Articles
Commentary
Building Security Into the Supply Chain
Prior to Sept. 11, 2001, the term “security” primarily addressed cargo theft. Now the term addresses the broader set of security requirements and challenges associated with the increasing terrorist threat. Historically, competition has heightened information-sharing tensions among regulatory agencies, manufacturers, freight forwarders, carriers, and retailers—they have “protected” their piece of the information technology system. The […]
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 MoreCogistics: Harnessing the Power of Collaboration
Given the direction of today’s economy, most companies continue to focus on ways to reduce costs and increase their return on investment. There are many means to achieving these goals, but clearly better use of data—that is, transforming raw information into actionable knowledge—is a sound approach. In the supply chain, where all activities are interlinked […]
Read MoreRiding Outsourcing Waves: Hang Five to Thrive
Improving supply chain performance by outsourcing has been in vogue for decades. But has the outsourcing process kept pace with the emergence of the supply chain manager (SCM)—a single provider responsible for end-to-end performance? The first wave of outsourcing focused on exchanging fixed assets for leaner balance sheets and variable logistics costs in warehousing 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 MoreOne Throat to Choke: The Case for One-Stop Logistics
When companies choose to outsource a portion of their supply chains, they often struggle with the decision of how much control over their business and customer relationships they should put in the hands of an outsider. Most often, outsourced logistics is limited to transportation because it is more likely to reap quantifiable savings that are […]
Read MoreMaritime Security: Creating a System of Systems
Nearly every containerload represents a point of vulnerability in the pursuit of maritime security. Daily, 17,000 shipping containers laden with cargo of all sorts enter 361 U.S. seaports. Multiply this number by the hundreds of pairs of human hands through which that cargo passes and you can begin to see the magnitude of the port […]
Read MoreThe Blocking and Tackling of Site Selection
As a company’s space needs change, selecting the appropriate site for its distribution centers becomes increasingly important to the bottom line. Here are some practical ideas and tips that can help you along the way. Logistics Audit. When considering a new DC, the first step is to survey your present situation and address decreasing cycle […]
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 MoreThe 411 on Product Lifecycle Management
The age we live in may very well be be remembered as the “Age of Acronyms.” The logistics industry has certainly contributed its fair share. Among the many new SCAs (Supply Chain Acronyms) to make their way into our daily lexicon is an upstart called Product Lifecycle Management (PLM). Like supply chain management (SCM), PLM […]
Read MoreRFID Use Limited Only by Imagination
Logistics professionals have long viewed radio frequency identification (RFID) as a technology of the future. By fixing their vision on the distant horizon, however, they may be overlooking the real value that RFID can deliver today. RFID technology is already used thousands of times each day in port, distribution center, and fleet operations around the […]
Read MoreVendor Compliance: What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger
You just landed your first big customer. No more selling to mom-and-pops. You alert your suppliers and increase your raw materials inventory. You step up production and increase your finished goods inventory, anxiously awaiting the purchase order. Then suddenly it hits you: in order to get the purchase order you have to comply with a […]
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 MoreConsolidating Reverse Logistics and Warehousing Yields Greater Returns
While 3PLs have been tuned in to the retail industry’s returns management dilemma, manufacturers are also struggling with similar problems. In addition to traditional consumer returns, manufacturers are also charged with managing overstocks, seasonality, stockouts, shelf damage, obsolescence, and sales trends. As a result, it’s crucial to get valuable inventory assets returned back through the […]
Read MoreTechnology Is Not a Cure-All
It isn’t always about technology. That sounds a bit heretical to modern ears. Technology has done so much to alter our world, make our lives easier, and provide answers to decades-old business problems. We have come to depend so heavily on the value of technology that our first response to most business problems is investing […]
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. […]
Read MoreLorantec: Cargo Gets Smart
In this era of smart machines, smart cards, smart motors, and smart sensors, it’s about time we had smart cargo—specifically, smart cargo containers. The ability to know where and in what condition a shipment is becomes a major supply chain consideration and the primary goal of better process visibility. Lorantec of Sunnyvale, Calif., is building […]
Read MoreShifting Gears from Inventory to Motor Freight Costs
The nation’s motor carrier freight bill for 2001 was $494 billion—more than 50 percent of total U.S. business logistics costs ($970 billion) and 82 percent of total U.S. business transportation costs ($605 billion), according to Robert Delaney’s annual State of Logistics Report released in June 2002. The implication for the nation’s shippers and receivers is […]
Read MoreCRM and the Danger of Dirty Data
Time doesn’t stand still. Neither do your customers. Face it. We are a nation on the move, and rapidly growing as well. In 2000, businesses filed 2.6 million change-of-address orders. There are a mind-boggling 140 million deliverable addresses in the United States, and the number is growing by nearly two million annually. If you are […]
Read MorePackaging Automation Delivers What Customers Demand
“The factory of the future will have only two employees, a man and a dog. The man will be there to feed the dog. The dog will be there to keep the man from touching the equipment,” writes author Warren G. Bennis. Well, not quite. But automation is certainly the watchword as today’s manufacturers face […]
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