Independent machinery sourcing · Evidence

automated guided vehicle

Automated Guided Vehicle Sourcing is an independent sourcing partner. We help plant buyers convert a transport mission into comparable factory quotations: payload with the top attachment, route geometry, loaded transfer dwell, charging windows and the control system that authorizes pickup and drop-off. This site does not manufacture vehicles, hold inventory, or claim factory ownership.

A useful first brief states pickup and drop-off points, the load carrier, quantity, destination and the delivery window. Nominal travel speed in mph is not a cycle-time promise; suppliers still need congestion, dwell and empty-return assumptions. Toyota public pages separate payload and speed; treat those as different RFQ inputs, not a guaranteed warehouse throughput.

Request Factory Quotes

Choose a quotation route

Defined specification

If aisle width, load envelope, battery voltage and handshake protocol are already frozen, send those files with quantity and destination. We will ask factories to quote the same inclusions: vehicle, charger, mapping software license, training and spare parts listed separately.

Send requirements

Selection still open

If tugger trains, conveyors and AGV aisles are still competing, keep the mission description and operating schedule. We coordinate option quotes without treating any navigation method as already selected. Review sourcing steps if you need a sample-trial sequence before purchase.

Review sourcing steps

Choose a quotation route

Two RFQ paths keep manufacturer responses aligned. Do not mix a frozen specification with an open layout study in the same line item; factories then quote different work envelopes and connected load.

Defined specification

Attach the floor drawing, load drawing and a time-based demand profile. Ask each automated guided vehicle manufacturer to state loaded transfer dwell, route congestion and remaining missions during the proposed charging schedule.

Send requirements

Selection still open

When navigation (magnetic tape, QR, SLAM) is still open, request option pricing rather than a single model number. PLC interface, WMS handshake and opportunity-charging layout stay listed as confirmable items, not assumed site standards.

Review sourcing steps

Trial sequence for the intended warehouse route

  1. Representative sample

    Use the intended pallet, tote or rack carrier and the slowest credible handover. Empty-aisle demonstrations omit dwell at doors and pedestrian crossings. Record floor grade, thresholds and charging locations on the same drawing used for the RFQ.

  2. Demonstration

    Ask for a timed route trial or mission simulation with loaded and empty travel stated separately. Do not divide path length by advertised maximum speed. Include a delayed transfer so queued jobs remain visible to trained staff.

  3. Acceptance record

    FAT and SAT belong to the contract parties. List pass criteria: successful handshake, recovery after network loss, and remaining missions after the agreed charging window. Spare parts and training are recorded as included or quoted separately.

What belongs on the base machine quote?

Which procurement scope is covered by automated guided vehicle, and what stays with the buyer?

Base machine

  • Vehicle, traction battery at the stated voltage, onboard safety scanners and the navigation method named in the quotation.
  • Standard tooling only if the top attachment and load carrier are listed by name; otherwise payload is incomplete.
How should loaded transfer dwell and route congestion be written into the RFQ?

State dwell seconds at each station, expected traffic at intersections and whether pedestrians share the aisle. Without those assumptions, two manufacturers can both quote “the same speed” and still produce different cycle time. We compare those written assumptions; we do not publish a saving percentage against an unnamed market price.

Discuss the duty cycle before comparing factory quotes

Discuss Your Requirements