How to Reduce Technician Walking Time and Improve Shop Productivity
Reducing technician walking time can improve productivity across a busy automotive service department. Every trip to the parts counter, storage area, tool station, or supply room takes a technician away from repair work. For service managers, parts managers, warehouse teams, and shop owners, reducing unnecessary movement is one of the most practical ways to keep more work moving through the shop.
How Can an Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) Help?
Autonomous mobile robots can help service departments move parts, tools, bins, tires, supplies, returns, and other materials between key areas of a facility. Instead of making the parts counter the center of every movement, an AMR can connect receiving, storage, the parts department, service bays, staging areas, and shipping points. Technicians still handle repairs, and the parts team still controls accuracy and inventory, while the robot supports the repetitive transport work that can slow the day down.
For example, an AMR can support scheduled parts delivery from the counter to service-bay drop-off points, move totes from receiving to storage, transport shop supplies to work areas, or collect warranty returns and cores from designated locations. In larger shops, this can reduce interruptions for technicians and allow parts employees to spend more time on picking accuracy, inventory organization, receiving, and customer support.
How Should a Shop Measure the Results?
The best way to introduce robotics in an automotive facility is to start with one repeated route. Look for movements that happen every day, such as parts-counter-to-bay delivery, receiving-to-storage transport, tire or battery movement, supply replenishment, or return collection. Before making a change, track the number of trips, the average time per trip, and the employees involved. After implementation, compare those same measures to determine whether the new workflow reduces interruptions and improves material flow.
This approach fits the way K&L Supply supports automotive and powersports service operations. K&L Supply is already positioned around premium hard parts, specialty tools, and shop equipment for service environments, so robot-assisted material handling is another way to help shops keep work moving efficiently. The goal is not to replace skilled employees. It is to reduce unnecessary walking, improve material flow, and help technicians stay focused on the job in the bay.
How K&L Supply Supports Automotive Service Automation
K&L Supply supports automotive and powersports service operations with premium hard parts, specialty tools, shop equipment, and robotics. Through ShopProBot, K&L can help facilities evaluate autonomous material movement for delivery, warehouse, and service workflows.
The JOY6 autonomous mobile robot, for example, is designed for heavy-duty transport with a maximum payload of 660 lbs (approximately 300 kg.)
The right configuration depends on the facility layout, route, payload, traffic patterns, safety requirements, and integration needs.
For more information, explore ShopProBot AMR industrial delivery solutions and contact K&L Supply to discuss a material-handling workflow for your shop.