Interlogic Multipick Is the ANZ Pick-to-Light Standard#
Interlogic Multipick is the dominant ANZ pick-to-light vendor — a New Zealand-based specialist whose hardware sits in many of the country's largest 3PLs, distribution centres, and high-volume retail operations. For 25+ years, Interlogic has been the default ANZ choice for pick-light technology.
This guide covers what pick-to-light systems are, how they work, Interlogic Multipick specifically, realistic 2026 pricing, when the technology earns its investment, and the scanner-based alternatives.
What Pick-to-Light Actually Is#
Pick-to-light is a warehouse pick technology where bin or shelf locations are fitted with small LED light displays. When a pick wave is released to the floor:
- The WMS sends pick instructions to the pick-to-light controller
- The relevant bin lights illuminate, displaying pick quantity
- The picker walks the pick zone, picks the lit quantity from each bin
- The picker presses a confirmation button on the bin light
- The light extinguishes; the next bin in the sequence lights up
- When the pick sequence completes, the picker returns to the pack station
The workflow is visual rather than text-based. Pickers process picks without reading screens or scanning barcodes. The hardware is permanent infrastructure built into the warehouse.
How Interlogic Multipick Specifically Works#
Interlogic's Multipick system includes:
Hardware components: - Bin-mounted LED displays (typically 2-3 digit displays plus confirmation button) - Controller hardware (rack-mounted, manages display communication) - Wiring infrastructure (cat-cable runs to each display) - Optional accessories (zone indicators, batch displays, put-to-light variants)
Software components: - Multipick controller software (manages the floor-level workflow) - WMS integration layer (receives pick instructions from your WMS) - Configuration and reporting interface
Deployment approach: - Custom installation per warehouse (no off-the-shelf SKU) - Engineering survey of warehouse layout - Bin-by-bin installation with wiring - WMS integration project to push picks - Pilot zone before full warehouse rollout - Implementation timeline typically 4-9 months
The Pick-to-Light Value Proposition#
Where pick-to-light delivers real operational value:
Speed. Visual pick instructions are processed faster than text-based scanner UX. At high-volume pick rates, the per-pick time savings compound into meaningful throughput gains.
Accuracy. Light directs the picker to the exact location with exact quantity. The read-and-search step (find the bin code, search the aisle, locate the bin) is eliminated. Modern installations target 99.95%+ pick accuracy.
Hands-free. No scanner to hold. Both hands free for picking, particularly valuable for cluster picking where the picker is grabbing multiple SKUs simultaneously.
Training speed. New pickers reach productivity faster than scanner workflows because the cognitive load is lower. Important for operations with high seasonal staff or high turnover.
Throughput at scale. Operations doing 5,000+ picks per shift per picker see real throughput gains — typically 15-30% over scanner workflows.
Multi-order batch picking. Pick-to-light excels at simultaneously picking 6-12 orders from a dense zone, where each light displays the total quantity needed across all orders in the batch.
Where Pick-to-Light Doesn't Help#
Pick-to-light is genuinely narrow in its sweet spot:
- SMB warehouses doing fewer than ~5,000 picks per day total — the throughput gain doesn't justify the hardware cost
- Operations with changing bin layouts — pick-light infrastructure is hard to relocate
- 3PL multi-client operations where bin layout changes per brand client
- Multi-zone operations where pickers move between different picking strategies
- Operations where SKU positioning changes frequently based on velocity
- Operations where WMS software depth matters more than hardware speed
Pick-to-Light Pricing in 2026 ANZ#
Realistic 2026 ANZ pricing across components:
Hardware#
| Component | Cost per unit |
|---|---|
| Bin-mounted LED display (basic) | NZ$60–100 |
| Bin-mounted LED display (with confirmation button) | NZ$80–150 |
| Controller hardware | NZ$15,000–40,000 per controller |
| Zone indicator displays | NZ$200–500 each |
| Wiring and cable trays | Variable, ~NZ$15–30 per bin |
| Installation labour | NZ$40–80 per bin (skilled labour) |
Total infrastructure cost by warehouse size#
| Warehouse size | Bin count | Realistic total |
|---|---|---|
| Small (1,000 bins) | 1,000 | NZ$120,000–250,000 |
| Medium (5,000 bins) | 5,000 | NZ$520,000–1,050,000 |
| Large (15,000 bins) | 15,000 | NZ$1,500,000–3,500,000 |
| Enterprise (50,000+ bins) | 50,000+ | NZ$5,000,000+ |
Software and integration#
- WMS integration: NZ$40,000–100,000 (one-off)
- Software licensing: typically annual NZ$15,000–40,000
Ongoing costs#
- Maintenance contract: NZ$15,000–30,000/year for typical mid-market warehouse
- Display replacement (drops, failures): 2-5% of units per year
- Software updates: included in maintenance
For a 5,000-bin warehouse, total Year 1 cost typically NZ$520,000–1,050,000+. Years 2-5 ongoing cost typically NZ$20,000–50,000/year.
Where Pick-to-Light Earns Its Investment#
The honest criteria for justifying pick-to-light:
Volume. 5,000+ picks per shift per picker, sustained across 200+ working days. Below this, throughput gains don't cover hardware cost.
Density. Pick zones with high bin density (200+ bins per zone) where pick-to-light reduces walk time. Sparse zones don't benefit as much.
Stability. Bin layout stable for 5+ years. Operations with constant reconfiguration don't recoup infrastructure investment.
Labour cost pressure. Operations where labour cost is the binding constraint (high wage markets, peak-season labour shortages). Pick-to-light reduces labour per pick.
Throughput as P&L line item. Operations where dispatch capacity directly drives revenue. 3PLs, marketplaces with SLA penalties, retail distribution with cutoff pressure.
Multi-shift operations. 24/7 distribution centres get more value from infrastructure investment than single-shift operations.
These conditions describe enterprise-scale operations. Most ANZ SMBs and lower-mid-market operations don't fit.
Pick-to-Light vs Scanner-Based Picking#
Modern scanner-based picking (Bluetooth or wired scanners with WMS software) delivers comparable outcomes at dramatically different cost.
Cost comparison#
For a 5,000-bin warehouse with 10 active pickers:
| Component | Pick-to-light | Scanner-based |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware | NZ$400,000–750,000 | NZ$1,500 |
| Infrastructure | NZ$80,000–200,000 | NZ$0 |
| WMS integration | NZ$40,000–100,000 | Bundled with WMS |
| Year 1 total | NZ$520,000–1,050,000+ | NZ$1,500 + WMS |
| Annual maintenance | NZ$15,000–30,000 |
The hardware cost ratio is roughly 300:1 to 700:1.
Throughput comparison#
The throughput gap is smaller than vendors suggest:
- Pick-to-light: Typically 200-350 picks per hour per picker in optimised conditions
- Modern scanner picking: Typically 180-300 picks per hour per picker with strong WMS pick algorithms
Pick-to-light's advantage is meaningful at the very high end (300+ picks/hour) and at high pick density. At SMB and mid-market scale, the gap is often 10-15% rather than the 30-50% sometimes cited.
Accuracy comparison#
- Pick-to-light: 99.95%+ achievable
- Modern scanner picking: 99.5-99.8% achievable
The accuracy gap exists but is smaller than vendors suggest at modern WMS scanner workflows. For most operations, 99.5% is operationally sufficient.
Operational flexibility#
- Pick-to-light: Fixed bin infrastructure. Zone layout changes require hardware reconfiguration.
- Scanner picking: Software-only changes. Zone layout, pick strategy, batch sizes all change without hardware reconfiguration.
For operations with stable infrastructure, pick-to-light's rigidity isn't a constraint. For operations expecting growth or change, scanner flexibility matters.
Voice Picking — The Third Option#
Voice picking (Honeywell Vocollect, Lucas Systems, Zetes, Topsystem) sits between pick-to-light and scanner in cost and use case.
Voice picking workflow: Pickers wear headsets; system speaks the next pick instruction; picker confirms verbally and walks to next bin.
Voice picking economics: - Headset hardware: NZ$5,000–15,000 per picker - WMS integration: NZ$30,000–80,000 - Annual licensing: NZ$2,000–5,000 per picker
When voice picking wins: - Cold-chain warehouses (gloves and freezer environments make scanner UX awkward) - Hands-free heavy-lifting environments - High-volume operations between scanner and pick-to-light scale - Multi-language picker workforces (voice supports multiple languages naturally)
For most ANZ operations, voice picking is a specialised choice. Scanner picking handles the same outcomes at lower cost for SMB and mid-market.
Put-to-Light Systems#
Interlogic Multipick also offers put-to-light variants. Put-to-light is the inverse workflow:
Pick-to-light: Light tells you which bin to pick FROM Put-to-light: Light tells you which container (tote, carton, sorter slot) to put items INTO
Put-to-light is used in: - Sorting operations (taking received goods and sorting to customer-bound totes) - Returns processing (returns received and sorted by disposition) - Cross-docking operations - Mail/document sorting
The infrastructure and economics are similar to pick-to-light; the workflow direction differs.
Pick-to-Light Vendors in ANZ#
Interlogic Multipick is the dominant ANZ vendor. NZ-based, 25+ years of ANZ deployments. Their reference customer list includes many of NZ's largest distribution operations.
International vendors with ANZ presence: - Lightning Pick (now Matthews Automation Solutions) - KBS Industrieelektronik (German manufacturer, ANZ partner deployments) - Aioi Systems (Japanese, premium tier) - SSI Schaefer (European, integrated with broader automation)
Most ANZ pick-to-light deployments use Interlogic Multipick due to local engineering presence, ANZ warehouse experience, and established WMS integrations with platforms common in ANZ.
WMS Integration#
Pick-to-light systems require WMS integration to receive pick instructions. Common ANZ integration shapes:
ERP/WMS platforms with proven Interlogic integration: - Manhattan WMS - Blue Yonder WMS (formerly JDA) - SAP EWM - Oracle WMS Cloud - Korber (formerly HighJump) - NetSuite Warehouse (with Interlogic adapter) - MYOB Acumatica Distribution (with custom adapter) - Various custom/legacy WMS deployments
Integration approach: - Real-time API integration (preferred for modern WMS) - File-based or batch integration (legacy WMS) - Custom adapter development (when standard integration doesn't exist)
Integration scope typically NZ$40,000–100,000 depending on WMS platform and complexity.
Selection Framework#
Use this framework for pick technology decisions:
| Operational characteristic | Recommended technology |
|---|---|
| <2,000 picks/day total | Scanner-based picking |
| 2,000–5,000 picks/day | Scanner-based with strong WMS |
| 5,000–20,000 picks/day | Voice picking or scanner with optimised WMS |
| 20,000–50,000 picks/day | Voice picking or pick-to-light for dense zones |
| 50,000+ picks/day | Pick-to-light or hybrid |
| Cold-chain operations | Voice picking |
| Multi-zone, changing layout | Scanner-based picking |
| 3PL with brand client churn | Scanner-based picking |
| Stable enterprise DC | Pick-to-light or voice |
| High-value SKUs requiring extra audit | Scanner with bin scan verification |
Common Decision Mistakes#
- Being pitched pick-to-light at SMB scale. Vendor sales motion targets warehouses; many proposed deployments don't fit the cost-justification scale.
- Underestimating WMS depth. Modern WMS scanner workflows are dramatically better than legacy WMS scanner workflows. Don't compare 2026 pick-to-light to 2010-era scanner WMS.
- Overestimating accuracy gap. Modern scanner workflows hit 99.5%+ accuracy; pick-to-light hits 99.95%+. The gap matters for some operations but is often presented as larger than it operationally is.
- Ignoring flexibility cost. Pick-to-light locks in bin layout; the operational flexibility cost compounds over years.
- Not piloting first. Pick-to-light deployments should pilot one zone before committing to full warehouse infrastructure.
When Pick-to-Light Is the Right Answer#
Interlogic Multipick or equivalent is the right choice when:
- Warehouse is doing 5,000+ picks per shift per picker, sustained
- Bin layout is stable for 5+ year horizon
- Throughput is directly tied to revenue or labour cost
- Capital budget supports six-figure infrastructure investment
- WMS integration path is proven (existing Multipick integrations or willingness to build custom adapter)
- Multi-shift operations get full utilisation from infrastructure
For operations meeting these criteria, Interlogic Multipick is a well-engineered ANZ-built product with strong reference customers and proven results.
When Pick-to-Light Is the Wrong Answer#
Scanner-based picking is the right choice when:
- Pick volume is SMB to mid-market (under 5,000 picks/day)
- Operational flexibility matters more than throughput optimisation
- Capital allocation favours WMS depth over hardware investment
- Multi-zone or multi-strategy picking is needed
- 3PL or operations with changing client/brand layouts
- Bin density is moderate (not the dense fixed-layout pick-to-light excels at)
For most ANZ SMB and lower-mid-market operations, scanner-based picking is the right choice — comparable operational outcomes at 1/300th to 1/700th the hardware cost.
See Also#
For broader context, see What is a WMS?, Wave Picking vs Zone Picking, Inventory Management Module Architecture, What is a 3PL?, and Starshipit Complete Guide.