NEDRE VATS, Norway, Nov. 30, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — AutoStore™, a pioneering robotic technology company specializing in automated storage and retrieval systems, announces the induction of its founders, Jakob Hatteland and Ingvar Hognaland, into the Logistics Hall of Fame. The pair were recognized for having reinvented and commercialized warehousing with the AutoStore System. According to the organization, Hatteland and Hognaland were selected for developing one of the most important inventions in modern logistics, which is now a worldwide standard for efficient warehouses. They were officially inducted at the 2023 Logistics Hall of Fame Gala Reception in Berlin, Germany, on November 29.
A jury of 70 well-known figures from business, science, politics, and media representing 13 countries was responsible for selecting the AutoStore founders as the newest recipients of this prestigious honor. Hatteland and Hognaland join other illustrious Hall of Fame inductees such as Jeff Bezos, Henry Ford, and Frederick Smith, the founder of FedEx.
Anita Würmser, Executive Chairwoman of the Logistics Hall of Fame jury, explained the decision, “The induction of the two AutoStore founders into the Logistics Hall of Fame is overdue. Hognaland invented the automated cube warehouse and developed it into a perfect system that today has more than 1,600 patents. Hatteland will go down in logistics history because, on the one hand, he courageously believed in the success of the system for years and built up a network of selected international distributors who made AutoStore a global bestseller.”
Jakob Hatteland and Ingvar Hognaland founded AutoStore in 1996 in the small Norwegian fjord town of Vats after developing an idea to overcome warehouse space constraints. Hognaland came up with the concept of a standardized, automated, cube-based storage and retrieval system to reduce what his company was storing most of – air. Inspired by the Rubik’s Cube, he developed a prototype utilizing a grid system with storage bins that could be retrieved with a robot and delivered to a waiting human at a workstation. The AutoStore System was born.
Having seen the potential of the AutoStore System to revolutionize the storage and logistics business, Hatteland set about commercializing it in 2004. Through a lean partner-based go-to-market model, AutoStore began to make a mark on the logistics industry with customers recognizing its enormous potential to boost space, time, and cost efficiency in their operations. Today that mark is truly global with over 1,350 AutoStore systems installed for over 950 unique customers across 52 countries.
Mats Hovland Vikse, AutoStore CEO, reflected on the importance of such an honor for the AutoStore founders. “Jakob and Ingvar are the epitome of inventors and pioneers. They took a problem and made it into a groundbreaking solution that changes the way we think about using the finite space we have. They represent a true founder’s mentality that continues to inspire and drive us as a company. While today we are a global company with over 900 employees working with the world’s biggest brands, we are still deeply connected to our roots and the problem-solving mentality inspired by Jakob and Ingvar.”
He added, “I am incredibly proud to hear they have been honored with induction into the Logistics Hall of Fame. It serves as inspiration for all of us at AutoStore.”
Accompanying photos from the event can be found here.
About AutoStore | www.autostoresystem.com
AutoStore, founded in 1996, is a technology company that develops order -fulfillment solutions to help businesses achieve efficiency gains within the storage and retrieval of goods. The company offers both hardware and software capabilities and the AutoStore technology is interoperable with other third -party solutions. AutoStore is global, with ~1,350 Systems in 52 countries. All sales are distributed, designed, installed, and serviced by a network of qualified system integrators referred to as “partners”. AutoStore was founded in Nedre Vats, on the west coast of Norway. The company has offices in Norway, the U.S., UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and Singapore, as well as assembly facilities in Poland.
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A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b0ebb70c-a0af-4ec8-993b-455cc374b8fc