From September 17 to 18, the 16th Urban Logistics Development Conference and the 4th High-Quality Development Conference of Commercial Logistics were held in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province.
Hosted by the China Warehousing and Distribution Association, this year’s conference was themed “Innovation Breaks New Ground, Quality and Efficiency Rise” . It focused on the construction of a modern commercial circulation system, innovative practices in urban logistics distribution, high-quality development of commercial logistics, and new quality productive forces such as unmanned operations, artificial intelligence, and green distribution. The event brought together representatives from logistics industry authorities, industry associations, production and commercial circulation enterprises, warehousing and distribution service providers, logistics real estate and parks, and research and education institutions from across the country.
As a representative enterprise in the field of intelligent warehousing automation, Modula was invited to attend the conference and joined industry peers in exploring new paths for innovation and quality improvement in urban logistics.
Customer Case: A Real Example of “Quality and Efficiency Rise”
The conference theme “Innovation Breaks New Ground, Quality and Efficiency Rise” ultimately comes down to one question: In an era of rising labor costs and increasingly tight space, how can enterprises achieve higher operational efficiency with fewer resources?
A case study of a domestic building materials and new energy equipment enterprise served by Modula may offer one answer:
Customer Pain Points:
A domestic building materials and new energy equipment enterprise with global operations had long relied on traditional storage methods during its transformation:
Faced with thousands of parts and components, operators had to shuttle back and forth between shelves to find and retrieve goods, walking nearly 20,000 steps per person per day. Time-consuming searching and lengthy travel routes not only slowed down production pace but also kept picking error risks high, while space utilization remained difficult to improve.
Solution:
After comparing more than ten domestic and international suppliers, the company ultimately chose to introduce Modula LIFT to centrally store various parts and components.
The core of this project was to completely change the warehouse operating logic from “people finding goods” to “goods coming to people”: the equipment was directly integrated with the company’s SAP system. After order information was entered, operators used barcode scanners to retrieve material information, and the system automatically directed the lift module to deliver the corresponding tray to the access opening. After confirming picking completion, the tray automatically returned to its position—no manual searching between shelves was needed throughout the entire process.
Project Results:
These few pieces of equipment occupied only about 60 square meters but stored more than 3,000 different parts and components. To achieve the same storage capacity using traditional methods would require approximately 1,000 square meters of space—saving about 90% of floor space on this single item alone. The average picking time per item was reduced from 2 minutes to 45 seconds, and warehouse operator demand dropped from 8 people to 5, significantly reducing labor costs.
From “people finding goods” to “goods coming to people,” from experience-dependent to system-driven—this is exactly what the conference advocated as “Quality and Efficiency Rise” looks like on the front lines of a warehouse.
At the Conference: An In-Depth Exchange with Industry Peers
During the conference, Modula set up a dedicated exhibition booth and received an exclusive interview with Harbin Radio and Television Station. We participated in all agenda items throughout the event, engaging face-to-face with industry authorities, associations, and enterprise representatives from across the country, and experiencing the changes happening on the front lines of the industry.
Modula also participated in the enterprise visit segment arranged by the conference, gaining access to local enterprises’ production and warehousing front lines. We observed specific scenarios such as automated equipment layouts, warehouse management system operations, and personnel working methods, giving the eight words “Innovation Breaks New Ground, Quality and Efficiency Rise” a more intuitive footnote.
From policy interpretation to front-line practice, from urban-rural logistics networks to unmanned technology applications, every exchange gave us a more concrete understanding of the industry’s next direction.
Our Reflections
This year’s conference conveyed a clear signal: Urban logistics is shifting from “scale expansion” to “quality and efficiency improvement.” The improvement of unified warehouse and shared distribution, instant delivery, and the urban-rural three-tier two-way circulation system all place higher demands on storage density, picking efficiency, and digital collaboration capabilities in the warehousing segment.
As an enterprise deeply engaged in automated vertical warehousing for nearly 40 years, Modula strongly identifies with the “Innovation Breaks New Ground, Quality and Efficiency Rise” concept advocated by the conference. We believe that whether it is logistics for ensuring the supply of daily necessities or the integrated development of forward/reverse recycling logistics, efficient, precise, and traceable warehousing automation will be an important link supporting the high-quality operation of urban logistics networks.
We thank the China Warehousing and Distribution Association for its careful organization, and we thank every industry peer who engaged in in-depth exchanges with us during the conference. In the future, Modula will continue to focus on vertical warehousing automation as its core, helping more commercial circulation and urban logistics enterprises achieve cost reduction and efficiency improvement, and jointly driving the industry toward a higher-quality stage of development.
