Becoming ARRIS

When we created ARRIS, we built our brand around a word you can actually find in the dictionary.

An “ARRIS” is the sharp edge formed by the intersection of two surfaces, commonly used in architecture. And as architects know, an ARRIS is an extremely material-efficient feature to make structures stronger and stiffer – core to the value proposition of our technology. ARRIS’ Additive Molding process is redefining the way manufacturers use continuous aligned-fiber composites, the strongest and stiffest materials available. The ARRIS brand reflects our commitment to driving performance improvements, reimagining structures, and using advanced manufacturing technologies to unlock transformative design and material innovations.

At ARRIS, we’re on a mission to use cutting-edge design, materials, and manufacturing technologies to redefine high-performance products at scale.

But we’re also design-forward and driven by obsessive attention to detail. You can see that thoughtfulness in our name—and you can see it in the evolution of our brand identity too.

Take a look, for instance, at our original logo:

When we created our original logo, we wanted a visual reminder of our brand’s meaning: a simple form that would capture the shape of an architectural “arris,” while also nodding to the continuous fibers we use to reinforce our products.

The fibers in the logo are organized into the traditional bidirectional weave pattern that has been broadly synonymous with composites for decades, however, the pattern in the logo is symbolically being deconstructed. Our technology enables higher performance and more efficient approaches to the depicted form, but we weren’t publicly discussing these details at that time. We also wanted a bold, powerful logo and wordmark that reflected our ambitious trajectory of doing business with the world’s biggest consumer and industrial brands.

Of course, during those early days, we couldn’t spend too long polishing up our logo. But we did take time to think about the color scheme: the blue and cyan palette was intended to represent the broad applicability and transformative sustainability of our technology, while the imposing lines of both the logo and the wordmark were intended to communicate strength and reliability.

Exploring a sharper look.

After our Series A financing, we decided it was time for a brand upgrade. We wanted to emphasize that our core innovation was not just incredible strength and stiffness, but also remarkable design latitude empowering leading brands to reimagine product architectures. We did away with the heavy right-angles and flat orientation of our original logo to create a more refined and transformative style:

We had our designers retain our original palette, but sharpen their pencils to deliver a far more modern and design-forward logo and wordmark. The flat, rigid ARRIS was transformed into a 3D shape, with interlocking fibers leading the viewers vision into the distance. The intricacy of the geometry mirroring the abilities of our process to manufacture very precise, accurate, and complex parts. We felt the new logo celebrated the material innovation, the new design latitude, and our path into the future collaborating with top brands on their next-gen products.

There’s a lot to like about the logo — but it’s easy to fall in love with a design and fail to think about practicalities. We came to realize that the intricate patterning of our logo didn’t scale down well at low resolutions (we couldn’t get jackets made!). And while we appreciated the symbolism of a light blue palette, it was too subtle against a white background. We wouldn’t make that mistake again.

Now, we’re proud to unveil a new look for the ARRIS brand.

Logo Credit: Thank you to our talented friends at Albertson Design 😉

As you likely noticed, we dropped “Composites” from our name and wordmark as it did not represent the full scope of our company.

Many of our customers hadn’t even considered replacing metal with composite materials for some of the products we’re making for them today. In addition, the products we manufacture can include metals, electronics, and other non-composite materials right alongside the composites. Our motto is “The right material in the right place”. In addition, our applications engineering team is equipped with our design and optimization software and can help customers design and manufacture previously impossible products. We are a lot more than composites today.

Our new branding is in many ways the synthesis of our previous logos’ strengths. We’ve kept the robust quality of our original logo, but instead of communicating strength with thick, heavy lines, we’re now using much more refined and sharp marks with interesting dimensionality.

We retained the concept of a triangular 3D form from our second logo but made it simpler and more scalable. Subtle design choices, such as the alignment of the logo’s lines and the slope of the narrow lettering, help to connect the logo and the word mark and reinforce the notion that aligned lightweight fibers can deliver remarkable strength and stiffness.

Finally, we’ve turned the logo from a triangular roof shape into an arrow pointing toward the future and consisting of leading lines that represent the aligned continuous fiber composites that underpin everything we do. We sacrificed our blue color scheme but we’ve never been more committed to building broadly applicable and sustainable manufacturing processes to enable our customers to make the products of tomorrow.

After three iterations, our logo is still inspired by an “arris” …the strength, stiffness, efficiency, elegance, and design freedom it represents to us will always be part of our DNA.

By focusing on the details, thinking creatively, maturing, and refusing to rest on past accomplishments, we’re moving our brand identity forward. That’s the kind of innovative, thoughtful work that the ARRIS brand represents — and that we’re committed to bringing to the leading product companies around the world.