Articles
Checking In
Making a List
Shippers/consignees, forwarders, NVOs, carriers and 3PLs BEWARE : “persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction are prohibited from engaging in economic transactions with persons/organizations on these lists.” What list? The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has compiled a list of more than 8,000 “persons or organizations” that those under U.S. jurisdiction are forbidden to trade with. […]
Read MorePushing Back the Last Mile
There was plenty of activity at the American Trucking Associations meeting and trade show in October, especially at booths exhibiting wireless technology and systems to empower carriers—technology transforming transportation. Here’s a look at some of the solutions exhibited at the ATA conference: MobileCast by UPS Logistics Technologies and Tripmaster’s Intelligent Delivery System offer a fleet […]
Read MorePassion Play
Most readers I meet are reserved, practical, low-key, disciplined, taking a considered approach to the task of managing many variables as they strive to match their supply stream to their demand. That’s why I was a little surprised to hear the following at this year’s CLM Conference in Chicago. “As logisticians, we’re steadfast in our […]
Read MoreYellow/Roadway: Changing Directions
Every September, Inbound Logistics offers readers a review of the trucking segment. The big news this year is Yellow Freight buying its competitor, Roadway. This unexpected move was driven by economic, competitive, and strategic reasons. As we saw with Consolidated Freightways’ demise, size alone is not a reliable indicator of stability. Good management, aggressiveness, and […]
Read MoreJettison JIT?
Is it time to jettison JIT? It may be, according to industry observers Ike Brannon, senior economist on the Congressional Joint Economic Committee and Michael Gorman, assistant professor at the University of Dayton (see Viewpoint, August issue). Let’s think about that. Ike and Mike say that increased transport costs offset savings companies using just-in-time regimes […]
Read MoreNavigating by Gyroscope
Sociologist David Reisman suggests that there are two types of political people: gyroscopic—those having internal guidance on issues, and radar—those bouncing off and navigating their issue positions by interacting with others. We find similar behavioral patterns in operation by those providing outsourced services in a stressed economy. Do they navigate their way to survivability and […]
Read MoreFlight of Fancy
Back in 2023 Paul MacCready’s famous company, Aerovironment Corp., brought to market an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) that revolutionized expedited and emergency transport services in America. That was seven years ago. Since then, the UAV 2030 AllCargo has captured 38 percent of the critical shipment market. Soaring above traffic, tolls, and crumbling infrastructure, the unmanned […]
Read MoreThe Productivity Evolution
What’s in a warehouse? If you answered “inventory” you may be overlooking one important fact. Today’s warehouse operations are sometimes a nexus of functions and business strategy, creating an ideal setting for new ideas to take root, grow your business, improve your business model. With the stress caused by the slow economy, warehouse pros are […]
Read MoreStirring the Pot
I love making chili and am always amazed at that point in the pot where individual ingredients coalesce into something new and wonderful. While cooking up this issue, we saw the beginnings of a similar trend in logistics IT. Business IT solutions running down functional silos to the heart of an enterprise—purchasing/SCM, TMS, WMS—are now […]
Read MoreAll Across the Angry Seas
We’ve heard for the last two decades that the world is getting smaller. Not anymore. Distances across angry seas are greater than those across peaceful seas. Cultural differences, political differences, and security concerns have raised formidable impediments to the trade and tranquility that bind the world together. And so we struggle to secure our homeland. […]
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