Kenco has opened a 30,000-square-foot innovation lab in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where equipment makers and customers can test warehouse automation without committing to buy it.
A warehouse operator weighing an automation purchase can now run the equipment in Kenco’s lab before signing a contract, instead of taking a vendor’s numbers on faith.
The lab replaces a 10,000-square-foot facility and is built to mirror real warehouse conditions. The larger space is meant to handle bigger, more complex automation systems. Kenco operates 140 locations across North America with more than 7,500 employees.
Ainsley Williams, Kenco’s vice president of automation and innovation, said the expansion lets “OEMs continue experimenting with their products in a real environment” and gives “customers explore product and value without having to invest in them.”
President and CEO Denis Reilly addressed the industry's job-loss worries directly. “Automation is not about replacing people,” he said. “It’s about enabling them.”
Kenco is also working with the University of Tennessee Knoxville's logistics program on research tied to the lab. The company says the expanded space is meant to plug it deeper into Chattanooga's broader technology community.
