Articles
Case Studies
Warehousing for the 21st Century
Companies explore merge-in-transit, crossdocking, and pool distribution in the never-ending quest to increase speed to market, improve service and inventory turns, and reduce costs.
Read MoreKaren Caswelch: Quality In High Gear
When Karen Caswelch joined Allison Transmission as director of purchasing last year, she had no corporate purchasing experience. But her record in operations and quality management made her supremely qualified to carry out her number-one mission. “The ultimate mandate,” Caswelch says, “is to keep the plants running. And you’ve got to keep them running with […]
Read MoreAdding a Dash of SALT to Logistics
Speech technology developers cook up a new recipe for web applications.
Read MoreBob Wegmann: Blood Work
As Americans jammed Red Cross blood centers after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Bob Wegmann and his staff worked the phones. Their mission: to get vendors to rush enough blood bags, swabs, printed forms, and other supplies to accommodate the hordes of donors. “Obviously, no one predicted Sept. 11. But we were able to predict, […]
Read MoreNTE Builds Toshiba’s Public-Private Partnership
Two electronic trading networks help Toshiba win prime-level service and attractive rates from contract carriers.
Read MoreBridging Infrastructure Gaps In Latin America
By partnering with a 3PL, Lucent moves inventory closer to its end consumers, reduces inventory-carrying costs, and better manages product flow.
Read MoreMichael Trotter: Striking a Balance
Loading pallets with electrical supplies bound for factories and construction sites, “you learn quickly that you can’t set light bulbs on the bottom and put wire on the top,” laughs Michael Trotter, director of logistics at Van Meter Industrial in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But for a distributor with 29,000 SKUs of all sizes and shapes—from […]
Read MoreServigistics Service Parts Planning: More Science, Less Art
Cray Inc. takes the guesstimation out of managing its stock of spare parts.
Read MoreA Ripe Market for Automated Routing and Scheduling
With promises of fresher and more timely delivery of perishable produce, here’s how an australian etailer is changing the way today’s consumers shop.
Read MoreAndrea Greco: Greco’s Game
The biggest logistics challenge I have right now is being able to go fishing on the weekends and still spend time with my kids,” laughs Andrea Greco, vice president, supply chain for Fila USA. Shuttling between a job near Baltimore and a young family in New York demands careful organization. So does coordinating the supply […]
Read MoreWireless Technology: SCM For a New Generation
To support an improved sales and distribution model, PepsiAmericas swaps old handhelds for advanced mobile computing technology.
Read MoreStacy Eakes: A Seasoned Professional
Stacy Eakes took up rock climbing this year for fun, but she finds that the sport has a lot to teach a logistics professional. “It’s all about problem solving,” she explains. “You learn to shift your weight and look at things from a new perspective, opening new possibilities.” Back on the ground, that mix of […]
Read MoreNistevo Finds Strength in Numbers
Nistevo’s network-based TMS gains punch as it attracts more shippers and carriers.
Read MoreWayne Paul: Sticking to the Basics
Wayne Paul caught the logistics bug as a college student working in the receiving department at Sears. And much of what he knows about managing a demand chain he learned from his first post-college employer, Roadway Express. Paul joined the less-than-truckload carrier after earning his B.S. in Transportation from the University of Alabama in 1980. […]
Read MoreDemand Planning’s Suite Song
Forecasting and planning software helps companies match inventories to customers’ future demands.
Read MoreGeneral John M. McDuffie: Telling War Stories
When John M. “Mike” McDuffie talks about a crisis, he doesn’t mean a late shipment; he means catastrophes such as the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. As director of logistics for the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Lieutenant General McDuffie coordinated the race to move people, equipment, and supplies to […]
Read MoreTransentric: Filling in the Blanks
A new supply chain tool promises a broader and more detailed view of inventory.
Read MoreDennis Hilborn: Know Thyself
“Who are we?” is one of Dennis Hilborn’s favorite questions. In his two and a half years as director of distribution at sports apparel maker Cutter & Buck, asking employees over and over who they are has helped him transform the Seattle-based company’s distribution center (DC). When Hilborn arrived at Cutter & Buck, “distribution was […]
Read MoreRand McNally Keeps Going the Distance
Rand McNally barrels ahead with new mileage and route optimization tools.
Read MorePhil Saracin: Whatever it Takes
Phil Saracin, global logistics manager at Kemet Corp., enjoys the challenges of finding new ways to reduce cost and cycle time, and developing new tools to improve information flow.
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