SWISSLOG | INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION CUSTOMER TESTIMONIAL
How Swisslog Turned Warehouse Automation Into a Customer Success Story
Swisslog needed more than footage of robots moving across an AutoStore grid. It needed HelloFresh to explain why the system was selected, how SynQ coordinates the operation, and how the completed solution supports high-throughput fulfillment and continued menu growth. Simplistic Views produced that customer testimonial at HelloFresh’s Irving, Texas distribution center.
- Up to 380,000 Order lines per day
- ~4,000 Bin presentations per hour
- AutoStore + SynQ Integrated by Swisslog
- Irving, Texas HelloFresh distribution center
The first two figures are operational metrics from the HelloFresh implementation, not Simplistic Views marketing-performance results.
Swisslog and HelloFresh customer testimonial video
View Video Transcript
HelloFresh is the leading meal kit company. Our mission statement is to change the way that people eat forever.
To really provide a large variety that mixes up dinner every week, the desire to increase the level of automation was to increase our capacity level so that we could ship meals to more customers while we also continue to increase our offerings to those customers as well.
We knew that we wanted to add some things that would allow us to help with increasing efficiencies within our DCs and also raising the quality.
There were always several options. There are a ton of technologies that are out there today. AutoStore is a proven technology. We know that Swisslog has very strong software capabilities with AutoStore.
From a risk-reward standpoint, we felt very comfortable moving forward with this solution. From end to end, we had a solution that was going to increase our quality, increase our efficiencies, but also give us the flexibility to continue to increase our meal choice over time.
We kicked off a very collaborative design effort with Swisslog. I think that is where the partnership and trust came in, as we knew that we were going to be able to feed off each other and provide those ideas back and forth.
Making sure that you have a good partner, such as AutoStore and Swisslog, allows you to feel confident that the technologies they have on the market are stable, scalable, and that they have a long-term business relationship with you.
Software is always underlooked in these types of automation systems, but it is always really the most important thing. Without the right software powering the automation, you will never see the true potential of the overall system.
SynQ is the warehouse execution system, the WES, that powers the entire system. What it does is handle things from order allocation to our inventory levels and also handles all the logic. Where am I going to route the box next? How am I going to execute the pick?
It is controlling all the logic that runs behind that system, and you are able to have full control over your automation due to the software.
The robots are always fun to watch. They sell themselves. Ultimately, what the team has had to figure out is how to take full advantage of those robots and make sure that they are working as efficiently as possible. That boils down to really learning the SynQ software, learning how to interact with the SynQ software, the most optimal way to drop our orders, and the most optimal way to send orders to the system. Then you are able to take full advantage of the robots’ capabilities.
Ultimately, what SynQ has allowed us to do is leverage this AutoStore in a way that is unique to the overall industry. In traditional e-commerce, you have about one to two order lines per box. We are about 15 times that in several cases.
From an AutoStore perspective, the entire system ships upwards of 380,000 order lines per day. We have seen about 4,000 Bin presentations in a single hour out of the AutoStore. It is a very high-throughput system that puts together the whole puzzle.
We can stay ahead of the competition because, as we listen to our customer voice and hear what our customer wants, this level of automation and fulfillment technology allows us to rapidly increase that SKU count based on what our customer feedback is providing us while also maintaining the same level of efficiency no matter what we are fulfilling.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
A Customer Testimonial, Not a Warehouse Highlight Reel
Simplistic Views produced a customer testimonial video in which HelloFresh stakeholders explain, in their own words, why they invested in more automation and what the completed system does. The roles are worth keeping straight:
- HelloFresh is the customer and operating company that runs the fulfillment center.
- Swisslog is the automation integrator and software provider, and the Simplistic Views client.
- AutoStore provides the cube-storage robotic system.
- SynQ is Swisslog’s software that coordinates warehouse execution and automation.
- Simplistic Views produced the customer testimonial video.
That distinction matters, because the persuasive power of the piece comes from the customer explaining the operational problem, the selection process, and the result. It is a strategy that applies to any complex manufacturing or industrial technology product.
THE PROBLEM
Growth Increased Fulfillment Complexity
HelloFresh, a major global meal-kit provider, wanted to ship meals to more customers while continuing to offer more meal choices. Those two goals pull in different directions: greater menu variety creates operational complexity. More recipes and options can mean more of almost everything a distribution center has to manage.
The company needed to scale fulfillment without sacrificing quality or flexibility. This was a growth-and-complexity challenge, not a failing operation. Communicating that kind of nuance is where product and technology video earns its place.
- More SKUs
- More inventory combinations
- More order lines per box
- More complex sequencing
- Greater accuracy requirements
- More pressure on DC operations
THE CHALLENGE
Automation Had to Handle More Than Volume
The task was not simply storing more product. HelloFresh’s model requires many ingredients and order lines to be assembled accurately into individual customer boxes. In the video, the speakers explain that a conventional e-commerce shipment may include one or two order lines, while a HelloFresh box can involve approximately 15 times that number of order lines in certain cases.
That creates a difficult fulfillment problem with many moving parts at once:
- High throughput
- Accurate sequencing
- Inventory control
- Product freshness
- Menu variety
- Routing logic
- Picking efficiency
- Manual and automated coordination
With multiple automation technologies on the market, HelloFresh also needed confidence that its chosen solution, and its chosen partner, would hold up over time. The company operates within the HelloFresh Group, and the selected system needed to be:
- Stable
- Scalable
- Flexible
- Supported over the long term
- Powered by capable software
- Adaptable as preferences evolve
THE SOLUTION
AutoStore, Integrated by Swisslog
Swisslog and HelloFresh began a collaborative system-design process. The resulting solution combined the AutoStore system with Swisslog’s design, integration, controls, and software.
AutoStore is straightforward to picture: robots move across the top of a compact storage grid, retrieving inventory Bins and delivering them to workstations. AutoStore provides that core cube-storage and robotic technology. Swisslog designed and integrated the broader operation around it, and SynQ orchestrates the execution. Presented together, it is an integrated system rather than a collection of robots.
As one HelloFresh speaker puts it, the robots are impressive to watch, but the software determines whether the operation realizes their full potential.
THE SOFTWARE LAYER
The Robots Create Attention. SynQ Coordinates the Operation.
The customer testimony is clear that the visible robotics are only one part of the system. SynQ warehouse execution software is the layer that powers the operation, managing the logic behind every move:
- Order allocation
- Inventory levels
- Box routing
- Pick execution
- Material flow
- Automation control
- Coordination between processes
According to the speakers, the team’s real work was learning how to use SynQ to optimize when and how orders were released into the system, which in turn let them get more out of the AutoStore robots. That is the practical case for treating technical product video as an explanation tool, not decoration: the value lives in the logic, and the logic needs a person to explain it.
PARTNERSHIP
A Collaborative Implementation, Not Just an Equipment Purchase
The testimonial does not describe the project as buying a machine. HelloFresh and Swisslog collaborated during system design, trading operational and technical ideas back and forth. The speakers credit that partnership and trust with much of their confidence in moving forward.
That matters because industrial automation buyers are not only choosing hardware. They are choosing an integration and support relationship they expect to last for years. A customer testimonial can communicate stability, scalability, and long-term partnership in ways a specification sheet cannot, which is precisely why this format works so well for complex systems.
THE RESULT
High Throughput, Coordinated by Software
The supported outcomes speak to scale and coordination rather than a single headline percentage. The system assembles complex, many-line customer boxes at high volume while supporting continued menu growth:
- Up to 380,000order lines per day
- Total order lines the integrated system ships in a day, not orders or boxes.
- ~4,000Bin presentations per hour
- Bin presentations delivered out of the AutoStore in a single peak hour.
- ~15–16xorder lines per box vs. some e-commerce
- In certain high-complexity workflows, versus roughly one to two lines in some conventional e-commerce boxes.
STRATEGIC OUTCOME
Scaling Menu Choice Without Sacrificing Efficiency
The outcome HelloFresh emphasizes is not only speed. Customer feedback drives changes in menu variety and SKU count, and the automation foundation lets the company expand choice while continuing to fulfill efficiently. The value connects directly to the customer-facing promise of more meal variety.
- Customer demand
- More menu choice
- More SKUs and order complexity
- Greater fulfillment pressure
- Automation and software coordination
- Scalable variety without equivalent disruption
PRODUCTION STRATEGY
Why This Customer Testimonial Works
General praise does not move an industrial buyer. This testimonial is persuasive because it is built from five specific elements, the same structure we bring to any B2B case study video:
-
A clear business problem
HelloFresh needed more capacity and more menu flexibility at the same time.
-
A credible decision process
The speakers acknowledge that multiple automation technologies were considered.
-
A specific reason for selecting Swisslog
Swisslog’s software expertise, partnership, and integration capabilities reduced perceived risk.
-
Technical substance
The video explains what SynQ actually controls, not just that software exists.
-
Measurable proof
The customer provides specific throughput figures in precise units.
TECHNICAL STORYTELLING
Visualizing Value That Is Hard to Film
Some of the most important capabilities in an automated operation cannot be filmed directly. Robotic footage creates visual interest, but interviews provide the meaning behind it. The finished video combines customer interviews, automation footage, facility activity, and operational context so the numbers arrive with a story attached.
- Execution logic
- Inventory coordination
- Routing decisions
- System integration
- Scalability
- Operational flexibility
- Partnership
- Risk reduction
SALES ENABLEMENT
Where a Customer Story Supports the Buying Process
A strong industrial testimonial is proof, not just awareness. These are strategic applications across the buying process, not a verified list of every channel where the video was used:
Awareness
- Introduce Swisslog’s automation capabilities
- Demonstrate a large-scale application
- Create compelling robotics content
Consideration
- Explain AutoStore and SynQ
- Address scalability and integration
- Demonstrate software capability
- Explain operational complexity
Decision
- Provide customer validation
- Reduce perceived implementation risk
- Demonstrate collaboration
- Show real performance metrics
Sales Enablement
- Support presentations and follow-up
- Use at trade shows
- Embed on product pages
- Equip reps with proof
ABOUT THE CLIENT
About Swisslog
Swisslog designs, integrates, and supports automated logistics solutions that combine robotics, storage systems, material handling, and intelligent software. Its offerings include AutoStore integration, automated storage and retrieval, goods-to-person systems, warehouse execution and management software, robotics, and lifecycle services. The company has Swiss roots, operates globally, and is part of the KUKA Group.
Swisslog acts as an AutoStore integrator: AutoStore provides the core cube-storage and robotic technology, and Swisslog designs, controls, and supports the broader system around it. That experience in data-driven and robotic logistics automation is what the HelloFresh testimonial puts into operational terms.
THE PROJECT
About the HelloFresh Automation Project
The implementation is located at a HelloFresh distribution center in Irving, Texas. AutoStore and SynQ were integrated to help HelloFresh manage growing demand, increased menu variety, and complex fulfillment requirements. The full details are documented in the official Swisslog HelloFresh case study, which describes how SynQ integrated AutoStore with the broader distribution-center operation, from upstream picking through downstream shipping sortation.
PLAYBOOK
Key Takeaways for Automation Marketers
If you market complex automation, a customer testimonial is one of the highest-leverage assets you can produce. A few principles from this project:
- Lead with the customer’s operational problem.
- Show the machinery, but explain the software.
- Ask why the customer selected the integrator.
- Address perceived risk and implementation complexity.
- Include engineers and operators where appropriate.
- Capture measurable results with precise units.
- Distinguish orders, order lines, picks, presentations, and throughput.
- Connect technical features to customer-facing outcomes.
- Film enough facility context to orient the viewer.
- Build shorter edits from the primary customer story.
- Create versions for sales, web, events, and social.
- Verify all technical and performance claims before publishing.
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Turn Complex Automation Into a Credible Customer Story
When your solution combines robotics, software, systems integration, and measurable operational results, Simplistic Views can help your customer explain why it works and why it matters. Call or text 773-985-4899.