Articles

Transportation Management

Shannon Vaillancourt

Big Data Tools Enable Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics

Q: What is different in transportation technology today compared to five years ago? A: Two words: big data. It has become significantly less expensive in the past five years to store and analyze large amounts of data. Due to these decreased costs, companies can now afford to use data to gain additional insight into their […]

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Nicholas Carretta

Get Real: What ROI to Expect from Your TMS Implementation

Q: Transportation management system (TMS) solution providers routinely claim their automation tools will deliver cost savings as high as 25 to 30 percent of annual transportation spend. Is this accurate? A: Sales representatives have a tendency to oversell things in their pursuit of new clients. This is problematic for the industry because it discredits TMS […]

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Jett McCandless

Brokers Are Commoditizing LTL Carriers… And That’s a Good Thing

Much discussion in the transportation industry centers around how less-than-truckload (LTL) resellers, or brokers, are commoditizing the LTL carrier marketplace. While carriers don’t claim that brokers are packaging up their contracts and listing them on the Chicago Board of Trade to be exchanged like pork belly futures contracts, some do believe resellers are stripping the […]

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Building a Core Carrier Program

When developing a base of reliable core motor carriers, customer service and on-time success typically drive the selection process. But don’t overlook factors such as company stability and labor quality. Streamline your carrier program to a select few using the following tips. 1. Look beyond cost. When selecting partners, don’t focus solely on cost-cutting strategies. […]

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Sean Vasquez: Heard It Through the Grapevine

Sean Vasquez: Heard It Through the Grapevine

Sean Vasquez is EDI and transportation manager at Sun-Maid Growers of California in Kingsburg, Calif. He has worked for the company since 2010, and held his current position since 2013. Responsibilities: Managing all electronic data interchange (EDI) functions; working with the IT department and trading partners to resolve EDI issues; managing transportation policies, rates, and […]

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Felecia Stratton

All Aboard a Modal Conversion

Intermodal is crossing over. In August 2013, U.S. domestic traffic averaged 257,795 units per week, the highest weekly average ever recorded, according to the Association of American Railroads. All indications suggest intermodal growth will continue to roll. As over-the-road shippers embrace the efficiency, economy, and sustainability of shifting truck shipments to rail, a conversion is […]

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Larry Montreuil: True Blue

Larry Montreuil has been director of supply chain management at JetBlue Airways in New York since 2003. Responsibilities: Strategic sourcing, contracts and purchasing. Experience: Supervisor, materials management, New York Air; manager, logistical planning and provisioning, Continental Airlines; director of purchasing, Trump Shuttle; director of purchasing, Queens Surface Corp. Education: B.S., aeronautical industrial technology, Arizona State […]

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