inperson
Chris Arnold is president, chief operations officer, and one of the founders of TREW,
a material handling automation solutions company. Though a fairly new name to the
market, TREW is built on the foundation of two technology companies, Hilmot and Tech
King Operations. Arnold himself is a seasoned professional, having retail supply chain
experience at both Amazon, where he was director of U.S. logistics, and Walmart, where
he led a team that developed Walmart’s first internet fulfillment center. He also served as
vice president of operations and solutions development at Intelligrated. Arnold recently
spoke with DC VELOCITY Editorial Director David Maloney.
Chris Arnold
of TREW
interest of our clients and company.
Q: WHAT WOULD YOU SAY ARE THE MOST
IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENTS TAKING SHAPE
NOW THAT WILL AFFECT THE INDUSTRY IN
THE FUTURE?
A: The retail evolution, shifts in demographics, and sustainability in the supply chain will continue to fuel industry
transformation. Advances in robotics and
software enable the combination of flexibility in movement and software-directed
agility that allows us to think differently about overall solution footprints and
operations.
Q: YOU HAVE A BACKGROUND IN DATA ANALYTICS. HOW DO YOU APPLY THAT EXPERIENCE TO FINDING SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR
CUSTOMERS?
A: I had the pleasure of working for
Walmart and Amazon, where I learned
quickly how information helps drive
good decisions. Our industry is often
data rich and information poor, so I am
excited about new tools that allow us to
analyze data quickly, enabling and guiding our clients to make better business
decisions. The advances in software combined with operational know-how let us
move with speed to deliver solutions for
clients, which is very exciting to me as a
former operator.
Q: HOW DO YOU VIEW THE CURRENT MATERIAL HANDLING MARKET?
A: The material handling market is an
exciting place to be for software and automation solution suppliers. The market is
transforming from store and e-commerce
solutions to solving commerce challenges
with new ways of thinking. The fulfillment
and labor challenges and advances in software, robotics, and automation enable the
rethinking of traditional solutions.
Q: YOU REFER TO TREW AS A “JUMP-UP”
RATHER THAN A STARTUP. COULD YOU
EXPLAIN WHAT YOU MEAN BY THAT?
A: When TREW was formed, we quickly acquired two innovative
and well-known companies, Hilmot (conveyors) and Tech King
Operations (WES, WCS, and controls). In a matter of months,
we grew to over 250 industry-experienced teammates combining bench strength, know-how, software, products, services, and
active clients. “Startup” suggests something that is still being commercialized, whereas a “jump-up” describes our explosive growth.
Q: WHAT DO YOU VIEW AS THE IMPORTANT VALUES THAT TREW BRINGS
TO THE MARKET?
A: I believe it starts with our name TREW (“believe,” “trust”),
our integrators, TREW partners, and our teammates. TREW
brings to market a willingness to embrace an ecosystem of partners who work together to solve customer challenges, where
the customer, partner, and TREW all win together. Innovating
software and technology is great, but people make all the difference. Every teammate is engaged to be extraordinary in what
they do and to work fearlessly making decisions in the best
In our continuing series
of discussions with top
supply-chain company
executives, Chris Arnold
discusses his company’s
“jump-up” into the
market, data analytics, and
the developments that are
shaping the industry.
