In 2026, manufacturing profits are under pressure. With fluctuating raw material prices, rising labor costs, and stricter environmental and safety standards, an increasing number of companies are realizing that every dollar saved is a dollar earned. Yet the areas where money is most easily “leaked” are often those invisible bulk material warehouses—where materials like coal piles, mineral powder, cement, and grain flow in and out daily, while actual inventory remains a muddled mess. Traditional manual inventory counts are prone to errors and inefficient, and this hidden inventory loss erodes profits year after year. Currently, the government is promoting a large-scale equipment upgrade initiative, encouraging industrial enterprises to accelerate the phasing out of outdated equipment and adopt intelligent detection devices. Guangdong Kaidi Energy Technology Co., Ltd.’s 3D radar scanning robot is a solution designed to address this need.

An In-Depth Look at the Case

I. Inventory Count at a Coal Shed at a Mine

Challenges Before the Renovation 

▶Traditional manual inventory counting is inefficient, requiring multiple people and taking several days to complete

▶High levels of dust and poor lighting at the site make measurements unsafe and expose personnel to significant risks

▶The piles of material are highly irregular in shape, leading to large errors in manual estimates and resulting in inaccurate inventory data

Solutions 

The coal storage yard is large, and the piles of coal are scattered, making it difficult for a single device to cover the entire area in a single pass. Two 3D radar scanning robots were deployed on-site to achieve comprehensive, coordinated coverage of the entire yard. The devices operate simultaneously; after each scans its designated area, the backend system automatically stitches and merges the two sets of point cloud data to generate a high-precision 3D model of the entire yard. Operators in the central control room can obtain complete inventory results within minutes, replacing the previous manual measurement method that required multiple people to enter the shed and climb up and down. The data can also be integrated into the production scheduling system, providing a reliable basis for inventory alerts, procurement planning, and coal blending optimization. Overview of Application Results 

Overview of Application Results

▶ Reduce labor requirements and lower long-term operating costs

▶ Significantly shorten inventory counting time, from several days to just minutes

▶ Eliminate safety risks associated with manual entry into warehouses through unmanned operations

▶ Significantly improve data accuracy and effectively control inventory discrepancies

II. Monitoring of a Corn Silo

Challenges Before the Renovation

▶ Manual measurements inside silos are difficult and inefficient, and pose a risk of grain dust explosions

▶ The surface of the material inside corn silos is uneven, and traditional single-point measurement methods cannot accurately reflect the actual surface profile

▶ Distorted single-point data leads to significant errors in inventory estimates, affecting the scheduling of grain intake and outflow

Solutions 

A 3D radar scanning robot is installed at the top of the corn silo, with its sensors covering the entire cross-section of the silo. The device employs a multi-beam rotating scanning mechanism to perform a 360° scan of the entire grain surface inside the silo, generating high-density 3D point cloud data that fully captures the irregular shapes of the grain surface—such as peaks, depressions, and slopes—formed by the accumulation of corn. Built-in algorithms automatically filter out interference signals from silo walls and material buildup, retaining only valid data from the actual material surface. The output 3D point cloud model can be converted into volume and estimated weight, enabling data interoperability with the grain warehouse management system.

Overview of Application Results

▶ The equipment requires minimal maintenance and is designed for the long-term, stable operation of grain storage facilities

▶ It addresses the accuracy issues associated with traditional single-point measurement—which treats a single point as representative of the entire area—enabling precise inventory management across the entire storage area

▶ Managers can clearly see which areas of the silo are higher or lower, allowing them to scientifically schedule the order of grain intake and discharge.

▶ Unmanned operation eliminates safety risks associated with personnel entering the silo

Technology Empowers Warehousing; Data Drives Efficiency

Now is the perfect time for the intelligent transformation of the manufacturing industry. The Kaidi 3D radar scanning robot addresses the pain points of bulk material warehousing by enabling unmanned, high-precision 3D inventory counting. By transitioning from rough estimates to precise calculations, and from inefficient and high-risk operations to efficient and safe ones, it ensures that every batch of materials is clearly tracked and controlled. This helps businesses reduce costs, improve efficiency, and implement lean management, unlocking profit potential through refined operations.

With radar level transmitters and 3D imaging systems at its core, the company has independently developed and manufactured nearly 100 products to meet the diverse measurement needs of various industrial applications. By leveraging innovative technologies from its R&D center, the company delivers tailored solutions for its customers, positioning itself as a technological innovator in China’s industrial automation and measurement sector. Guangdong Kaidi Energy Technology Co., Ltd. offers a wide range of products, including 3D imaging scanners, high-frequency radar level transmitters, level switches, density meters, flow meters, temperature sensors, interface meters, tank-side controllers, and intelligent control systems. To date, the company has expanded its reach to over 20 countries worldwide. Its products and solutions are widely applied across industries such as mining, coal, oil and gas, power generation, metallurgy, chemicals, building materials, grain, feed, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, environmental protection, and cement.