What do warehouse management systems (WMS), supply chain visibility, RFID and robotics share in common?

They’re all real time. When I first got into the business, it was not possible to track product because cargo moved faster than the paper associated with it. Most warehouses in those days had huge staging areas for goods while they waited for the paper. So, when I saw a WMS with a bar code scanner for the first time, I was just amazed. I could see the vision of how accurate you could be if you could capture information in real time. Everything I’ve done since then is related to capturing data and connecting that information to the real-time movement of goods.

How has the role of technology in warehousing and logistics evolved over the last 40 years?

The first important evolution was from batch mode to real-time data collection. I remember the big issue in the 1980s was that there were batch WMS and real-time WMS. If you had a real-time WMS, you were ahead of the game because the system could direct what happened on the floor rather than Murphy’s Law. The next change was the move to visibility, event management and exception handling. Now, you can manage as things are happening.

Why are you so excited by robots?

Again, it goes back to being able to react in real time. A robot is locally intelligent. It can take direction from a central computer, but thanks to artificial intelligence, it can handle exceptions without a human running in and getting involved. That’s exciting.