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A recent piece in the Wall Street Journal Logistics Report highlighted how rising logistics costs are squeezing the food and beverage industry. With the increased cost of moving goods, food and beverage companies are being forced to increase the price of their products to maintain their profit margins. But in a world of heightened competition and rapidly-shifting consumer demand, increasing price carries its own risks.
Definitions: Provocateur. A person who or thing which provokes; a challenger, instigator, inciter, irritator; (in later use) specifically = “provocateur.” Incrementalism. Movement by degrees. Known by gradualism. . I am tired. For the past month, I have been working alongside companies implementing digital strategies. In my experience, during the first session, energy is high.
Friday in 5 – interesting news from around the supply chain landscape, served up in one spot to keep you up to date. This week: how drug companies are experimenting with Blockchain technology; the evolution of Rent the Runway’s business model; how Amway’s digitalization efforts are resulting in a superior customer experience; a deep dive into America’s online shopping habit; and the impact of supply constraints on the services sector.
Source: Gartner Research. Gartner Research analyst Paul Lord has developed a thought-provoking approach (shown in the above diagram) for tailoring supply and inventory tactics to different inventory segments. Traditional ABC inventory models segment inventory into A, B and C categories based on annual consumption value. Valuable items with lots of consumption rise to the top.
The $53 trillion manufacturing economy in the US is undergoing a major automation paradigm shift due to Artificial Intelligence (AI). Thanks to new practical frameworks, automation projects that were once impossible or inefficient to implement are now being fast-tracked, and robotics automation is becoming increasingly relevant to a growing number of users and scenarios.
Statistics on the industry-wide use of a transportation management system (TMS), like the Cerasis Rater, are lacking. The most recent report on adoption rates of TMS is from 2015, with only 35 percent of shippers actively using a TMS, asserts Bridget McCrea of Logistics Management. A TMS makes up only a fraction of the full truckload technology available to shippers.
The American stage director Scott Ellis once quipped, “After raising twins, you get organized.” Manufacturing executives are beginning appreciate that bit of wisdom and are increasingly turning to digital twins to improve their operations. Jeff Hojlo ( @jeffhojlo ), program director, Product Innovation Strategies at IDC, predicts, “By the end of 2020, 65% of manufacturers will be using simulation and digital twins to operate products and/or assets, reducing the cost of quality
The American stage director Scott Ellis once quipped, “After raising twins, you get organized.” Manufacturing executives are beginning appreciate that bit of wisdom and are increasingly turning to digital twins to improve their operations. Jeff Hojlo ( @jeffhojlo ), program director, Product Innovation Strategies at IDC, predicts, “By the end of 2020, 65% of manufacturers will be using simulation and digital twins to operate products and/or assets, reducing the cost of quality
High demand for flatbed shipping is rolling mightily into the peak periods of summer, continuing to drive historic supply issues across North America. While it’s difficult to predict how long it will last, what is predictable is that unprecedented demand of flatbed shipping will disrupt the typical cycles and seasonal trends we’ve come to expect, and make securing supply even more difficult as the market and carrier demographics remain fragmented.
We often talk about the importance of people, process, and technology in Supply Chain Management, but many times the people dimension gets the short end of the stick, especially when most of the headlines today are about cool technology trends like blockchain, artificial intelligence and driverless trucks. Talent management is more important than ever, however.
Across retail, the push to get more products to more consumers in less time is growing. Today, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of individual warehouse management systems ( WMSs ) available, but how do you reap the real-world features within this innovative type of supply chain management systems? How do you know utilizing a WMS in your company is really working to benefit your enterprise?
by Alexa Cheater Wouldn’t it be nice if your supply chain actually performed the way you designed it to? That doesn’t have to be a pipe dream. Supply chain perfection just got one step closer with the Self-Healing Supply Chain and its ability to improve supply chain design assumptions. Supply chains are complex and full of inter-dependencies. A problem in one area can wreak widespread havoc on others.
Towards the end of last year, Steve Banker and I met with Greg Lehmkuhl, President & CEO, Sudarsan Thattai, CIO, and Chris Timmer, SVP Sales and Value-Added Services from Lineage Logistics. The name Lineage Logistics may not be a household name, but that is something the leadership team is used to. However, Lineage, a mid-cap company based in Detroit, Michigan, is one of the world’s largest and most innovative temperature-controlled supply chain providers.
I graduated from high school 30 years ago. I was co-valedictorian, but if you ask me what I spoke about that day, I honestly don’t remember — other than a vague recollection of either me or my classmate referencing Billy Joel’s song, “This Is the Time,” in our speech. What I know for sure is that sitting there in that dark auditorium so many years ago, I had no idea where the roads ahead would lead me.
“Potential” is an interesting word. It means something has the capacity to become or develop into something in the future; however, there are no guarantees the thing being discussed will ever achieve its potential. In discussions about blockchain technology, the word “potential” is often used. Many analysts have great expectations blockchain will achieve its potential in numerous economic areas; but, we’ll have to wait and see.
by Mike McAllister The future of supply chain planning has arrived. The notion of a supply chain that heals itself sounds futuristic. Mix in notions such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), and you’re not entirely wrong. But unlike that flying car the Jetsons promised we would have by now, the self-healing supply chain is real.
“What should we do about the tariffs?” There’s no straightforward answer — every leader has a different expectation. CFOs want numbers. COOs want action. CEOs want strategy. And supply chain and procurement leaders need to be ready with the right response — fast. That’s why GEP has created a simple three-part framework that will help CPOs and CSCOs brief the board and C-suite with clarity and confidence.
"The digital technologies hitting the marketplace today promise to make the changes in supply chain practice over the next five to 10 years dwarf that which we have seen in the last 10,” says Ted Stank, of UT’s Haslam College of Business. As the pressures on supply chain teams—including those for sustainability, cost efficiency, and disruption and risk mitigation—are increasing and growing in complexity, supply chain organizations are struggling to both collect and analyze an overwhelming amount
Whatever the cause, the end result is the same: trucking capacity is tight, really tight. Shippers are paying higher rates, and even with offering higher rates many shippers are seeing rejected loads from the same carriers they relied on for capacity in the past. As trucking companies work to add equipment and to attract drivers, they are carefully choosing which shippers are first in line for the limited capacity they do have available.
Managing operations through multiple manufacturing systems can be challenging, but it’s a daily reality for many manufacturers. In this post, we’ll look at the pros and cons of consolidating ERP systems – and propose an alternative. When Two Worlds Collide. Whenever two or more organizations merge, they are almost always using different ERP systems.
Speaker: Andrew Skoog, Founder of MachinistX & President of Hexis Representatives
Manufacturing is evolving, and the right technology can empower—not replace—your workforce. Smart automation and AI-driven software are revolutionizing decision-making, optimizing processes, and improving efficiency. But how do you implement these tools with confidence and ensure they complement human expertise rather than override it? Join industry expert Andrew Skoog as he explores how manufacturers can leverage automation to enhance operations, streamline workflows, and make smarter, data-dri
Will the ELD mandate spur an increase in market share for rail intermodal? Some believe the mandate is a watershed event for the intermodal segment, as electronic logs add to transit times for trucks, making intermodal even more competitive on long hauls. Ted Prince, COO of Tiger Cool Express, asserts that the ELD mandate changed market dynamics permanently in favor of intermodal.
The numbers speak volumes! There is clearly tremendous interest among supply chain practitioners to learn, understand and share thoughts on Blockchain. In one of the best attended break-out sessions of FOCUS 2018, we joined forces with executives from leading companies to exchange thoughts on the impact and value Blockchain may hold for supply chain, as well as the challenges for adoption.
This week ModusLink unveiled its 2017 Corporate Sustainability Report, highlighting the organization’s commitment to helping customers achieve sustainability goals. As the economy increasingly values ecological initiatives, ModusLink is excited to help clients go green by making sustainability a central component of its business strategy — offering environmentally responsible supply chain services to help shift the […].
Retailers know the clock is ticking–legacy SAP Commerce support ends in 2026. Legacy platforms are becoming a liability burdened by complexity, rigidity, and mounting operational costs. But modernization isn’t just about swapping out systems, it’s about preparing for a future shaped by real-time interactions, AI powered buying assistants, and flexible commerce architecture.
Blockchain, the innovative technology that powers the digital currency market, has gained prominence since the introduction of the cryptocurrency bitcoin in 2008. Soon after, banking institutes and financial markets began adopting blockchain to increase security and mitigate risks. Now, companies are starting to apply blockchain technology to improve supply chain management.
In the digital age, businesses need to use all the tools at their disposal to optimize their workflows and run the most cost-effective operational processes.
When applied to supply chain management, blockchain proposes a system that is flexible and secure, allowing real time and transparent contracts between organizations and third party partners. It’s poised to strengthen supply chains vulnerable to ransomware from the inside out—but is it just better data management with a new name? Blockchain: The Cons.
In this blog, VP of Marketing, Matthew Stammers, recaps on the 4 key lessons learned from last month’s webinar about working capital improvement solutions and how forward-thinking businesses stay on top of the game. Whether you’re a new, growing, or established business, working capital is crucial. Even more so in today’s digital economy – where every business requires funds to invest in new technology, so they can gain a competitive edge in a crowded marketplace.
What is Remote-Insourcing? Sounds like an oxymoron, right? Not anymore. Remote-Insourcing isn’t outsourcing—it’s a revolutionary staffing model that lets our clients fill key entry-level positions with top-tier, loyal, long-term talent, integrated seamlessly into their businesses—just like local employees but without the turnover or W2 HR hassles. With under 4% unwanted attrition, you train once and keep the same team for years.
Strategic automation strategies can unlock human potential in the warehouse. Warehouse automation is creating a situation in which organizations must develop strategies to ensure humans and robots can work together. In its simplest form, automation can take the shape of mobile barcode scanners – solutions that automate the process of data entry by letting users scan a code once and automatically have that data shared with relevant software systems.
The circular supply chain is about taking apparent waste materials and returned goods and turning them into products which can be resold, and with sustainability goals in mind, companies need to find ways to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping freight.
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