Elotec: The Warehouse That Changed Everything
20 years ago, Elotec took a leap of faith on a new technology called AutoStore. Today, their Robots are still running.
20 years ago, Elotec took a leap of faith on a new technology called AutoStore. Today, their Robots are still running.
Sometimes, the biggest shifts in an industry start with a quiet conversation and a bold question: What if we tried something no one else has?
In 2003, warehouse robotics was still a theory. Automation was talked about in labs and trade journals, but rarely, if ever, put into practice at scale. Then a meeting happened. The team at Element Logic, Norway’s leading warehouse solutions specialist, met the inventor of AutoStore and something clicked. Together, they saw the future not as an abstract vision, but as something real and buildable, but to prove it, they needed a partner. Not a test lab, a real business with real pressure, real complexity, and the mindset to try something completely new. That’s when they found Elotec.
Tucked in the mountain town of Oppdal, Elotec had already earned a reputation as one of Norway’s most forward-thinking security tech companies. Since 1992, they’d been designing alarm systems and surveillance solutions that worked in harsh, often unforgiving environments. Farms, prisons, hospitals - Elotec protected them all, and that required not just technical innovation, but logistical precision.
Their warehouse operation had to be fast, it had to be accurate, and it couldn’t afford mistakes. “Elotec delivers technology that saves lives and valuables, and it is therefore important to be reliable and efficient with our deliveries,” said Jan Kleven, Elotec’s Founder and Managing Director. “Our smoke detectors often look the same, but they have different qualities, and it is easy to pick the wrong one by mistake manually. A picking error could potentially have fatal consequences.”
Kleven was clear-eyed about what the business needed: total control, zero errors, and the speed to scale. When he saw the potential of AutoStore, he was ready to act. “I told my team that if nothing could improve our delivery, I would rather wait 10 years,” he recalled, “but then everything changed.”
“There was skepticism,” Kleven admitted. “So, I promised my team that if the system did not prove itself in two years, I would bring in a bulldozer and clear it out myself. [Later, when I asked the team,] they told me 'no'. That is when I knew we had won their hearts."
Elotec became the first company in the world to install AutoStore. The system, implemented by Element Logic, covered just 164 square meters. It included five Robots, 5,966 Bins, and three ConveyorPorts. “There was skepticism,” Kleven admitted. “So, I promised my team that if the system did not prove itself in two years, I would bring in a bulldozer and clear it out myself.”
That bulldozer never came.
“The best part of AutoStore is that we know the job gets done properly. We constantly have an updated inventory list, and both our customers and we save time,” said Kleven. By 2007, the team didn’t want to go back. “They told me 'no'. That is when I knew the system had won their hearts.”
Since powering it on in 2005, the system has delivered uninterrupted performance. “We experience very few problems with our AutoStore system and have barely had any downtime at all since first powering up the Robots in 2005,” said Roger Furnes, Elotec’s Logistics Manager.
That reliability became a business advantage. “In our yearly survey, we always score high on delivery. We deliver faster and with more precision to our customers than our competitors do,” Furnes added. “By having a reputation of delivering high quality fast, the installation team at Elotec feels more confident, giving Elotec another competitive edge.”
In 2019, Elotec upgraded its AutoStore system with new software, modern ports, and updated Robots, without interrupting operations. The original Grid and Bins from 2005 remain in place.
“As we have the first AutoStore-warehouse in the world, the solution was not optimal after a while. Luckily, Element Logic have been helpful and guided us through our big upgrade in 2019,” said Furnes.
That hands-on support continues today. “We follow up with performance-reports once a month, and service the system at least twice a year, depending on the running time,” said Arnold H Nielsen, Key Account Manager at Element Logic Norway. “We want to keep the solution optimized for the customer. The main goal is that our solution always provides value.”
AutoStore’s modular, software-defined architecture ensures Elotec’s operation remains responsive and resilient, even after two decades. “It is one of the beautiful things about AutoStore,” said Lasse Vik, Technical Engineer at Element Logic. “It evolves with your needs.”
The trust between the three companies - AutoStore, Element Logic, and Elotec - was built early and has endured.
“Elotec were willing to take a risk and commit to a solution that had not been tested at scale. That kind of courage shaped our journey at Element Logic,” said Håvard Hallås, Group Chief Commercial Officer at Element Logic.
From AutoStore’s side, the partnership was proof that the Cube could do more than automate storage, it could unlock new levels of performance and trust. “I was impressed by how bold Elotec was. The technology was new and not fully matured, but Elotec let us demonstrate that it still worked safely and efficiently,” said Synnøve Matre, Vice President of Cube Success at AutoStore.
What began as a leap into the unknown is now a model for warehouse transformation around the world. Today, AutoStore powers over 1,700 systems in nearly 60 countries, but it all started here - with five Robots, one partner, one customer, and a vision for something better.
20 years on, the Grid is still running, the mission still matters, and the legacy of that decision continues to shape the future of automation.
