Articles
Commentary
The Five Inventories: Invisible to Customers, Crucial to the Bottom Line
Investment sage Warren Buffett once described business as a vehicle in which the rear-view mirror is always clearer than the windshield. He was right, and mismanaged logistics is the reason for the mud on the windshield. Failure to see and manage global supply networks in response to demand makes for muddy business indeed. In the […]
Read MoreWringing Benefits from New Hazmat Regulations
With the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Hazmat Threat Assessment Program firmly in place, motor freight carriers and drivers face a new reality. While the program itself grew from provisions in the federal Patriot Act, and requires states to impose tighter oversight of security risks, the ultimate responsibility for fulfilling its demands falls squarely on carriers […]
Read MoreExpect the Unexpected: 5 Steps for Retail Supply Chain Preparedness
Unpredictable consumers, demand for low prices, and an ever-quickening pace make the retail/consumer package goods supply chain difficult on a good day. Large-scale interruptions—such as the recent dock workers’ strike and overactive hurricane season—further exacerbate an already challenging landscape. While many interruptions are unavoidable, manufacturers and retailers can—and should—take steps to create more agile supply […]
Read MoreFollowing the Retail Trail
Where consumer demand goes, retailers follow. They’ve progressed in tune and in time with customer needs—from the general stores of the Old West, to turn-of-the-century catalogers, to urban centers and department stores, to suburban shopping malls, and now to web retailing. As the fight for customers grows increasingly more competitive, retailers seek any logistics advantage […]
Read MoreTriple Threat: Fighting Multiple Cargo Claims
Q: I am an NVOCC. Recently, I imported a shipment of assorted metal products to the United States. During shipment, some of the goods were damaged, and the receiver filed a claim against me. I paid the claim based on the limited liability in my bill of lading.The goods were insured under a cargo policy […]
Read MoreInside the Automated Warehouse
The traditional functions of a warehouse are well known. Unlike its predecessors, however, the modern warehouse is an assemblage of highly evolved automation technologies, making it a core part of the supply chain. Today’s warehouse activities include crossdocking, palletizing, kitting, tagging, and identifying products, as well as storing them in the most time- and space-efficient […]
Read MoreBuilding a Better Warehouse
Choosing the right site for locating a warehouse or distribution center (DC) is a key challenge for any business. Numerous factors—such as access to transportation, an available worker pool, community support, and environmental regulations—converge to make a certain location a prime spot for meeting one company’s transportation and distribution goals, while sounding a death knell […]
Read MoreThe Service Supply Chain: Turning Potential into Profit
A growing number of CFOs and manufacturing executives have discovered the profit potential buried in their service business. The big challenge, however, is transforming that potential into profit. While after-sales service on average represents 24 percent of revenue, it generates a whopping 45 percent of profit, according to a recent AMR Research study. Why? As […]
Read MoreWhen Good Warehouses Go Bad
“Our revenues and earnings were negatively affected by the January implementation of our new Warehouse Management System. Revenues were down approximately six percent compared to the first quarter of 2004. During the latter half of January, and through the month of February, we experienced significant difficulty in shipping customer orders. As a result, sales for […]
Read MoreThe Three Sides of SCE Implementation
In part one of this two-part article (April 2005), we explored relationship building among partners in a Supply Chain Execution (SCE) software implementation. The players in that successful SCE implementation included: Major Brands, an alcoholic beverage distributor that sought an SCE system to cut costs by improving inbound and outbound shipment processing, and refining picking […]
Read MorePremium Freight: Costly Expense or Strategic Initiative?
Today’s lean manufacturing environment, shaped by just-in-time stocking and razor-thin margins, has made the use of premium freight a daily reality for manufacturers. Though once used only on occasion to protect plants, shipping goods via premium freight is now a regular occurrence. While this shipping method can be expensive, manufacturers that incorporate premium freight as […]
Read MoreAutomate, Optimize, Audit for Smart Supply Chains
While politicians argue about the domestic effects of outsourcing manufacturing operations, logistics professionals know the practice only increases our responsibilities. The frenetic pace of global trade, coupled with the impact of outsourced manufacturing around the world, has transformed delivery of products into a complex engineering task that is quickly creating new jobs. Academia is already […]
Read MoreStick to the Core When Playing IT Pong
Do any of you old-timers recall the first Atari video game, Pong? It was the only video game in the world back then. You just hit a video puck back and forth, forth and back, no matter how long you played it. One reader told us that evaluating the myriad logistics IT choices sometimes feels […]
Read MorePlugging Cargo Liability Leaks
Q: I own a fleet of tank containers. A customer recently used one of my tanks for a shipment of concentrated juice. During transit, the tank developed a leak and a significant amount of concentrate was lost. The customer filed a claim against me, but my insurance company—which covers my cargo liability—says I may not […]
Read MoreCollaborate for All-Star SCE Implementation
Building relationships among partners in a Supply Chain Execution (SCE) software implementation is like getting an all-star team to work together. Each player can be great, but it is the combined teamwork that makes the difference when the game begins. To achieve success, roles and objectives have to be clearly defined, and teams must work […]
Read More8 Steps to Protecting Against Parcel Fraud
Parcel fraud is currently one of the most disregarded crimes in American business. But with an estimated $400 billion in losses per year due to employee theft, parcel fraud should not be overlooked. The most obvious type of parcel fraud occurs in the workplace, with crimes ranging from the seemingly harmless—shipping personal packages on a […]
Read MoreHave ERP, Have Inventory Control? Not Necessarily
Here are five reasons companies often lose control of inventory despite having an updated ERP system—and five solutions for regaining that control.
Read MoreAir Freight Needs New Business, Fresh Thinking
Let’s tear our eyes away from China. During the past decade, the China market’s enormous growth has hypnotized the airfreight industry. The vast scope and volume of goods winging their way across the Pacific has blinded many in air cargo to negative trends elsewhere. Almost all of air cargo’s other international lane segments—Europe, Latin America, […]
Read MoreFlying Under the Global Radar
Earlier this month, billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer completed the first round-the-world flight in 67 hours, two minutes, and 38 seconds. Four days later, and to considerably less fanfare but arguably greater importance, Boeing’s 777-200 LR Worldliner, the longest-range commercial airplane in the world, completed a three-hour test flight from Everett, Wash., to […]
Read MoreRFID: Setting the Standards
Anyone who thinks RFID and all it entails will quietly fade away is going to be terribly disappointed. Any new technology or strategy operates like a dog preparing to lie down—it goes in circles. First we circled around Wal-Mart and the Department of Defense mandates. Now we are circling around establishing standards for the RFID […]
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