An international competition for innovative material handling products has named the winners of its seven product categories and one startup firm, saying in a ceremony on July 3 that the IFOY Award honors the most innovative intralogistics solutions of the year.
The International Intralogistics and Forklift Truck of the Year (IFOY) Award is sponsored by the German Material Handling and Intralogistics Association (Fachverband Fördertechnik und Intralogistik) and the Robotics + Automation Association within VDMA. Headquartered in Ismaning near Munich, the IFOY AWARD is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.
This year’s technology competition included a total of 49 products on the initial application list. Making it to the finals were 15 companies with 21 products and solutions — just shy of the all-time high reached in 2023. Those entries competed in March during a Test Camp that allowed hands-on evaluation and testing of products based on engineering and operational design. And the winners were:
- Warehouse Truck of the Year: EP Equipment’s X MOVER EXP15
- Robot Warehouse System: Exotec’s Skypod System
- Integrated Customer Solution: Geekplus’ RoboShuttle + P40 Tote-to-Person Solution
- Special of the Year: Interroll’s Modular Conveyor Platform (MCP) PLAY
- Counter Balanced Truck of the Year: Jungheinrich’s EFG 425
- Intralogistics Software of the Year: PLANCISE’s Workforce Management for Logistics
- Mobile Robot of the Year: STILL’s FM-X iGo
- Start-up of the Year: Filics’ Filics Unit
“The lineup of finalists alone demonstrates the tremendous innovative strength within intralogistics,” Anita Würmser, executive chair of the IFOY jury in Dortmund, said in a release. “The jury’s decisions reflect more than ever that volatile markets, rising cost pressure, and the ongoing labor shortage call less for incremental improvements and more for practical, economically viable solutions. Autonomization is a clear trend, but it’s simplified thinking that drives real innovation.”
According to IFOY, the winners were chosen through a three-stage audit process – consisting of the comprehensive IFOY test protocol with around 80 criteria, the scientific IFOY Innovation Check, and the jury test. Final selections are made by an international jury of expert trade journalists. Among that group is David Maloney, group editorial director of both DC Velocity and Supply Chain Xchange magazines.
