Articles
Viewpoint: Logistics & Supply Chain Analysis
Customs Compliance: Small Mistakes Can Lead to Big Problems
Diverse, evolving global trade regulations require companies to implement systems and procedures that ensure strict adherence. Large businesses have in-house compliance staff, but those responsibilities might hold a more vague spot in small enterprises. With stiff penalties at stake—penalties that could put some organizations out of business—small companies must take an aggressive stance on compliance. […]
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Managing the Aerospace Supply Chain
Today’s aftermarket aerospace and defense supply chain requirements are changing how companies secure the critical spare parts needed to improve customer service, enhance product uptime and profitability, and increase customer loyalty and retention. It’s nothing short of a global logistical transformation. Budget cuts are helping fuel the transformation, with the need to maintain existing military […]
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Contingency Planning Keeps Freight Moving
In the last few years, everything from a massive earthquake in Japan, to hurricanes on the East Coast threatened our supply chain – a supply chain that increasingly knows no international borders. Whether operations are focused in a small geographic area or span countries and modes, all disruptions have the potential to ripple through our […]
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Steps to Take When Choosing a Bar-Code Scanning System
Managers must carefully consider all factors of their operation before selecting a new bar-coding system.
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Four Reasons Retailers Should Pay Attention to Reverse Logistics
Many retailers have long emphasized agility and cost-efficient movement of freight to stores or customers. However, they often neglect reverse logistics, resulting in missed opportunities for the entire consumer goods supply chain. The multi-channel model—which enables consumers to buy anytime, anywhere—has significantly impacted the retail industry and given rise to the following reasons why retailers […]
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Ensuring Business Sustainability During Disasters, Disruptions, and Service Failures
We have seen horrific natural disasters in recent years that taxed both supply chains and our core businesses. Approximately 85 percent of global supply chains experienced at least one significant disruption during 2013. This affects both an organization’s bottom line and its ability to be there for customers. Businesses that survive natural disasters, operational interruptions, […]
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Why Retailers Put Their Sleighbells on in May
The sun is shining and the weather is warm, yet the world’s top retailers are humming holiday tunes and preparing for the busy season ahead. Retailers often prep for holiday delivery logistics months in advance, but 2014 saw them beginning preparations earlier than ever—in May. And who could blame them? We all remember last year’s […]
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Intermodal Transportation’s Solution to Our Evolving Supply Chain Demands
One of the top supply chain trends impacting the transportation industry today is intermodal transportation. Over the past few years, capacity has been squeezed with driver shortages, increased demand, increased fuel prices, and heightened government oversight. All these extenuating circumstances affect everything from pricing to timing of loads, and executives are looking for the answer […]
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Making Hazmat Regulation Compliance Less Hazardous
Hazardous material (hazmat) transport regulations can often seem like a foreign language. An abundance of unique terms leaves many shippers perplexed. Even the phrase "hazardous materials" can be confusing because the term "dangerous goods" is standard outside the United States. And with regulations constantly shifting and changing, it gets increasingly harder for shippers to remain […]
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The Spot Market – And How Not to Use It
Many shippers don’t realize that they are sabotaging themselves in the spot freight market. It is standard rationale that competitive bidding achieves a lower price. However, our application of that principle distorts Adam Smith’s law of supply and demand by creating a false demand “bubble” that results in higher prices and less profit for shippers. […]
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How to Determine Whether Your Freight Broker Is Legitimate
Wouldn’t it be great if you did your business trusting all of the parties involved without a shadow of a doubt? Sometimes this is indeed possible – when you’ve worked with the same partners for years, and you’ve managed to build a work environment of mutual trust and cooperation. Most of the time, however, it’s […]
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Six Key Areas Every Purchasing Expert Should Address
There was a time when purchasing was a relatively straightforward task. You found the best price at the best terms and negotiated a contract. Signed. Sealed. Done. Sorry to say those days are long gone. When considering the company’s needs, you need to look very closely at the current economic conditions and trends, and base […]
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House Members Seek to Set Due Diligence Standards for Motor Carrier Hiring
On May 22, 2014, Representatives Duncan (R-Tenn.), Paulsen (R-Minn.), and Davis (R-Ill.) introduced legislation in the United States House of Representatives entitled “To enhance interstate commerce by creating a National Hiring Standard for Motor Carriers,” H.R. 4727 (the “Bill”). If the Bill were to be enacted into law, the states would be prohibited from imposing […]
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Retailers, Watch Your Waste Lines
Hazardous waste is no longer an issue facing only industrial manufacturing companies. It has become an area of significant concern for retailers, too. When it comes to managing hazardous waste, retailers must strike a precarious balance between complexity and control. The repercussions of achieving this balance can be significant. Not only do such infractions place […]
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Innovation in Business Processes from Northwest Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas is a hotbed for innovations in supply chain management, the effects of which span the globe. Although some argue that various aspects of these innovations started elsewhere, they have, at the very least, been perfected and rolled out broadly in Northwest Arkansas. Though these innovations have been in areas of data science and […]
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Taking a Smarter Approach to WMS RFPs
To understand where request for proposals (RFPs) for warehouse management systems (WMS) often go wrong, imagine for a moment you are being interviewed for admission to your dream college. You try to demonstrate the specific reasons why you would be a great addition to that school. But instead of engaging in a friendly dialog, the […]
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How to Create a Forklift Safety Culture
You’re going to remember the time when you thought it wouldn’t happen to you. One of your industry contacts was telling you how they paid substantial OSHA fines for allowing operators to use forklifts even after the operators completed pre-use operational compliance checklists that showed the forklifts were non-compliant. The individual said he didn’t know […]
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Forklift Design Reaches New Heights
The evolution of forklift design in the past 60 years has had a positive impact on overall building design and distribution productivity. The question of “when is high enough too high” is still being asked and the answer continues to be, not yet. The progression from almost exclusive use of the sit down counterbalanced truck […]
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Defending Against the Global Recall Threat
As international supply chains and distribution networks grow in prevalence and complexity, operating risks and logistics are becoming increasingly difficult to mitigate. The challenge of managing the multitude of variables is compounded by the speed at which today’s supply chain must operate. One key area affected by the global economy is product recalls. The number […]
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5 Issues to Consider Before Selecting Your Next Site
For companies evaluating prospective manufacturing sites, transportation cost and service considerations are paramount. Here are five critical supply chain issues businesses must consider when evaluating sites for expansion or relocation. Fuel costs. The price of U.S. diesel fuel has remained higher than $3 per gallon for more than three years, with no sign of dropping. […]
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