When Robots and Warehouse Workers Share the Floor, Safety Doesn't Have to Mean Shutdowns
A free webinar on 26 August brings together robotics and logistics experts to tackle the real problem nobody talks about: how to keep people safe around robot fleets without grinding operations to a halt.
Key points
- A free live webinar on Wednesday, 26 August 2026 at 2:00 p.m. ET covers human-robot safety in warehouse environments.
- Panellists include experts from Toyota Automated Logistics, Geek+, Redpoint Positioning, and independent consultancy EMP Advisors.
- Autonomous mobile robots and autonomous forklifts are spreading fast, and safety rules designed for static machinery can slow the whole floor down.
- Redpoint Positioning, the webinar's sponsor, has more than 50,000 of its location-safety devices deployed worldwide.
- The session is free to attend live and on demand afterwards.
Picture a warehouse the size of several football pitches. Dozens of autonomous mobile robots, self-driving carts roughly the size of a shopping trolley, weave between shelves at speed. A worker steps in to fix a jam. The fleet senses a person and stops. Every robot. All at once.
That full-fleet shutdown costs time and money, and according to the experts gathering for a free webinar on 26 August, it's completely unnecessary.
What is this webinar actually about?
The session, titled "When Robots and People Share the Floor: Safety That Keeps Fleets Moving", addresses a tension at the heart of modern warehousing: safety measures designed to protect workers can, if handled badly, bring entire operations to a standstill.
Four panellists will work through the practical problems, including how to conduct risk assessments as robot fleets grow, how to handle automated storage and retrieval systems (large mechanised shelving networks that move products without human help), and how smarter collision-avoidance can protect people without killing productivity. We covered the broader boom driving these fleets in our 6 August story on the autonomous mobile robot market; safety is the part of that story that's still being figured out.
Who is speaking?
The panel covers the full chain from hardware to strategy.
John Calcio, vice president of partnerships at Redpoint Positioning, focuses on a specific problem: how certified safety technology lets a worker step into an active robot zone for a quick fix without triggering a blanket fleet stop. Redpoint's systems use ultra-wideband radio signals, a short-range wireless technology that pinpoints a person's location far more precisely than Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, to tell nearby robots exactly where a human is.
John Santagate, founder of EMP Advisors and a former analyst at IDC, brings a vendor-neutral view on automation strategy built across nearly two decades in the field.
Jonathan Cortellacci of Geek+ spent five years at Walmart leading large-scale warehouse automation before moving to the robotics supplier side. He's seen both the blueprint and the messy reality.
Chris Morgan, senior director of research and development at Toyota Automated Logistics, leads teams advancing the next generation of robotics, firmware, and hardware for material handling, with more than 28 years of technology leadership behind him.
Eugene Demaitre, editorial director for robotics at Arrowfly (which produces The Robot Report), will moderate.
| Panellist | Organisation | Area of focus |
|---|---|---|
| John Calcio | Redpoint Positioning | Safety hardware and certification |
| John Santagate | EMP Advisors | Automation strategy consulting |
| Jonathan Cortellacci | Geek+ | AMR deployment and retail logistics |
| Chris Morgan | Toyota Automated Logistics | R&D and robotics hardware |
Should ordinary workers care about this?
Yes. Robot fleets are moving from big-box retail giants into mid-sized distribution centres and regional warehouses. Workers who share floors with these machines benefit directly when safety systems are smarter: fewer abrupt full-stops, clearer rules about where humans can walk, technology that knows you're there before you get close.
The webinar is free. Registration gets you the live broadcast plus on-demand access, so you can watch when it suits you.
Common questions
Do I need a technical background to follow this webinar?
No. The panellists are experienced at translating engineering concepts for operations managers and frontline supervisors, not just engineers.
What is a SIL2/PLd certification, and why does it matter?
SIL2 and PLd are internationally recognised safety grades, set by standards bodies IEC and ISO, that tell buyers a system has been independently tested to a level where it can be trusted in environments where a failure could injure someone. For a worker near a robot fleet, it means the safety technology has passed a meaningful, third-party bar rather than just a manufacturer's own claim.
How do I register?
The webinar page is hosted by the organisers; search "When Robots and People Share the Floor webinar August 2026" to find the registration form directly.
