Articles
Checking In
Updating Einstein?
Einstein said the faster an object moves, the slower time seems to pass. Well, not for me. The increased speed at which products now move through the supply chain seems to have the same impact on my calendar. I can’t believe half the year is gone, and in the blink of an eye it will […]
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Reconstructing Supply Chains
I see it every day on my way to work, and if you’re in logistics, you see it too. The demand chain structure that you manage is breaking down and rebuilding itself, just below the surface, and changing into what best serves consumers’ needs. On a major New York artery, I pass a long-vacant big […]
Read MoreLooking Beyond Your Desktop
The latest Ransomware attack lays bare hidden risks in your manufacturing, logistics, and supply chain network. You can protect against the ever-evolving threat of Bitcoin pirates by looking deeper into your operations. The attack is introduced into networks with Spear Fishing emails. Once activated, the malware locks and ecrypts your files, and files across all […]
Read MoreWe’ve Been Together for 35 Years
This month marks my 35th anniversary of serving readers as editor of Inbound Logistics. That milestone gave me reason to look back while developing and editing the content for this annual logistics technology issue. Three decades ago, logistics technology primarily consisted of typewriters, pens and pencils, ledgers, paper maps, and hand-typed bills of lading and […]
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Redefining Globalism?
Not long ago, Deutsche Bank, Thomas Friedman, and many economic experts announced that globalism is dead. Even technology visionary Peter Thiel recently said, "The tide on globalism is going out." Deutsche Bank chief strategist George Saravelos frames globalism’s death notice this way: "The world has been on a ‘globalizing’ trend since the end of World […]
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Flight of Fancy (Revisited)
[This was originally published in June 2003, but with Amazon’s recent drone patent filing, we thought you’d enjoy the look back.] 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 […]
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Wild Ride?
When the IL team came up with the original issue theme for the 2017 Logistics Planner—The Upside of Down—we were anticipating yet another long term of challenging economic stagnation. The theme was that our mantra of demand-driven or inbound logistics practices would help enterprise managers and owners squeeze every last ounce of value out of […]
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Hold On Tight!
Just like in logistics, our editorial and design team meets many months in advance to forecast upcoming content and issue themes. So, when we met eight months ago to develop the Logistics Planner issue theme, we thought we had a good understanding of what was in store for 2017. After spirited discussion, we decided on […]
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Times They Are A-changin’
Let’s say you are a manufacturer in the Midwest. You’ve got an excellent product line, a well-tuned supply chain, dedicated workers, and a great brand. Let’s say your company’s name is Harrier, because you have a long history of being a tough global competitor. The problem is, your competitors moved offshore, reaping competitive advantages such […]
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Blockchain Supply Chain?
Anyone doing business in a global environment knows that a lot of friction in trade activities is directly related to finance: regulatory and compliance speed bumps, fraud, letters of credit, manual and fax-based documentation. In trade finance, the sheer number of borders, intermediaries, regulatory authorities—and lack of technology—can sometimes stall your product, no matter what […]
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