Despite numerous efforts to drive digital transformation, many stores, warehouses, and logistics centers in Japan continue to rely heavily on manual labor. This dependency is becoming increasingly unsustainable as the country grapples with an aging population, labor shortages, and rising labor costs.

The Nano-Stream advantage

Automation and robotics company ROMS aims to address these challenges by making advanced automation and robotics technology accessible to both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and global corporations. 

One of ROMS’ flagship products, Nano-Stream, stands out from conventional systems, which typically require a minimum of 10,000 square feet of warehouse space. In contrast, Nano-Stream can be installed in spaces as small as 1,000 square feet, making it a game-changer for businesses with limited space.

“Most of today’s solutions in the industry are massive, requiring a sprawling 10,000 square feet and the installation of their product into an existing warehouse. In contrast, our model is much more compact at just 1,000 square feet. This efficiency is possible because we are developing an integrated hardware and software solution,” ROMS’ Vice President of System Integration and Robotics, Hiroyuki Katsufuji, told Interesting Engineering during CES 2025.

Nano-Stream achieves its compact and efficient design through the use of demountable cranes and autonomous guided vehicles (AGVs) for product retrieval. This eliminates the need for conveyor belts, providing a modular and easily scalable solution. Businesses can start small and expand their operations by adding equipment, stations, or modules to meet growing processing and storage requirements. 

ROMS’ Nano-Stream system

Additionally, the system’s high storage density and transport capacity significantly reduce labor costs and optimize warehouse operations.

Compactness, flexibility, and scalability in automation

Nano-Stream’s design and performance earned ROMS the CES 2025 Innovation Award in the Industrial Equipment category. This accolade highlights the system’s ability to combine compactness, flexibility, and scalability to revolutionize warehouse automation. By reducing space requirements and labor dependence, Nano-Stream opens the door for SMEs and larger corporations to adopt advanced automation technologies.

Furthermore, Nano-Stream eliminates the need for workers to traverse the warehouse to pick items. Instead, employees can remain at designated stations, where the system automatically retrieves and delivers items to them. 

“Instead of having people walk around the warehouse to pick items, our system allows them to stay at a designated station while the items are automatically brought to them.” Katsufuji added.