Articles
Logistics
How Supply Chain Managers Can Use
Artificial Intelligence to Their Advantage
Artificial intelligence (AI) now touches almost every industry and walk of life. Driverless cars are chauffeuring themselves through Pittsburgh’s roads, robots dominate the activity within Amazon’s warehouses, and increasingly sophisticated algorithms for demand planning and design have gone digital. Personalization and machine learning continue to improve customers’ experiences and open countless doors for the tech […]
Read MoreGOOD QUESTION | What is the best piece of leadership advice you ever received?
Treat ’em like family. Sean Ford Operations Manager Home Depot Stay humble and lead by example. Never ask members of your team to perform any task that you would not perform yourself, and remember that your plans, actions, and decisions have a direct effect on the team members that you depend on. Tom Poduch Director […]
Read MoreReducing Packaging Costs
While most businesses are ramping up for peak season, some parcel carriers sent their own early greetings with holiday surcharges. Fortunately, that doesn’t mean your company has to raise prices or take a financial hit. Try these packaging moves to help offset higher parcel costs farther up the supply chain, says Rajiv Saxena, supply chain […]
Read More
The Last Mile—History Repeating As Supply Managers Face Peak Season – Crane Worldwide Logistics
Nothing new is ever really created, just updated to meet the current environment or situation. When looking beyond the "hype" of all the new, innovative services and suppliers in the logistics space, we find that delivery service capability has already been efficiently and successfully implemented in the past. We only need to look back to […]
Read More
Hazmat 101: Exceeding Safety and Compliance Standards – Landstar
Hazmat transportation’s multifaceted nature makes logistics particularly complicated, especially when companies don’t realize that they’re transporting such goods. Even though a manufacturer may be an expert at producing goods, it may not be as well-versed in the intricacies of transporting those materials, including unknowingly offering carriers non-compliant hazmat shipments. Compliance is a team effort, and […]
Read More
Florida Seaports Weather the Storm and Thrive through Meticulous Emergency Response Preparedness – Florida Ports Council
Hurricane Irma tested the emergency response preparedness at every seaport in Florida. This unique hurricane covered the entire state and closed every major fuel and cargo operation at our seaports over several days, and provided us with some keen insights concerning local and state continuity of operations and resumption of business plans. Many lessons were […]
Read More
Reliable Rail Service Hinges on Reform
Freight rail is a vital link in the logistics professional’s arsenal, connecting businesses with downstream users and consumers. America’s railway system has a long and storied history, playing a pivotal role in the growth of our nation. Until recently, 26 railroads were in operation. Today, there are only seven rail providers, with just four controlling […]
Read More
Intermodal Benefits Come Into Focus
Intermodal is looking sharp to a growing number of shippers, thanks to tightening truck capacity, new service options, and infrastructure improvements.
Read MoreFedEx and UPS Set Aside Rivalry to Lobby White House on Infrastructure
An amusing meme that occasionally makes the rounds on social media shows a FedEx truck parked nose-to-nose with a UPS truck, with the caption "it’s about to go down." For the moment, however, the two major rivals have set aside their differences in the interest of the greater good. David Abney, CEO of UPS and […]
Read More
The Calm After the Storms
Among the lasting effects of catastrophic natural disasters such as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma is a positive one: Knowledge. It’s an understanding of what companies need to do in the wake of a disaster, which efforts worked and which failed, and how to be better prepared. How Walmart, FedEx, and other big companies have adapted […]
Read MoreSupply Chain Commentary: 3 Ways to Prepare for the ELD Mandate
The upcoming electronic logging device (ELD) mandate affects more than just the carriers and owner/operators that will be directly responsible for using the devices in their trucks. It’s truly a law that could change the entire trucking industry. And your truckload strategy may need to adjust accordingly. ELD Mandate: The Benefits Before delving deeper, we […]
Read More
Yone Dewberry: Engineering the Supply Chain
Yone Dewberry is chief supply chain officer with Land O’Lakes, Inc., a member-owned cooperative with operations ranging from agricultural production to consumer foods. Based in Arden Hills, Minnesota, Land O’Lakes had 2016 sales of $13 billion. Responsibilities Supply chain strategy, operations, and talent management. Experience Executive positions in supply chain with Land O’Lakes; managing director, […]
Read MoreHow to Prepare Your Supply Chain for Inclement Weather
Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma both made landfall causing destruction and devastation in their paths. Hurricane Harvey is said to be the biggest hurricane to hit Texas in 50 years and Hurricane Irma is the first major hurricane to hit Florida since Wilma made landfall in 2005. As a result, businesses were forced to shut […]
Read More
The Economy Will Grow. Is That Bad News?
For this annual trucking issue, we surveyed both shippers and carriers on important issues impacting the trucking industry. Most importantly, we solicited their views on the state of the economy as we head into 2018. The good news: not one shipper or carrier responding to our survey thinks that the economy will head south in […]
Read More
What would you put in a logistics time capsule for people to open 50 years from now?
I’d put in a bunch of data such as the average weight of a truckload, the price of fuel, transit times, etc. so that people in 50 years could compare it to what they are doing and wonder how we survived. Kyle Merop U.S. Air Force Veteran Logistician I still have a few air waybills […]
Read More
2017 Trucking Perspectives
Inbound Logistics’ exclusive annual trucking market research report delivers shipper and trucker insights into industry challenges and trends.
Read More
Data by the Truckload – U.S. Bank
Q: With increasing access to data, it can be difficult to hone in on the information relevant to shippers. How can they determine which data to analyze? A: Whether it’s orders, shipments, tracking and shipping status reports, or freight invoices, shippers have abundant access to data. And although technology is supposed to make it easy […]
Read More
Transportation Management at the Border – Landstar
Q: How have trends in U.S./Mexico cross-border operations shaped today’s supply chain? A: There is a continuous rebalancing that occurs within the U.S./Mexico cross-border transportation services environment. For years now, there has been an imbalance of freight shipments moving north to the United States vs. freight moving south into Mexico. Some of this is attributable […]
Read More
VMI Solutions Carried Out by 3PLs in the Life Sciences & Pharmaceuticals Industry – MD Logistics
Third-party logistics (3PL) providers specialize in maximizing their customers’ supply chain processes. Recently, 3PLs have innovated their practices to extend pharmaceutical supply chains for special projects, such as packaging and kitting. Vendor-managed inventory (VMI) is a natural evolution of these extended services. Q: What is VMI in the life sciences and pharmaceuticals industry? A: Pharmaceutical […]
Read More
Top 6 Factors for Selecting and Implementing a WMS
Whether you are installing a WMS for the first time, or upgrading your system, this advice will guide you through successful selection and implementation.
Read More