In this episode of The New Warehouse Podcast, Kevin chats with Akash Gupta, Co-Founder and CEO of GreyOrange, and Jim Barnes, CEO of enVista. The conversation centers on their new partnership, bringing together GreyOrange’s AI-powered orchestration platform, GreyMatter, and enVista’s decades of supply chain consulting and systems integration expertise.
Together, the companies are introducing “enMotion,” a joint solution designed to orchestrate warehouse automation technologies, optimize fulfillment outcomes, and make robotics more accessible to warehouses of all sizes. The discussion highlights how orchestration, interoperability, and robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) are reshaping the industry while delivering measurable ROI for operators.
Why Warehouse Orchestration is the Missing Piece
Warehouses have traditionally added automation one subsystem at a time, often resulting in silos that fail to communicate. Jim Barnes explained the gap clearly: “Most warehouse management systems are really nothing more than a tasking engine. There isn’t anything dynamic about how work gets done and when work gets done.” GreyOrange’s GreyMatter software solves this by orchestrating people, robots, and processes in real time, ensuring that inventory and tasks stay aligned with service-level agreements. By layering enVista’s design and integration expertise on top, the partnership makes it possible to move beyond manual workarounds and deliver data-driven throughput at scale.
Lowering Barriers to Robotics Adoption
Despite proven benefits, automation adoption has often stalled due to cost, complexity, and risk. The enMotion platform aims to remove those hurdles. Barnes noted, “We can literally have a cobot on site within four to five weeks. We don’t even need to jump on their Wi-Fi—we can run proof of concepts off Bluetooth and Excel spreadsheets.” This approach, combined with a RaaS model, enables companies to test and scale robotics without incurring major upfront investments. Gupta emphasized their shared goal: “Our job is to absorb all the complexity and present something very simple, very malleable, very quick for the customer.”
From ROI to the Future of Fulfillment
For operators under pressure to meet tighter SLAs, faster payback is crucial. enVista and GreyOrange report that enMotion delivers ROI within 12–18 months, with productivity gains of 25–30% in early deployments. Beyond case picking, both leaders see limitless potential. Gupta shared, “There are tens of solutions that can be built—from micro-fulfillment to omnichannel to back-of-store applications.” Barnes added that this open, machine-agnostic approach is intentional: “Our secret sauce is being objective, based on data. We’re not going in with a pre-prescribed answer—we’re outcome focused.” Together, the companies aim to help warehouses rethink fulfillment and orchestrate operations for long-term resilience.
Key Takeaways: Orchestrate Warehouse Automation Technologies
- Warehouse orchestration is shifting automation from siloed tools to coordinated, outcome-focused systems.
- GreyMatter enables interoperability across multiple robotic vendors and warehouse processes.
- The enMotion platform allows rapid proof of concept with minimal upfront cost, thanks to RaaS.
- Customers are seeing 25–30% productivity improvements and ROI within 12–18 months.
- The partnership opens the door to a wide range of future applications, from omnichannel to micro-fulfillment.
