Articles
IT Matters: Logistics & Supply Chain Technology
Expect the Unexpected: 5 Steps for Retail Supply Chain Preparedness
Unpredictable consumers, demand for low prices, and an ever-quickening pace make the retail/consumer package goods supply chain difficult on a good day. Large-scale interruptions—such as the recent dock workers’ strike and overactive hurricane season—further exacerbate an already challenging landscape. While many interruptions are unavoidable, manufacturers and retailers can—and should—take steps to create more agile supply […]
Read MoreHave ERP, Have Inventory Control? Not Necessarily
Here are five reasons companies often lose control of inventory despite having an updated ERP system—and five solutions for regaining that control.
Read MoreMulti-Enterprise Computing: Competitive Advantage for Those Who Do it Well
Logistics managers know how vital it is to keep things moving. Failure to deliver products on time, in the proper quantities, and to the right place carries very real consequences: assembly lines halt, shelves lie empty, perishable goods grow stale, and the window of business opportunity slams shut. Tangible, bottom-line metrics back up these anecdotal […]
Read MoreFreight Forwarding Goes Native
The future of international freight forwarding technology lies in the adoption of Internet-based solutions. To date, however, most freight forwarders have lagged behind when it comes to embracing this technology and making it part of their work processes. An Internet-native international freight forwarding system offers the ability to utilize electronic data exchanges, and is easily […]
Read MoreStreamlining Communication Creates Change and Opportunities
From walking factory floors for more than two decades, I know it doesn’t take long to build a car. Fender to tail lights, it takes about 72 hours. But it takes another six weeks for the car to reach the consumer. Why? Demand data takes about one week to travel from one tier to the […]
Read MoreSoftware by Subscription: Pay for What You Need When You Need it
Companies can achieve great efficiency gains by getting real-time visibility into their transportation activities, such as last-mile deliveries. Peering real time into the delivery process to track delays, report exceptions, and measure performance can have a major impact on overall operations, and the bottom line. The challenge, however, lies with gathering data cost effectively and […]
Read MoreReducing the Risks of Global Trade: Software is Not Enough
In recent years, a growing number of American companies have expanded business operations to a global scale. This increased interest in global trade has created a huge demand for products and services aimed at assisting companies with their import/export operations. Not surprisingly, many companies have turned to technology as a fast solution for gaining global […]
Read MoreAchieving Optimization with Closed-Loop Transportation Management
Today’s transportation managers face conflicting challenges and pressures. Regulatory mandates and security compliance create productivity and capacity issues. Companies are moving toward smaller and more frequent orders. Globalization continues to expand. While all these factors drive up logistics costs, a competitive economic climate puts downward pressure on pricing, even as shareholders seek improved profit margins. […]
Read MoreIT Doesn’t Matter? Better Run That By Wal-Mart
In his May 2003 Harvard Business Review article, “IT Doesn’t Matter,” Nicholas Carr famously claims that information technology, much like the railroad and the electricity grid before it, has become an infrastructure tool that doesn’t confer any strategic benefit. Carr’s main point is that because IT is ubiquitous and increasingly less costly than in previous […]
Read MoreFinding a Demand Forecast You Can Trust
A forecast is like a flight plan. How far off do you want your trajectory to be when you come in for a landing?
Read MoreStreamlining Truck Visits at the DC
While the full impact of the Hours of Service (HOS) ruling is yet to be determined, it is obvious that truck drivers need to manage their time more carefully to minimize any loss to productivity. Under the new regulations, a driver’s idle time counts toward the maximum allowed 14 hours on duty. Shippers can mitigate […]
Read MoreCreating Competitive Advantage With Service Parts Logistics
After-sale customer service operations are a strategic part of every business. Not only is service a key differentiator, the difference between revenue contribution of service operations and total revenue can be as large as 40 to 60 percent. Many companies today are even willing to pay more for high levels of service. While most companies […]
Read MoreInventory Optimization: The Last Frontier
Two opposing forces are at work in business today: the need to reduce costs and the need to improve service levels. Bolstering one almost certainly causes the other to suffer. For example, lower your inventory to reduce costs and it becomes difficult to meet varying customer demand. Increase safety stock to meet peak demands and […]
Read MoreEasing the Impact of HOS Regulations
With the new Hours of Service (HOS) regulations now in effect for transportation providers, transportation management systems (TMS) are coming to the aid of shippers. The systems help shippers assess the impact of the new guidelines, incorporate the regulations into automated processes, and identify areas of improvement to minimize the financial impact of the regulations […]
Read MoreSeven Deadly Supply Chain Sins
If there is one IT system that provides the greatest immediate benefits to a company, yet also poses the greatest challenges to implement, it has to be supply chain management. It is also the most risky to work with because failure and success are so visible to your trading partners. Supply chain management (SCM) has […]
Read MoreWhere’s My Stuff?
Supply chain managers responding to a recent Aberdeen Group survey highlight the following items as their top three supply chain challenges: Identifying shipping delays, errors, and exceptions. Providing shipment visibility for supply chain partners. Integrating with other units and processes of the enterprise. These challenges mirror the growing complexity of today’s supply chains. Networks of […]
Read MoreAre You Ready to Ride the RFID Tidal Wave?
For the last 30 years, bar codes have been the accepted standard for product identification. Current technological advances, however, make radio-frequency identification (RFID) a promising alternative to bar codes in many applications. Now is the time for businesses to acquaint themselves with this technology, and to decide on a strategy for participating in this revolution. […]
Read MoreIs it Time to Return to the Rails?
Shipping by rail can be unsettling for those unfamiliar with the nuances of interacting with the railroads. In fact, some companies avoid even considering rail as a viable transportation option because of the fear of the unknown, or based on negative experiences with the railroads from years past. Railroads are commonly accused of being slow […]
Read MoreFinding Efficiencies in the Yard Just Outside
Today’s dynamic business environment provides supply chain professionals with increasingly complex pressures from a variety of business fronts. Customers request reductions in cycle times, time-to-market, and operating costs in addition to increased order accuracy and service. Yet in the face of these challenges, many companies focus only on maximizing efficiency within the four walls of […]
Read MoreThe WMS Quandary: Where’s My Savings?
Several times a year I get a call that goes something like this: “Albert, we automated our distribution centers with a new WMS and we haven’t seen the savings. In fact, our costs are higher! We did our due diligence in selecting the best package. We did the training and wrote interfaces. We toured sites […]
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