Suzuyo, a $1.2bn-turnover Japanese logistics conglomerate, is advancing its plans for automating its logistics distribution centre in Shizuoka prefecture with MAESTRO – an AI-enabled control tower for the platform-agnostic co-ordination of all indoor mobile tasks. 

Musashi AI, a group company of Japanese Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd., has successfully completed a proof-of-concept for Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) at Suzuyo & Co. Ltd, a leading Japanese 3PL company, in partnership with Israeli firm 634AI – a Musashi Group affiliated company and developer of MAESTRO, an industrial automation and mobility management software.

Suzuyo – a leading Japanese logistics conglomerate with an annual turnover of around $1.2 billion – successfully tested Musashi AI's AMR. The AMR is powered by MAESTRO, a platform-agnostic control tower for logistics automation developed by Israeli company 634AI. The demo was performed in Suzuyo’s Shinshizuoka distribution centre in Shizuoka prefecture, where the AMR autonomously moved pallets in the facility from one location to another both smoothly and efficiently.

 

Following the successful proof-of-concept, the companies are now engaged in scale-up discussions to deploy 634AI’s cutting-edge MAESTRO navigation and fleet management software with Musashi AI’s AMRs across Suzuyo’s distribution centres in Japan.

Cutting-edge software meets world-renowned hardware

 

634AI and Musashi AI have been partnering since mid-2019 to leverage the unique combination of Israeli cutting-edge AI and computer vision software technology with Japanese world-renowned hardware engineering and industrial expertise, in order to bring practical, state-of-the-art solutions to the Japanese market. Musashi AI’s core business is AI visual inspection and 634AI’s core business is software development for industrial mobility orchestration, including for AMRs. The companies plan to further increase their R&D and commercial collaboration.

 

Onn Fenig, CEO of 634AI said their firm was honoured to partner Musashi and Suzuyo, two global industrial giants, to introduce the sizable benefits of his firm’s MAESTRO software system. “This Proof of Concept has been another excellent showcase of our MAESTRO software, demonstrating its unique capabilities for orchestrating indoor logistics while providing insightful information to facilitate safe and effective floor operations. We are humbled and proud that Suzuyo is considering adopting our MAESTRO AMR navigation and Fleet Management software in their facilities across Japan,” he remarked.

 

Murata Sota, CEO of Musashi AI, commented hat his company’s proprietary AMR technology – fully compatible with 634AI’s MAESTRO industrial mobility management software – is another example of Musashi AI’s “vision to introduce practical solutions that solve real human problems”. “In a world of labor shortage, autonomous logistics becomes a viable solution for many companies wanting to increase their resilience and business continuity, especially following a global pandemic such as Covid-19,” he added. 

Creating “sophisticated hybrid environments”

Ken Kawashima, General Manager of 3PL Business Development Department at Suzuyo said that his company was always thinking about improving the safety, quality and productivity of its distribution centres and providing customers with a high level of distribution service. “We believe MAESTRO offers a virtually unique ability to manage AMRs, and allows humans and robots to work together in sophisticated hybrid environments. Both Musashi AI and 634AI have the power to make the world’s logistics network function more efficiently than ever. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with these companies.”