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How Will Amazon Buying Whole Foods Affect The Delivery Industry?
It’s hard to imagine now, but Amazon used to be nothing more than an online bookstore. That was back in 1994. Since then, Amazon has started selling DVDs, clothes, furniture, and just about everything else you can imagine. They do more than just sell stuff online now, too. Amazon has become a big player in […]
Read MoreManufacturing is Returning to the United States
In 2016, leading technology brands collectively announced billions of dollars in investments in US manufacturing, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and supporting reshoring. But manufacturing today is not the same as when it left: Gone are many of the large steel mills, auto plants and computer factories and in their place a greater volume […]
Read MoreSupply Chain and Logistics Services Delivery: Study Reveals Future Trends
KPMG and HfS Research recently released their annual market study on the State of the Outsourcing, Shared Services, and Operations Industry. This study examines topics such as changes to organizational operating and service delivery models and adoption levels, challenges, and opportunities related to process and cognitive automation. The report also provides some interesting insights into […]
Read MoreRepositioning Inventory to Better Respond to Natural Disasters
Immediately following a natural disaster that outpaces a community’s ability to respond, various outside organizations rush to provide life-saving commodities to meet health, water, food, shelter, or other needs. That response is expedited by inventory prepositioned independently by governmental and non-governmental organizations. Research co-authored by Jason Acimovic, assistant professor of supply chain and information systems […]
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An Inside Look at Freight-Based Development in Kansas City
CVS Pharmacy, Amazon, and others have invested more than $456 million in warehousing and distribution centers in the KC region, adding 4,700 jobs since 2015.
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President Trump’s Trade Policy To-Do List: Top 10 Priorities
President Donald Trump’s early days in office have been busy ones for trade policy. It is too early, however, to assess the impact of these changes, according to global trade data company Panjiva. Here’s how Panjiva prioritizes the President’s trade policy task list. 1. Light up Lighthizer. Senate approval for Robert Lighthizer’s appointment as U.S. […]
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Top 5 Things to Know About IoT
The Internet of Things is still in its infancy, and can be confusing to supply chain and logistics managers. Greg Braun, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Montreal-based logistics IT company C3 Solutions, shares some advice. 1. IoT technologies promise vastly improved visibility into supply chain operations. The ready availability of connected devices […]
Read MoreSupply Chain Visibility: Closer Than You Think
Running a sustainable company isn’t as simple as it looks. "Compliance and recycle/reuse is about knowing what’s in your product—materials, chemicals, substances," says Christoph Wilfert, CEO of London-based everycs, developer of a technology solution—currently in beta testing—that screens global supply chains for risks and impacts. "But suppliers, like chemical companies, hate formula or percentage composition […]
Read MoreTransportation Industry Leads the Way in Preventive Maintenance
Trucks need to keep rolling. Conveyor belts aren’t much good if they don’t convey anything. Cargo planes don’t move freight if they can’t fly. Ships don’t deliver from under the water. Business logistics managers can’t ignore the importance of preventive maintenance because the costs of reactive maintenance can have a heavy impact on the bottom […]
Read MoreGrowing Your Small Business: How to Find Your Next Supplier in Mexico
Is Mexico the New China?
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Intermodal Bounces Back in Q1
Intermodal freight volumes returned to growth in the first quarter of 2017 following declines during 2016, according to the Intermodal Association of North America’s (IANA) Intermodal Market Trends and Statistics report. International and domestic containers rose 2.9 percent and 1.3 percent respectively, and intermodal trailers posted minimal gains of 0.3 percent. "All intermodal market segments […]
Read MoreE-commerce Fulfillment Survey Finds Evidence of Retailer Growing Pains
Business is booming for e-commerce retailers according to a new global market study by Peoplevox, an e-commerce Warehouse Management System (WMS) provider. Peoplevox’s “The 2017 E-Commerce Fulfillment Report” found sales of 82% of the e-commerce and multichannel businesses taking part had increased in 2016, with only 6% reporting a decrease in orders. While many voiced […]
Read MoreCommentary: What Uber Freight Will Mean for Shippers
Uber recently announced the launch of their newest service, Uber Freight, which allows trucking companies to automatically match with loads in need of transportation. While reviews of the new service are mixed, Uber executives claim that their shift toward infiltrating the trucking industry is in full force and that they already have a network of […]
Read MorePutting an End to Black Box Shipping
Sometimes, for even the most critical shipments, the only two data points that the shipper receives is when the shipment left their hands and confirmation from the destination that the shipment has arrived. This can be likened to a black box in computer science, where a function is considered a black box when the developer […]
Read MorePortMiami Welcomes Largest Container Ship to Call Florida
MAERSK SHANGHAI, a 10,081 TEU container ship, the largest to ever call a Florida deep-water port was at PortMiami last week. The MAERSK SHANGHAI is part of the TP11 Service (Maersk Line), AMERICA Service (MSC), USEC-1 Service (2M Alliance, Maersk & MSC). The vessel is 1,063 feet (324 meters) long and 159 feet wide, which is equal to about […]
Read MoreReport: New Data Shows Extent of E-Commerce’s Differing Impact on Retail Categories
E-Commerce has generated significant volumes of sales in the U.S. electronics and clothing industries but has yet to gain traction in other retail sectors, according to a CBRE Group, Inc. analysis of recently released government data. U.S. Commerce Department figures show extensive e-commerce penetration in certain retail categories such as electronics and appliances, with a […]
Read MoreCommentary: The Shift from Fleet Management to Mobility Management
Today’s digital economy impacts how people, goods, and services move throughout the marketplace. From app-based, ride-share companies to connected data and analytics, transportation is entering a new era and changing the role of traditional fleet managers. We’re seeing a shift from fleet management to mobility management. How can businesses adapt and employ new tools to […]
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Commentary: IoT and Analytics to Usher in New Era in Logistics
With millions of shipments being moved, tracked, and stowed by a variety of vehicles and people each day, it is no surprise that logistics and the Internet of Things (IoT) form a promising partnership. Trucks need smarter management systems that will help in increasing their utilization, reduce downtime, lower costs, and increase revenues. The movement […]
Read MoreReport: Traditional Industrial Distributors at Risk
Asset-light e-marketplaces and other nontraditional shopping channels, combined with shifting demographics, are upending industrial distributors’ inventory-heavy model more rapidly than previously thought. As a result, distributors must quickly adapt and address threats with everything from sharper mobile offerings to upgraded customer service, a new white paper from UPS (NYSE: UPS) shows. According to the […]
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