Romain Moulin is the CEO of Exotec, a company he co-founded with Renaud Heitz in 2015. As a former robotics architect and technical engineer at GE and BA Système, Romain spent 10+ years immersed in deep technology systems before he shifted his attention to solving the challenge of retail warehouse automation. He was born and raised in France and graduated from a top French engineering university, SUPAERO.
Exotec is a global robotics company, building scalable warehouse robotic solutions that power the world’s largest brands. The company offers flexible warehouse automation to improve operational efficiency and economics. Exotec’s signature solution, The Skypod system, utilizes robots that can reach a height of 36 feet to enable high-density inventory storage and retrieval. Exotec supports 25+ industry-leading brands spanning e-commerce, grocery, retail, manufacturing, and 3PL sectors. To date, Exotec has secured $115M in funding from industry-leading investors including 83North, Dell Technologies Capital, Iris Capital, 360 Capital Partners, and Breega.
Listen to the full discussion here:
- Listen on Stitcher
Connect with the Guest:
Romain Moulin: LinkedIn
Exotec: LinkedIn | Twitter
Some of the highlights from the podcast:
- Integrating robotics in the supply chain
- What makes Exotec different and case studies on how they are helping their clients
- Partnerships and hiring talents
- How Exotec is protecting and securing their systems
Show notes:
- [0:34] Why did you choose startup? You were working in GNB Systems which is a niche in that field and far from the logistics industry. So give us this insight.
- [02:37] Our very first product and the staple is based on a fleet of robots that are particularly able to claim the shelving up to 12 meters and moving all-around storage with the speed of 400 lines per hour.
- [03:29] Is there a problem in the industry where companies who are manufacturing these robotics do not have a system that kind of integrates other parts of the supply chain, warehouse, and logistics. So what is the problem Exotec is trying to solve right now globally?
- [06:11] Can you share a case study of how your solution impacted some of your clients?
- [10:50] What is the error rate of the system making an error on one particular parcel?
- [13:02] What’s the onboarding time when you setting up the infrastructure and the systems in place from the ground up to get the whole system running? What is the timeframe?
- [14:40] For clients that are with you for more than a year, what is the downtime for either of the warehouses?
- [16:59] Regionally, how far have you reached on supporting your clients?
- [17:32] Is there any market that is a labor-intensive market where you have been able to penetrate and sold a system or something is coming in any of the regions?
- [19:55] What kind of skills are you looking for people joining you?
- [21:42] In our executive search, we are looking for I would say a different set of knowledge and skills depending on what they do, but we will always have a clear focus on their connection to the market.
- [23:22] What industry do you see most people are coming from if you have to generalize it, which industry are the people mostly coming from?
- [25:32] What would you wish you knew when you started Exotec? Would you have done something differently if you knew before what you know now?
- [27:33] Is there any industry where your application can be very useful?
- [30:18] Do you see standardization happening within these robotic systems and concepts in the future?
- [33:03] How are the systems being protected? And how is Exotec protecting it as well?
- [35:49] When do you see robots taking over the world? Do you see at least 30% of the global market sending into automated ones in at least the next five years?
Quote from the Episode:
About the Host:
The host, Rushit Shah is the Managing Director of APAC and North America at Alcott Global. Rushit comes with 20 years of Executive Search and Selection with 8 years of Supply Chain Consulting service within APAC. He worked for more than 40 countries with diversified industries and functionality.
Alcott Global connects and upgrades the supply chain ecosystem by finding the right talent through executive search, developing talent through learning solutions, and meeting supply chain technology needs through a comprehensive crunch base marketplace.
The supply chain executive search has been our focus since the very beginning, offering recruitment services for top-tier supply chain roles at every level of the end-to-end supply chain: plan, source / procure, make, and deliver. Our consultants have years of experience in placing top talent, in North America, LATAM, Europe, the Middle East & Africa, and APAC, and besides speed, one of our biggest strengths is our network within the supply chain industry, and we capitalize on it to find the best solutions.
Through the years, we have grown as an organization and our offerings with it. One of our initiatives, the learning solutions- training and supply chain academy, is focused on transforming leadership- self-leadership, executive presence, influence capital, and business acumen. Through Supplify, we aim to match corporations with the top technology companies to solve their supply chain and logistics challenges with a focus on innovation and digital transformation.
We are in constant touch with the leaders in supply chain, inviting them to inspire the supply chain professionals in thought-provoking podcast episodes and events, and showcasing what is possible at the yearly Leaders in Supply Chain Awards.
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