Kuka and Contoro Automate Trailer Unloading for Safety
A California 3PL cut back-strain injury claims by handing trailer unloading to AI-powered robots — here’s how the automation actually paid off.
Third-party logistics provider States Logistics has automated one of the most physically punishing jobs in the warehouse — manually unloading floor-loaded semi-trailers — by pairing a KUKA industrial robot with AI-powered software from Contoro Robotics at one of its California distribution centers.
Why This Job Needed Automating
Repetitive case unloading from non-climate-controlled trailers ranks among the most ergonomically dangerous warehouse tasks, and overexertion from lifting, lowering, pushing, and carrying remains a leading cause of workplace injury according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. “The need for change was about protecting our employees, not just our throughput,” said Javier Sevilla, VP of Operations at States Logistics. Before automation, two to four employees manually unloaded two to three trailers per shift — a job made harder post-2020 as fewer workers wanted to spend shifts inside hot, cramped trailers.
The Results
The automated system now handles four to five trailers per shift with fewer workers involved, while Contoro’s robots reliably pick more than 300-350 cases per hour — exceeding that figure at many customer sites, including multi-picking of smaller, lighter boxes. The facility handles over 50 truck-trailer containers monthly. Contoro combines its AI with a custom gripper, a mobile base, and a KUKA arm, and recently raised $12 million in Series A funding — backed by Doosan, Coupang, and the Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund — specifically to scale this category of robotics.
What This Means for Procurement Teams
Injury-driven ROI is a real business case, not just a safety talking point. States Logistics explicitly framed this as a health-claims and retention problem before a throughput problem — worth building the same framing into any automation business case where labor injury data is available internally.
Trailer unloading remains one of the hardest tasks to automate reliably. Contoro’s backing from Amazon’s own industrial innovation fund signals genuine confidence in the category — but the 300-350 cases/hour figure still trails a human’s 500-700 items/hour, meaning this is currently a labor-quality and safety play more than a pure throughput upgrade.
Watch this vendor category for consolidation. With fresh Series A capital and strategic investors like Coupang and Amazon’s fund involved, trailer-unloading robotics is attracting serious capital — worth tracking as a maturing vendor category rather than an experimental one.
FAQ
What problem does trailer-unloading automation actually solve?
It removes workers from one of the most ergonomically dangerous warehouse tasks — repetitive lifting and carrying inside non-climate-controlled trailers — reducing back-strain injuries and associated health claims.
How many cases can automated trailer-unloading robots handle per hour?
Contoro’s system typically handles 300-350 cases per hour, and can exceed that at some customer sites, though this still trails a human worker’s typical 500-700 items per hour.
Who is investing in trailer-unloading robotics?
Contoro Robotics raised $12 million in Series A funding from investors including Doosan, Coupang, and the Amazon Industrial Innovation Fund to scale its AI-powered unloading technology.
Sources
- ManufacturingTomorrow, KUKA Automated Trailer Unloading Enhances Worker Safety for Distribution Centers
- KUKA Global, AI-Powered KUKA Robots Unload Truck Trailers, Streamline Warehousing at 3PL Company
- Automated Warehouse, Contoro Robotics Raises Series A Funding to Scale Trailer Unloading Automation