Paperless logistics or just Excel and paper chaos in the warehouse?

Summary: Almost every second logistics company still works predominantly with paper. Analog processes cause media breaks, errors and a lack of transparency. Without a digital data foundation, automation and AI projects remain ineffective. A shortage of skilled workers and legacy systems further impede digitalization. Paperless logistics with integrated systems and digital warehouse management creates the foundation for efficient processes. With COGLAS WEB WMS, companies digitalize their warehouse processes, reduce paper-based effort and create real-time transparency across the entire logistics chain.

Greetings from the fax machine: The digital illusion in logistics

It is the year 2026. The logistics industry is engaged in intense discussion about artificial intelligence, automation, autonomous vehicles and the digital supply chain. Yet anyone who shifts their gaze from strategy papers and future visions to operational reality quickly sees a different picture: many companies are still working with paper forms, handwritten notes, Excel spreadsheets and manual coordination.

The results of the first Cargoclix Digitalization Monitor clearly show that a large gap between digital ambitions and operational reality persists.

While the industry talks about intelligent supply chains, many companies are still struggling with analog processes. The result: without paperless logistics, inefficient workflows, a lack of transparency and unnecessarily high process costs are the consequence.

Paperless logistics? Still a distant dream for many companies.

The study paints an alarming picture:

45.5 percent of the logistics companies surveyed still handle their processes predominantly on paper.

These are not exclusively small companies. Among the participants are mid-sized businesses as well as large logistics companies with annual revenues running into several hundred million euros.

Paper causes far more than just increased administrative effort. Information recorded on delivery notes, forms or handwritten lists is not available to digital systems. It cannot be automatically processed, analyzed or shared in real time.

For companies, this means:

• Delayed information flows
• Higher error rates
• Lack of transparency
• Time-consuming tracking
• Limited reporting capabilities

Modern, paperless logistics therefore relies on digital processes and integrated systems that make information immediately available.

This is precisely where modern warehouse management systems such as COGLAS WEB WMS come in. Instead of paper-based warehouse processes, companies gain a central platform for managing all warehouse and logistics operations in real time.

Why AI fails without digital warehouse processes

Particularly interesting are the findings relating to artificial intelligence.

Around one third of the companies surveyed plan to actively advance AI projects. At the same time, however, more than 74 percent are currently not using any AI applications or forecasting systems.

The reason is clear:

AI requires structured, digital data.

As long as information is captured on paper or transferred manually between Excel spreadsheets, emails and phone calls, the necessary data foundation for intelligent analysis and automation is missing.

Companies that want to digitalize their logistics must therefore first modernize their operational processes. Digital warehouse management forms the foundation for paperless logistics.

With COGLAS WEB WMS, warehouse movements, inventories, orders and process data are recorded digitally and managed centrally. This creates the data foundation required for future automation and AI projects.

The skilled worker shortage exacerbates the situation

For a long time, insufficient budget was seen as the biggest obstacle to digitalization. The current study, however, paints a different picture.

The biggest barriers are:

• Lack of internal resources and staff shortages (58.2%)
• Complex legacy systems (40.0%)
• Lack of interface standards (40.0%)
• Low digital maturity of business partners (40.0%)
• Budget restrictions (36.4%)

Many companies find themselves in a vicious cycle:

Due to staff shortages, digitalization projects are postponed. At the same time, analog processes generate additional workload, tying up even more personnel.

Paperless warehouse management helps reduce manual tasks and relieve employees of administrative burdens.

The Excel trap: When systems don't talk to each other

Another central problem is the lack of system integration.

According to the study, 75 percent of companies rate the connectivity of their core systems as low or mediocre.

The consequence:

Employees manually transfer information between ERP systems, warehouse management, email inboxes and Excel files. Around 35 percent of companies are burdened by such media breaks on a daily basis.

In total, as many as 78 percent of respondents report that analog and non-integrated processes significantly impair their day-to-day operations.

Excel has become the digital substitute for paper in many companies. However, the underlying problem remains: information is trapped in isolated data silos.

Modern warehouse management software such as COGLAS WEB WMS takes a different approach. Through standardized interfaces, ERP systems, shipping service providers, automation technology, e-commerce platforms and other systems can be connected to one another. This creates seamless digital warehouse processes without media breaks.

Sustainability starts with digital data

Also noteworthy is the low priority given to sustainability topics within the study.

Many companies are engaged with CO₂ reporting and ESG requirements, but do not yet have the necessary data foundation.

Those who manage warehouse and logistics processes predominantly in analog form find it difficult to accurately capture consumption, transport or emissions data.

Paperless logistics, by contrast, creates the prerequisites for reliable key performance indicators and transparent sustainability reporting.

Conclusion: The future belongs to paperless logistics

The Cargoclix Digitalization Monitor 2026 clearly shows that many companies are still grappling with analog processes. Paper, Excel and manual data capture impede efficiency, transparency and the capacity for innovation.

At the same time, the demands for speed, traceability, automation and data availability are continuously rising.
Companies that want to digitalize their logistics and remain competitive in the long term need an integrated system landscape and digital warehouse processes.

COGLAS WEB WMS supports companies in consistently implementing the transition to paperless warehouse management. From goods receipt booking through to picking and dispatch, processes are digitally controlled, documented and analyzed.

Numerous companies from retail, e-commerce, I