Articles
Feature Stories
Freight Payment Outsourcing: Getting Finances in Ship Shape
Consider this: Because of administrative overhead, it costs large companies about $11 to pay one freight invoice. For a company with 1,000 carrier invoices a month, that’s $11,000. But if a third-party freight payment/auditing firm processes these invoices, companies pay just 5 percent to 10 percent of this benchmark cost per bill. Companies that outsource […]
Read MoreCool Stuff, Blazing Speed
When consumers need the hottest new gadget, they need it cheap and they need it now. That’s why logistics leaders such as Hewlett-Packard power up their supply chain to deliver the goods. Now that’s cool.
Read MoreSCM: Pharma’s First Aid Kit
Pain points plague the pharmaceutical industry—skyrocketing expenses, stringent regulations, costly product development. Is supply chain management the cure?
Read MoreFast Forwarding
Globalization and security concerns are thrusting the air cargo industry into full throttle. From their unique perspective as both service provider and shipper, airfreight forwarders air their views about the growing challenges facing global businesses.
Read MoreExtreme Outsourcing: Tales from the 3PL Wild Side
When mere execution is not enough to accomplish extraordinary logistics challenges, companies turn to a special breed of 3PLs to deliver extreme results. What makes them special? Stellar leadership, plenty of resources, effective communications, precise project management, a deeply committed team, a passion for achieving a common goal, and sometimes the ability to function well on little sleep. Welcome to extreme outsourcing.
Read MoreRethinking Reverse Logistics
Companies have become more aware of the benefits of managing reverse logistics. But now it’s time to decide between merely managing returns more effectively and rethinking reverse logistics’ role as a supply chain strategy.
Read MoreFrom Factory to Foxhole: The Battle for Logistics Efficiency
Military and business logistics managers share some challenges—tracking, moving, and storing inventory while maintaining visibility—but the differences are dramatic. For the military, the goal is survival, not profitability. The competition is an enemy force. And the customer is a warfighter on the move in hostile territory.
Read MoreSupplier Logistics in the Driver’s Seat
Increasing complexity in the automotive supply chain has created a host of global logistics challenges that have auto suppliers operating in overdrive. How are they steering their supply chains in the right direction? By finding creative ways to keep inventories lean, improve velocity, and cut costs to meet manufacturer demands.
Read MoreGoing for (Not So) Broke: The True Cost of RFID
The cost of RFID implementation has been over-hyped and exaggerated. Early cost predictions had vendors seeing green, but in reality, an RFID implementation need not bust your whole technology budget. Find out the true costs of taking the RFID plunge.
Read MoreEast Side Story: Ocean’s New Direction
The triple-whammy of high container growth, tight capacity, and rising fuel costs crashing in on ocean transport to West Coast ports has shippers flooding the East Coast in search of a more effective solution. Though they face challenges of their own, East Coast ports and carriers are making a strong push to tap into Asian-origin cargo volume.
Read MoreLogistics at the C-Level. Are We There Yet?
Logistics and supply chain management continue to grow in stature within the corporate world. But merely gaining visibility in the boardroom doesn’t make logistics and supply chain equal players at the senior executive table.
Read MoreMaking Career Building Connections
Katy Keane had not been in the logistics industry very long when she found herself knee deep in what she calls an “ERP remediation” at food manufacturer Borden Foods. The company had just gone live with a full Enterprise Resource Planning system and service levels were tanking. “We couldn’t ship products and customers were threatening […]
Read MoreBest Practices in Today’s Distribution Center
The right people, processes, technology and tools help achieve the right results.
Read MoreSurvival of the Retro-Fittest
Improving processes and upgrading material handling systems in your warehouses and distribution facilities is not only a solid recovery strategy but also good business.
Read MoreSetting Your Sites
Identifying and evaluating new sites is not about finding the cheapest place; it’s about locating where you can serve customers most effectively, manage inbound flows and inventory most efficiently, and keep costs competitive. Ready for some site seeing? Read on.
Read MoreTransportation Transformed!
How seven companies of all shapes, industries, and sizes, transformed their transportation and logistics operations through the use of technology.
Read MoreManaging Inside and Outside the Box
Increasingly, businesses rely on technology to improve efficiency, accelerate flows, reduce costs, and create more effective communication among all channel partners involved in distribution. From integrated WMS and TMS solutions to web-based systems, technology has helped turned the four walls inside-out.
Read MoreWhen the Customer is King
Customer relationship management (CRM) helps companies maximize the value of every customer interaction and drive superior corporate performance. And the value of CRM grows considerably when it is tightly integrated with supply chain functionality. A “customer is king” approach is replacing the factory-based push supply chains of the 20th century.
Read MoreSmall Companies Take on the World
These days it seems if you’re not global, you’re missing all the action. Small- to mid-sized companies without the resources of mega brands face an uphill battle. Or do they? Here’s how undersized companies use savvy supply chain strategies to stand out and compete with the big boys in the global marketplace.
Read MoreProtecting Your Cargo: Signed, Sealed, Delivered
Each year cargo theft takes a major toll on companies that transport goods, with estimated losses totalling more than $15 billion annually—and rising. Advanced technologies and anti-theft devices now on the market help companies maintain the integrity of freight in transit. Here’s a look at the products that can protect your cargo.
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