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What Keeps Compliance and Procurement Professionals Up at Night?
Increasing regulation continues to be the chief concern for compliance and procurement professionals, while the overall outlook sentiment is positive, reports a Dun & Bradstreet study that examines the current state of the compliance and procurement functions, as measured through professional sentiment on related issues such as regulation, fraud, technology, and resources. The Dun & […]
Read MorePeak Season is Coming. Can You Work it Out?
Wage corrections, shift preferences, and more flexible human resource policies are key to attracting and retaining hourly warehouse workers, finds the 11th annual EmployBridge Warehouse Employee Opinion Survey of approximately 16,000 hourly workers. For the 11th consecutive year, pay ranks as the single most important factor among warehouse workers (see chart). For the first time […]
Read MoreGlobal Air Freight in Slow Motion
Demand for global air freight, measured in freight tonne kilometers (FTKs), rose 2.1 percent in July 2018, compared to the same period the year before, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). This was the slowest pace of growth since May 2016, and well below the five-year average growth rate of 5.1 percent. Freight […]
Read MoreExamining the Workforce of the Future
To help prepare Los Angeles County youth for career and college pathways in global transportation, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), has joined with the County of Los Angeles to create a Transportation School. The curriculum will be developed to teach students transferrable industry skills focused on science, technology, engineering, arts and math […]
Read MoreTop 10 Global Supply Chains
Which global companies and industries are leading the way? Which company encompasses the best supply chain practices? Has the same company been leading the way for the past decade, or has an underdog come from behind? To answer these questions, Vero Solutions, a UK-based provider of tracking and safety solutions, analyzed Gartner’s annual list of […]
Read MoreSuper-sized Logistics
Thanks to the Amazon Effect, fast and free delivery is the new normal, forcing other online sellers to keep up. However, there’s one area of e-commerce where online sellers can still compete logistically with Amazon and big box players: delivery of oversized, larger-than-parcel items, such as furniture, sofas, armoires, mattresses, treadmills, and more. But every […]
Read MoreAvoiding or Reducing Increases When Duty Calls
U.S. importers and shippers can mitigate the future impact of additional tariffs on imported goods, including steel and aluminum. Here are some ways to control costs, according to Daily Hernandez of Lilly & Associates. Exclusion requests. The Department of Commerce, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, and China, in particular, have implemented a process […]
Read MoreU.S. Businesses Fight Tariff Battle
More than half of U.S. businesses are battling the effects of the unfolding trade war with China; the majority are already feeling the squeeze of the tariffs introduced earlier in 2018, according to a new AsiaInspection report. Notably, organizations on the other side of the tariff war are considerably less disturbed, with roughly one-third of […]
Read MoreNews & Trends Impacting the Food and Beverage Supply Chain
FDA now NAMES NAMES The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will now release the names of retailers associated with severe foodborne outbreaks during recalls. The agency has not traditionally released lists of specific retailers where recalled foods may have been purchased because certain supply chain information is confidential between the supplier and retailer, said […]
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Start Me Up
Here are the categories of startups that are innovating supply chain and logistics, as identified by CB Insights’ new market map: Digital freight shipping. Startups such as iContainers and Flexport leverage data and software to manage end-to-end freight shipping processes. Blockchain. By using blockchain distributed ledger technology, startups such as ShipChain and Provenance bring greater […]
Read MoreIn the Eye of the Storms
As the 2018 hurricane season continues to blow through, DHL Resilience360 offers these risk mitigation measures: Pre-position essential material and stocks. By monitoring storm forecasts in real time, companies can assess potential locations and routes at risk, and initiate efforts to minimize disruption such as increasing inventory to bridge short-term supply shortages; storing fuel reserves […]
Read MoreGreat(er) Expectations: Meeting E-Commerce Consumer Demands
Consumers prioritize convenience, experience, and quality when making online purchases, according to an annual e-commerce study conducted by third-party logistics provider Dotcom Distribution. Data from more than 1,400 online shoppers indicates a shift from previous years, when consumers placed higher value on gift-like packaging and fast delivery. Results also demonstrate a change in how consumers […]
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Hello, Good Buy
Today’s retail environment is more complex than ever, given the rise of e-commerce and a rediscovery of the age-old truth that the customer is king. As retailers across the globe struggle with demands for both personalization and convenience, balanced with consumer skepticism on data privacy, JDA Software and Centiro explored consumer trends in key markets […]
Read MoreGulftainer Invests in Delaware and It’s a Pretty Big Deal
A new port deal represents the largest operation ever run by a United Arab Emirates (UAE) company in the United States, as well as the largest U.S. investment by a private UAE company. Gulftainer, the world’s largest privately owned independent port operator and logistics company based in the UAE, finalized a 50-year concession agreement with […]
Read MoreFlying in the Face of Danger: Lufthansa Handles World’s First eDGD
When Lufthansa Cargo handled a shipment from global healthcare company Abbott based in Wiesbaden, it was no routine transaction. It represented the world’s first dangerous goods shipment with an electronic Dangerous Goods Declaration (eDGD), using the INFr8 platform. Lufthansa Cargo, flew the shipment from Frankfurt Airport to Mexico City on board cargo flight LH8222. The […]
Read MoreChina’s Economy Stays Resilient
China’s railway freight volume, an indicator of broad economic activity, expanded at a faster pace in the first seven months of 2018, notes a Xinhua report. China’s railways carried a total of 2.3 billion metric tons of cargo between January and July 2018, up 7.9 percent from one year earlier, according to National Bureau of […]
Read MoreBye, a la Mode
As part of a business plan to centralize operations and move away from independent owner-operator networks, Hub Group sold its Mode Transportation subsidiary to an affiliate of York Capital Management, a diversified investment manager, for approximately $238.5 million, with about $20 billion under management. Hub’s primary focus is intermodal, and it has sold a 3PL […]
Read MoreThe Supply Chain in Brief
SEALED DEALS Electronic component maker Phoenix Contact awarded a small parts warehouse automation and expansion project to WITRON Logistik + Informatik GmbH. To help Phoenix meet an increase in pick volume driven by online ordering, WITRON added 10 multifunction ergonomic order-picking workstations (pictured), bringing the warehouse total to 31. Ben E. Keith, one the largest […]
Read MoreIN BRIEF: New Services & Solutions-October 2018
Transportation Air Italy started cargo routes between India, Thailand, and the United States and Milan Malpensa airport, utilizing the 10-ton belly capacity of its A330 fleet. Now represented by Globe Air Cargo USA for all its U.S. cargo operations, the airline plans to offer direct daily flights from Miami and New York to the Milan airport. […]
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