Great(er) Expectations: Meeting E-Commerce Consumer Demands
Consumers prioritize convenience, experience, and quality when making online purchases, according to an annual e-commerce study conducted by third-party logistics provider Dotcom Distribution. Data from more than 1,400 online shoppers indicates a shift from previous years, when consumers placed higher value on gift-like packaging and fast delivery. Results also demonstrate a change in how consumers […]
Read MoreIn the Eye of the Storms
As the 2018 hurricane season continues to blow through, DHL Resilience360 offers these risk mitigation measures: Pre-position essential material and stocks. By monitoring storm forecasts in real time, companies can assess potential locations and routes at risk, and initiate efforts to minimize disruption such as increasing inventory to bridge short-term supply shortages; storing fuel reserves […]
Read MoreNews & Trends Impacting the Food and Beverage Supply Chain
FDA now NAMES NAMES The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will now release the names of retailers associated with severe foodborne outbreaks during recalls. The agency has not traditionally released lists of specific retailers where recalled foods may have been purchased because certain supply chain information is confidential between the supplier and retailer, said […]
Read MoreU.S. Businesses Fight Tariff Battle
More than half of U.S. businesses are battling the effects of the unfolding trade war with China; the majority are already feeling the squeeze of the tariffs introduced earlier in 2018, according to a new AsiaInspection report. Notably, organizations on the other side of the tariff war are considerably less disturbed, with roughly one-third of […]
Read MoreChina’s Economy Stays Resilient
China’s railway freight volume, an indicator of broad economic activity, expanded at a faster pace in the first seven months of 2018, notes a Xinhua report. China’s railways carried a total of 2.3 billion metric tons of cargo between January and July 2018, up 7.9 percent from one year earlier, according to National Bureau of […]
Read MoreBye, a la Mode
As part of a business plan to centralize operations and move away from independent owner-operator networks, Hub Group sold its Mode Transportation subsidiary to an affiliate of York Capital Management, a diversified investment manager, for approximately $238.5 million, with about $20 billion under management. Hub’s primary focus is intermodal, and it has sold a 3PL […]
Read MoreThe Supply Chain in Brief
SEALED DEALS Electronic component maker Phoenix Contact awarded a small parts warehouse automation and expansion project to WITRON Logistik + Informatik GmbH. To help Phoenix meet an increase in pick volume driven by online ordering, WITRON added 10 multifunction ergonomic order-picking workstations (pictured), bringing the warehouse total to 31. Ben E. Keith, one the largest […]
Read MoreIN BRIEF: New Services & Solutions-October 2018
Transportation Air Italy started cargo routes between India, Thailand, and the United States and Milan Malpensa airport, utilizing the 10-ton belly capacity of its A330 fleet. Now represented by Globe Air Cargo USA for all its U.S. cargo operations, the airline plans to offer direct daily flights from Miami and New York to the Milan airport. […]
Read MoreReuse Service of Use to Container Shippers
CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd, two of the world’s largest liner shipping companies, now offer reUse, a container management service, in Mexico. The service is made available on the online platform of Avantida, an INTTRA company. It is the first time this service is offered in Mexico, and represents Avantida’s first foray into the North American […]
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6 Post-M&A Supply Chain Strategies for Success
The high-tech industry has experienced a season of acquisitions, and now it’s time to start thinking about supply chain optimization. According to the 2017 M&A Report, high-tech mergers and acquisitions totaled more than $700 billion in 2016, about 30 percent of the overall M&A market. This reflects a growth rate of 9 percent per year […]
Read MoreNews & Trends Impacting High-Tech & Electronics
it’s a beautiful day in GOOGLE’S neighborhood Toronto spells the site of Google parent company Alphabet’s planned $50 million high-tech neighborhood. Sidewalk Labs—Alphabet’s urban-innovation arm—will develop 12 acres of the city into a high-tech urban environment called Quayside. While the details aren’t yet finalized, a hint at what’s to come may be Sidewalk Labs’ previous […]
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6 Ways to Find Hidden Capacity
As shippers puzzle their way through a record truckload capacity shortage, they have to change how they do business to find the right truck at the right time for the right price.
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Beyond Table Stakes: Freight Payment Clients Hold All the Cards
Advances in technology, increasing globalization, and the growth of e-commerce are upending the traditional freight bill audit and payment industry.
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Good Question: To address the truck driver shortage, should we lower the minimum driver age to 18?
I agree with lowering the age restriction for getting an interstate CDL to 18. Currently, commercial drivers between 18 and 21 can operate with a CDL as long as they don’t cross state borders. Think about that—a 19 year old can legally operate a commercial rig between Miami and Pensacola, Florida (670 miles apart), but […]
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Good News From the Government! (Yes, You Read That Right)
In its second estimate of Q2 2018 Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the U.S. Census Bureau quoted growth at 4.2 percent, the best quarterly figure since Q3 2014. That comparison is important because 2014 was also the last time the truck market was tight. When GDP rises above four percent, freight grows and the truck market […]
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Shipping and Delivery: How to Get it Right
Thanks to the rise of e-commerce and heightening customer expectations, shipping and delivery have become key drivers of overall customer satisfaction. An e-commerce company’s ability to meet customer expectations can be a source of competitive differentiation. Executing against the wrong strategy—or not having a strategy at all—is a recipe for higher costs and lower customer […]
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Conserving a National Resource
Everyone has an opinion about how to combat the truck driver shortage—from boosting pay and benefits to lowering the age for getting a CDL (see Good Question, page 10) to self-driving trucks. But one valuable weapon you don’t hear much about is driver wellness programs. Carriers can implement these programs quickly, and net near immediate […]
Read MoreEthiopian Airlines Launches Historic Cargo Route at MIA
Thank Ethiopian Airlines for the first-ever cargo-only route between the African continent and Miami International Airport (MIA). On August 29, 2018, Ethiopian launched the first of two weekly freighter flights between the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa and Miami. The scheduled flights operate on a route that includes intermediate stops in Spain, Colombia, and Belgium […]
Read MoreHoly Mackerel! Oslo Reels in Seafood Center
Norway’s Oslo Airport is positioning itself as a preferred cargo hub by adding seafood transportation to its menu. Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) and Sjømatterminalen AS will operate the new Seafood Center at Oslo Airport, which will handle up to 250,000 tons of seafood annually. The facility is designed to meet industry requirements for cool chain […]
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