use standard sprinklers with draft curtains. Your building height, product (including packaging), storage density, and local codes determine which you need. Layout Planning Takes Real Work Where the AS/RS sits in your warehouse matters. It affects everything else. Receiving proximity. Putting the AS/RS too far from receiving docks means long conveyor runs. Each foot of conveyor costs money and needs maintenance. Shipping access. Pick faces need to be close to shipping areas. Workers shouldn’t walk 200 feet to retrieve picked orders. Column spacing. Existing building columns might block the ideal layout. Sometimes you can work around them. Sometimes they force you to choose a different AS/RS. Traffic flow. Forklifts, people, and automation need to coexist. Poor planning creates bottlenecks and safety hazards. Draw it out. Use tape on the floor. Build a mock-up if you need to. Walking through the layout catches problems that look fine on paper. Product Matters Product size and shape play a critical role in AS/RS design, but it’s not just about the individual SKU. How the product is stored matters just as much — including vendor case sizes, inner packs, and the quantities you plan to hold and move through the system. Variability in dimensions, weights, and packaging can quickly limit storage density or complicate picking if it’s not understood upfront. This is why accurate product and order data is essential early in the process. Providing 12 months of outbound order history will help to establish realistic design rates for both storage and picking. That data helps determine slotting strategies, throughput requirements, and whether the system can scale with seasonal or promotional spikes. Replenishment also needs careful consideration. Replenishment should be simple, intuitive, and predictable. If the process becomes overly complex, labor-intensive, or error-prone, it’s usually a sign that the storage strategy or system configuration needs to be rethought before moving forward. Integration Time Is Real Time You can’t install AS/RS in a weekend. Even small systems take weeks. Large ones take months. Most warehouses can’t shut down for installation. That means working around ongoing operations. Night shifts. Weekend work. Phased installations. Plan for these phases: Week 1-2: Site prep. Floor reinforcement, electrical work, fire suppression rough-in, safety system testing. Week 3-6: Structural install. Rack assembly, crane installation, conveyor placement. Week 7-10: Systems integration. Control software setup, WMS connection, ongoing safety system testing. Week 11-12: Testing and training. System testing, staff training, process documentation. Week 13+: Go-live and optimization. Gradual ramp-up, issue resolution, performance tuning. These timelines assume everything goes right. Add buffer time for problems. They always happen. Staff Training Can’t Be an Afterthought AS/RS systems change how your warehouse works. Your team needs to learn new skills. Operators need to understand the control system. They monitor dashboards, handle exceptions, and troubleshoot basic problems. Maintenance staff need to know the mechanical systems. Crane maintenance is different from forklift maintenance. Supervisors need to understand the workflow changes. Pick processes are different. Put-away processes are different. Inventory management is different. Start training before installation finishes. Good vendors provide training during installation, not just after. Plan for at least 40 hours of training per