Material Handling continues to lead the charge as the most electrified sector within off-road machinery.  Yet the industry is far from resting on its achievements. 

To remain competitive, OEMs and warehouse operators must stay ahead of rapidly evolving technologies, regulatory requirements, and operational demands.

What lies in the future of Material Handling? As part of the Future of Electrification 2025 conference, Marco Sabatini, Key Account Manager at ZIVAN, and Mourad Chergui, Senior Product Manager at Delta-Q Technologies, aimed to answer this very question. 

This joint webinar, “Material Handling Equipment Battery Charging Trends”, unlocked key insights for OEMs and fleet managers seeking to leverage emerging technologies. 

Notably, four key trends emerged—each one rooted in real-world applications and grounded by advances in electrification and charging technology.

Four Trends Defining the Future of Material Handling

Market pressure and regulatory mandates have long driven efficiency in the material handling space. But as charging systems and electrified powertrains continue to evolve, they enable a new generation of smart, data-driven operations.

The following trends represent key areas where transformation is already underway.

#1. Digitalization 

The Internet of Things (IoT) continues to revolutionize material handling equipment. In lockstep with parallel trends, such as automation and data-driven decision-making, IoT-enabled smart devices and sensors see increasing integration into forklifts and similar material handling equipment.

Digitalized equipment empowers warehouse managers to:

• Enable real-time visibility of inventory and asset movement via embedded sensors and communication protocols, preventing misplacement and allowing for responsive stocking.
• Assess fleet health and energy performance by capturing telemetry data, equipping fleet managers with the information needed to make improved strategic decisions.
• Coordinate automated machinery across complex workflows, minimizing bottlenecks, reducing collision risks, and ensuring task prioritization remains aligned with real-time demand.
• Enhance operator performance through augmented reality (AR)—highlighting pick locations, indicating optimal routes, and delivering timely task updates.

These capabilities, while powerful, are only made possible through a robust electrical and communication architecture—most notably, the pairing of smart battery management systems (BMS) with application-specific chargers.

As electrified machinery becomes more intelligent, digitalization is essential to unlocking its full value.

#2. Smart Warehousing 

Beyond simply tracking the movements of material handling equipment, a smart warehouse sees them automated entirely. As autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) and automated guided vehicles (AGVs) gain increased traction, so do their potential applications. 

The ideal smart warehouse enables significant operational optimizations through: 

• Automated inventory management – Use of AMRs and AGVs equipped with sensors and cameras delivers highly effective, cost-saving operations, keeping manual intervention to a minimum.
• Data analytics – Usage of specialized warehouse management software (WMS) allows for the monitoring and further refinement of key operations, such as predictive (rather than reactive) maintenance.
• AI-powered algorithms – Advancements in AI may accelerate the “training” process of automated equipment, allowing for more reactive functionality and incremental improvements in routes, loads, and resource allocation.

With labor shortages persisting and consumer expectations rising, the promise of fully interconnected and self-optimizing systems is both attractive and achievable.

#3. Improved Efficiency 

While efficiency remains the goal of any industry, few advancements have enabled greater efficiency than electrification. More so than massive leaps in efficiency, today’s trends are increasingly measured in strategic, incremental improvements.

One example is the widespread shift from lead-acid to lithium-ion batteries, which delivers advantages such as:

• Predictable work cycles – Lithium-ion batteries enable a “flatter” work cycle curve. Whereas lead-acid batteries tend to become sluggish as their shift goes on, the constant voltage of lithium batteries ensures consistency throughout the discharge cycle.
• Vertical expansion – The greater power density inherent to lithium-powered equipment enables warehouses to expand vertically, further optimizing space without necessitating costly external renovations. 
• Multi-shift operations – Whereas lead-acid chemistries require full discharge and full charge to prevent long-term performance erosion, lithium chemistries allow for faster charging and opportunity charging without risking battery damage, helping machinery power through multiple shifts.

Smarter layouts—optimizing load arrangement and warehouse storage and retrieval locations—further minimize the need for unnecessary energy-wasting movement, enhancing overall efficiency for automated vehicles. 

As Class I and Class II lift equipment demonstrate faster growth than other segments, it is clear that the implications trickle down to vehicle design, and eventually, battery and charging systems.

#4. Cross-Industry Expansion

Electrification is not just happening in material handling; it is becoming a predominant trend globally.  From agriculture to logistics to medical applications, the same drivers apply:

• Reduce the carbon footprint
• Unlock improved maneuverability 
• Enhance workplace safety
• Tap into the benefits of automated machinery

This cross-industry momentum accelerates technology development and shortens the learning curve for material handling sectors. Advancements in fast-charging, modular energy storage, and communication protocols often emerge first in one industry before being adopted elsewhere. 

For design engineers and fleet operators alike, staying attuned to these adjacent innovations remains a strategic imperative.

ZIVAN: Leading the Charge to an All-Electric Future 

While these advancements may seem a distant prospect, the truth is that they are happening today. As combustion engines fade into history, the future of material handling glows bright with electric promise. Even so, OEMs must familiarize themselves with these trends—automation, digitalization, efficiency, and cross-industry insights—to tap into their undeniable benefits. 

With electrification extending across verticals, one thing is certain: It’s the quality of underlying charging systems that increasingly dictates performance, uptime, and long-term value.

That is why ZIVAN, as a member of the ZAPI GROUP, delivers more than chargers. We deliver scalable, intelligent charging solutions that form the foundation of next-generation material handling. Whether enabling fast charge cycles, supporting diverse battery chemistries, or integrating with fleet-wide management systems, ZIVAN chargers are engineered for the challenges of tomorrow.

To learn more about how these trends are shaping the electrified warehouse, watch the full webinar, or reach out to ZIVAN expert Marco Sabatini to explore charging strategies tailored to your operations.

Contact Marco Sabatini: marco.sabatini@zivan.it

Media Contact 
Violetta Fulchiati | Marketing & Communication Specialist 
Phone: +39 0522 960593
E-mail: marketing@zivan.it