Skip to content
‹ Back to IndustriesEngineering & Construction

Starting Small: How to Scale an Operation with Robotics

Companies can implement robotics incrementally to overcome cost barriers and build toward larger automation gains. Robotics offers opportunities to enhance efficiency, particularly as supply chain disruptions and rising labor costs continue to challenge the logistics sector. Matt Kelly from Hai Robotics discusses strategies for adopting scalable robotic systems.

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Engineering & Construction teams put it to work with Partner & Channel Enablement.

Promoted content from Hai Robotics on MarketScale.

By Hy Tek Intralogistics · · Automation InsiderGlobal Robot InstallationsHai RoboticsHy-tek Intralogistics
Share

Key takeaways

01

Companies can implement robotics incrementally to overcome cost barriers.

02

Robotics helps mitigate financial risks with small, scalable investments.

03

Automation strategies differ for existing vs. new facilities.

Free workspace

Turn your Engineering & Construction expertise into content.

Record interviews, organize footage, and write with AI on a free trial of the MarketScale platform for qualifying companies. No demo required, no credit card.

Try it Free

As supply chain disruptions and rising labor costs challenge the logistics sector, automation is increasingly viewed as a solution to stay competitive. Robotics, in particular, offers opportunities to enhance efficiency, but many companies hesitate due to concerns about upfront costs and scalability. According to the International Federation of Robotics, global robot installations were expected to exceed 540,000 units in 2024 — signaling a growing shift toward automation. For companies looking to keep pace, the question arises: How can businesses start small with robotics and scale effectively without overcommitting resources upfront?

Welcome to Automation Insider by Hy-Tek Intralogistics. In this episode, host Joe McGrath dives deep into the topic of scalable robotics with Matt Kelly, Director of Business Development at Hai Robotics. Together, they explore strategies for businesses to adopt flexible robotic systems that can grow with their operations.

Key takeaways from the discussion:

  • Starting Small for Big Impact: Robotics isn't just for large-scale facilities anymore. Flexible systems allow startups and smaller distribution centers to automate affordably, helping them compete against giants like Amazon.
  • Tailored Solutions for Brownfield vs. Greenfield Sites: Automation strategies differ significantly between retrofitting existing facilities and building new ones, with modular systems offering unique advantages for both.
  • Lowering Risk with Incremental Investments: Robotics now enables companies to invest in small, scalable increments, mitigating financial risks and simplifying future expansions.

Matt Kelly is an accomplished business leader specializing in robotics, automation, and fulfillment solutions. Currently the Director of Business Development at Hai Robotics, he leverages over a decade of experience to help companies optimize warehouse efficiency with high-density, scalable robotic systems. Previously, he held key roles at AutoStore and inVia Robotics, where he drove strategic growth through innovative automation technologies, cementing his expertise in advanced supply chain solutions.

Hai Robotics

Part of this channel

Hai Robotics

Logistics robots that increase warehouse density and picking speed

Visit the channel

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Engineering & Construction starts with a company putting its project engineers, superintendents, and estimators on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Owners shortlist firms they already trust, and your field leaders become the reason your name is on that list.

Book DemoSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.

About the author

HT
Hy Tek Intralogistics
B2B Weekly

The week in Engineering & Construction, and sixteen other industries, every Monday.

Ten stories, one-line takes, five minutes. Free.

Engineering & Construction: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Engineering & Construction buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. Explore how your experts, customers, and partners can become useful content for buyers and AI search.

Free Trial

You just read one Engineering & Construction expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your project engineers, superintendents, and estimators into the articles, video, and social content Engineering & Construction buyers are searching for. Start a free trial and see it with your own people. For qualifying companies, no credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What your free trial includes

Hands-on access to the MarketScale platform
Media requests to your crowd, remote recording, AI writing tools
No demo required. No credit card.
For qualifying companies. Company confirmation required.

More Engineering & Construction Insights

Bain Capital's reported $250M minority investment values construction platform Kahua above $1B

Bain Capital's reported $250M minority investment values construction platform Kahua above $1B

Bain Capital's Tech Opportunities fund is putting a reported $250 million into Kahua at a valuation above $1 billion. The deal follows what Kahua says is $100 million in annualized revenue. The bet rests on owner-side program data, with AI features the next sign to watch for hospitals, ports and school builders.

  • 01Kahua is selling AI on the strength of the governed data owners already keep in it. That makes data quality and permissions the place to test any new AI feature it ships.

Oct 1, 2026

Element’s Charlotte lab makes tensile specimens from turbine blade roots

Element’s Charlotte lab makes tensile specimens from turbine blade roots

Element Materials Technology’s Charlotte lab wire-EDMs one-eighth-inch cylinders from the root of a turbine blade and low-stress grinds them into tensile specimens—work value stream manager Daniel Steele says he’s not aware other labs do at this size. The lab, which invested $3.2 million in 2019 according to Aerospace Manufacturing and Design, is adding creep and stress rupture frames under a lease signed in January.

  • 01The extraction know-how has a paper trail: Aerospace Manufacturing and Design reported in March 2019 that Element’s $3.2 million Charlotte investment included EDM plunge machines—and that Charlotte was the first Element lab to install them for extracting cylindrical specimen blanks.
  • 02Deloitte's November 2025 outlook put manufacturing construction spending down 7% year over year by July 2025, so a lab adding floor space and creep frames is growing inside one of the few pockets Deloitte flagged for expansion.

Sep 30, 2026

NMHC survey: 37% raised pricing on projects on hold

NMHC survey: 37% raised pricing on projects on hold

NMHC's September construction survey found 37% of respondents repriced shelved projects upward, versus 17% in June. Starts slowed too: 29% of firms started fewer projects, and a growing share saw labor and material costs outrun inflation.

  • 01Upward repricing of projects held three to six months rose from 17% of survey respondents in June to 37% in September, while downward repricing fell from 38% to 14%.

Sep 28, 2026

Explore More Engineering & Construction Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Engineering & Construction.

Browse Engineering & Construction Hub

About the Experts

HT
Hy Tek Intralogistics
MK
Matt Kelly

Director of Business Development

Hai Robotics

Matt Kelly is an accomplished business leader specializing in robotics, automation, and fulfillment solutions. Currently the Director of Business Development at Hai Robotics, he leverages over a decade of experience to help companies optimize warehouse efficiency with high-density, scalable robotic systems. Previously, he held key roles at AutoStore and inVia Robotics, where he drove strategic growth through innovative automation technologies, cementing his expertise in advanced supply chain solutions.

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Engineering & Construction and beyond.

Book a Demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512