THE DC VELOCITY Q&A
thoughtleaders
THE
PROTECTOR
INTERVIEW WITH
ART ARWAY
After a decade running DHL’s security
network in the Americas, Art Arway is
now free to comment on today’s
security landscape. His conclusion:
Things could be far worse.
ART ARWAY HAD
spent most of his long
career in local law
enforcement when in the
summer of 2002 he took
the most important job of
his life. Arway was tapped to
the newly created job of head of
security for DHL Global
Forwarding, perhaps the most globally oriented air-freight company in
the business. But the timing
of Arway’s hire was just as
significant as the role he
assumed. Arway came on board
just 10 months after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and only four
months prior to the launch of the Transportation Security
Administration (TSA).
Over the next decade, Arway was tasked with developing
and executing DHL Global Forwarding’s security programs
during a high-wire period when supply chain security
would be forever redefined and those like him were trying
to navigate uncharted waters.
Today, Arway has hung out his shingle as a supply chain
security consultant. He recently spoke with DC VELOCITY
Senior Editor Mark Solomon about the challenges he faced,
the issues that remain, and his overall view of the current
state of supply chain security. While Arway acknowledges
that there may still be holes in the security net, he strongly
believes that significant
progress has been made.
QYou joined DHL in July 2002. Soon
after, the TSA was created
and the shipping world
changed forever. In the 10 years
since, what has been the most
beneficial change in cargo security
that would not have occurred had
9/11 been just another day?
A9/11 was a tragic, horrible event.
However, there has been a silver
lining from a supply chain security point of view. I call
these “unfortunate marketing opportunities” for security.
These events can be used to [draw] attention to highlighted
areas that need more focus, and to develop plans to mitigate
the aftershocks and prevent future incidents. It’s terrible
that it took an event like 9/11 to focus people on a problem
that had been there for years.
Today, more eyes in government and industry are looking at
the supply chain. The resultant partnership since 9/11 has definitely hardened the chain. This is beneficial from a homeland
security perspective, and it has helped the supply chain by
increasing the security of their cargoes entering U.S. commerce from multiple origin points across the globe. Not only
are providers, shippers, and importers concerned about the
