AUGUST 2016
VOLUME 14 NO. 8
inside
28 “Bullishly skeptical” on Cuba:
interview with Rob Kemp
BY MARK B. SOLOMON
There’s great opportunity in supporting U.S. brands that
will soon have access to 12 million stuff-starved people.
But as Rob Kemp and his colleagues discovered during
their Cuba trade mission in March, only the very patient
need apply.
32 Can we all just get along?
BY MARK B. SOLOMON
When it comes to DC workers and their mechanical
counterparts, the answer is probably yes, if collaborative
robots perform as intended.
37 A healthy dose of automation
BY DAVID MALONE Y
To assure that the right medications get to patients right
away, Toho Pharmaceutical built a distribution center
that is so highly automated most of the products
processed there are never touched by human hands.
42 “Lower for longer” diesel
prices not seen curbing
enthusiasm for rail
BY MARK B. SOLOMON
Avondale analyst says lower diesel prices have led rail
users to shift short-haul loads to trucks. Yet others say
that’s just one factor, if it’s a factor at all.
47 A remix for voice?
BY BEN AMES
It used to be that voice technology was used mainly for
order picking and ran strictly on industrial-grade
proprietary devices. Those days are fast disappearing.
51 Yes, there is something new
under the sun
BY TOBY GOOLEY
Two product categories that haven’t changed much in
the last 10 years—batteries and chargers for lift trucks
and mobile devices—are undergoing a transformation.
