6 River Systems Inc., a developer of warehouse fulfillment
robots cofounded by former executives of Kiva Systems
LLC, has raised $6 million in financing as it seeks to fill
a void left by Kiva Systems’ departure from the market
after Kiva was acquired by Amazon.com Inc. in 2012 and
was eventually barred from selling its products to other
companies.
Boston-based 6 River Systems was founded in 2015 by
ex-Kiva executives as well as by classroom technology provider Mimio. Kiva, which was acquired by Seattle-based
Amazon for $775 million, helped to pioneer the use of
self-driving robots in warehouses. Amazon, which rebranded Kiva as Amazon Robotics, is believed to have a huge
advantage over its rivals in e-commerce fulfillment now
that it has brought Kiva’s operations in-house.
6 River Systems is now targeting that same application,
with a mission to “redefine fulfillment automation for
e-commerce and retail operations,” the company website
says. 6 River Systems plans to use the new funding to
expand its engineering team and to support customer pilot
programs now in progress.
“The acquisition of Kiva left a void in this space that has
yet to be filled,” Seth Winterroth of the early-stage venture
fund Eclipse Ventures LLC, which joined a company called
iRobot in raising the capital, said in a statement. “This,
coupled with rapid growth in e-commerce globally, has
resulted in a need for next-gen automation tools.”
6 River is one of multiple robotics startups looking to
build a presence in the autonomous material handling
business after Kiva’s departure. However, they may face
legal challenges from the deep-pocketed, hardball-playing
Amazon. Last month, Harvest Automation pulled back on
its plans to launch a robotic platform for shuttling merchandise around e-commerce warehouses when investors
balked over concerns that Amazon might sue for violating the patent portfolio it gained in the Kiva acquisition,
Harvest cofounder and CEO Charlie Grinnell told The
Boston Globe.
In a later e-mail, however, Grinnell said those concerns
were overblown. “Our system is completely different from
Kiva, so there really is no overlap once you look at the
details,” he said.
20 DC VELOCITY APRIL 2016 www.dcvelocity.com
6 River Systems lands $6 million funding to develop DC
fulfillment robot
TVH in the Americas has earned the Olathe, Kan., Chamber
of Commerce’s Corporate Citizen of the Year award. …
Numina Group, an automated warehouse control systems
supplier, has been awarded
the 2015 Integrator of the Year
award by Panther Industries. …
Vargo has received Dematic’s
diamond-level distributor sta-
tus based on sales excellence for 2015. … The Women in
Trucking Association has announced the finalists for the
2nd Annual Distinguished Woman in Logistics award,
which promotes the achievements of women employed
in the North American transportation industry. Finalists
for the award are Elizabeth Fretheim, Walmart’s direc-
tor of logistics sustainability; Liz Lasater, chief executive
officer of Red Arrow Logistics; and Shelley Simpson, J.B.
Hunt Transport Services Inc.’s chief marketing officer,
executive vice president, and president of integrated
capacity solutions and truckload. … Yale Materials
Handling Corp. has received the Chicago Athenaeum
Museum of Architecture and Design’s 2015 Good Design
award for its ESC030AD three-wheel stand-up electric
forklift. … For the eighth consecutive time, Manhattan
Associates Inc. has received recognition as a market
leader in the Gartner Inc. Magic Quadrant for Warehouse
Management Systems. … Crowley Maritime Corp. has
awarded Thomas B. Crowley Sr. Memorial Scholarships
to University of North Florida students Camilo Garcia
and Danijel Hadziavdic for academic excellence in the
university’s transportation and logistics program. …
Elemica was selected as a Top 10 Innovative Technology
Company in Georgia by The Technology Association of
Georgia, the state’s association dedicated to the promo-
tion and economic advancement of Georgia’s technol-
ogy industry. … Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift America
Inc. has announced the recipients of its 2016 Dealers of
Excellence award. Twenty dealers were recognized for
providing industry-leading customer service and satisfac-
tion throughout their sales and support operations. …
Mastio & Co., an independent research agency that spe-
cializes in the less-than-truckload industry, recently hon-
ored Averitt Express with both its 2015 overall Mastio
Quality award and its Inter-Regional Carrier award.
… The Manufacturing Institute has presented Chelsea
Becker, strategic project manager for Baldor Electric
Co., with the Women in Manufacturing STEP (Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Production) Ahead award.
accolades
NUMINA GROUP
