In this episode, guest Johnathan Foster, principal consultant at Proxima, discusses the ripple effects of that huge container ship, The Ever Given, that was stuck for a week in the Suez Canal. The ship has been re-floated and the canal is open again, but it has caused supply chain backlogs all over the world. This is on top of already congested ports. What will the overall impacts be to the movement of the world's goods? The huge spike in e-commerce brings with it enormous surges in home deliver...
Apr 02, 2021•22 min•Season 2Ep. 13
In this episode, guest Hanko Kiessner, CEO of Packsize, discusses sustainable packaging. Sustainable packaging means more than just choosing materials that can be easily recycled. It also includes shipping products in the right-sized box best suited for them. Sustainable packaging can have ripple effects throughout our supply chains that not only are good for the earth, but bring savings to shippers' bottom lines. We all know that the United States Postal Service has struggled for years financia...
Mar 26, 2021•24 min•Season 2Ep. 12
In this episode, guest Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, joins us to discuss how the shortage of ocean containers is having a devastating effect on the export of agricultural products. Farmers and other producers can't get the containers they need to export their goods. That's because ocean carriers find they can make more money returning in-demand empty containers more quickly to Asia, rather than sending them to the Midwest to be filled with agric...
Mar 19, 2021•25 min•Season 2Ep. 11
In this episode, guest Bindiya Vakil, CEO of Resilinc, discusses vulnerabilities within our worldwide supply chains. Many U.S. manufacturers have experienced shortages in critical goods needed to keep production moving. President Biden is proposing plans to fix broken supply chains for critical goods, such as semiconductors and PPE. Vakil talks about our complex supply chains and the difficulties of simply decoupling from foreign markets. Freight has taken a bumpy ride over the past year, mainly...
Mar 12, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 10
In this episode, guest Bill Brooks, vice president of North America Transportation Portfolio at Capgemini, discusses the current state of the Covid-19 vaccine programs. Logistics plays a major role in getting people vaccinated. Where are the bottlenecks, and can anything be done to assure that vaccines are distributed more quickly to both urban and rural areas? The logistics industry continued its expansion in February, as the pandemic-induced growth of e-commerce stresses existing supply chains...
Mar 05, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 9
In this episode, guest Craig Hoskins, chair of the International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA) discusses the challenges that the food delivery industry has endured during restaurant, schools, and institutional facility closures during the Covid-19 pandemic. What will it take to get back to normal? He also suggests ways to address the truck driver shortages that affect food deliveries and the need for greater support for our restaurants. New research from IBM looks at digitalization...
Feb 26, 2021•20 min•Season 2Ep. 8
In this episode, guest Shawn Winter, vice president of Mobility Solutions at Descartes, talks about the concept of the Super Peak Season and how shippers can prepare for it. With the growth of online shopping, shippers and carriers find that there are times when they struggle to keep up with demand, such as the recent holiday season. Winter discusses some strategies for thriving during peak demand challenges. The food service industry was especially hard hit at the beginning of the Covid-19 pand...
Feb 19, 2021•23 min•Season 2Ep. 7
In this episode, guest Dwight Klappich, research vice president at Gartner, discusses the growing interest in robotic goods-to-person systems. Robots are hot right now. What makes them the cool technology to have for distribution operations, and in what ways are they being deployed? Klappich shares the latest research Gartner has done into these fascinating and quickly-evolving technologies. Many companies held on to their cash during the pandemic, and now there is more incentive to move forward...
Feb 12, 2021•27 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this episode, guest Tim Pajak discusses a new initiative from the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP). Pajak serves as the organization's member engagement manager and shares about the new worldwide partnership between CSCMP and Junior Achievement to bring information to young people about the role of supply chains in our lives. One primary goal is to encourage these young people to consider supply chain careers. The Covid-19 pandemic has greatly disrupted the retail sect...
Feb 05, 2021•21 min•Season 2Ep. 5
In this episode, guest Melinda McLaughlin, vice president, global head of research for Prologis, discusses the market for industrial real estate. The lack of new construction last year, especially during the early phases of the pandemic, has left capacity very tight and rental costs high. What is the outlook for 2021, and how are trends such as e-commerce and urban fulfillment designs affecting the real estate market for warehousing? Walmart is partnering with three industrial suppliers to build...
Jan 29, 2021•17 min•Season 2Ep. 4
In this episode, guest Joe Ruddy, chief innovation officer at the Port of Virginia, discusses how the maritime industry survived the rough seas of 2020 trade. Demand was light even before the pandemic, then fell off the cliff when Covid-19 struck, only to return with a vengeance in the latter part of the year. How did our nation's ports handle those changes, and what infrastructure is in place to keep goods flowing well in 2021 and beyond? The trade war with China is not expected to go away unde...
Jan 22, 2021•19 min•Season 2Ep. 3
In this episode, guest Tony Sciarrotta, executive director of the Reverse Logistics Association, shares how retailers are handling the deluge of holiday returns. Because of the ongoing pandemic, many purchases were made online instead of in-store during the holidays, so now retailers are faced with a deluge of returns this month. What are some of the strategies that are being used to process them and how can retailers reduce the number of returns they receive in the future? New Gartner research ...
Jan 15, 2021•23 min•Season 2Ep. 2
In this episode, guest Zac Rogers, assistant professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management at Colorado State University, discusses the current state of logistics, including capacity and pricing for transportation and warehousing. He also shares the latest Logistics Managers' Index figures and how they relate to what is happening in the market. Capacity remains tight in all aspects of transportation, including air, ocean, and trucking. What is driving this tight capacity and how are shipper...
Jan 08, 2021•21 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In this episode, guest Kristi Montgomery, vice president of Innovation, Research & Development at Kenco, discusses the need for innovation. She heads up the Kenco Innovation Labs, an internal think tank and testing center that develops new technologies and methodologies to help solve customer problems within the supply chain. She discusses why innovation is so critical to a company's future. While vaccines are being rolled out, we learn about new research that shows how inefficiencies and la...
Dec 18, 2020•19 min•Season 1Ep. 36
In this episode, guest Kevin Paramore, emerging technology commercialization manager at Yale Materials Handling Corp., shares new technologies that promote social distancing within facilities. As we continue through the pandemic, it is important to safeguard our workers while still remaining productive. These new technologies alert workers whenever they get within six feet of distance with another co-worker. They also provide data for contact tracing. We knew that shipping volumes would be extre...
Dec 11, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 35
In this episode, guest Phil Rich, chief supply chain officer and senior VP of Sweetwater, talks about being an online retailer during a very different holiday season. Sweetwater is the nation's largest e-tailer for musical instruments and audio equipment. Increasing inventories and gaining better visibility with suppliers were key steps the company has taken. He also is preparing for a higher level of returns in January. Transportation continues to be a very volatile sector of the supply chain. ...
Dec 04, 2020•19 min•Season 1Ep. 34
In this episode, guest Kevin Doucette, North American Director of Trade Policy and Compliance for C.H. Robinson, discusses global trade in light of tariffs, the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. presidential election, and the stagnant worldwide economy. What areas should supply chain managers focus on when looking at global markets? Industrial real estate continues to be in demand, especially in urban markets, as companies look to move their supply chains closer to end customers. Automation is maki...
Nov 20, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 33
In this episode, guest Colin Yankee, chief supply chain officer at Tractor Supply, shares how his company has been able to thrive in the midst of the pandemic. As an essential business, this retailer offers the goods that people need. But beyond that, the company made some strategic changes in its supply chains to meet changing customer requirements and the different ways goods are sold and distributed today. There is a lot looming for the new Biden administration once the president-elect takes ...
Nov 13, 2020•29 min•Season 1Ep. 32
In this episode, guest Rebecca Brewster, president and COO of the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), shares the findings of her organization's recent study, the 16th Top Industry Issues Report. This report from the trucking industry's research association shows that executives are concerned about driver shortages, insurance rates, parking availability, and more. Listen to find out what issues impact the industry the most. Prop 22 passed in California on Tuesday. It defines the ro...
Nov 06, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 31
In this episode, guest Steven Horwitz, an economics professor and director of the Institute for the Study of Political Economy at Ball State University, joins us to discuss the upcoming holiday shopping season. We already know it will be a season like no other in history, due to the pandemic. But how will this affect supply chains, and will the community mall survive? We also look at recent reports on warehouse utilization and the tightening of the market for available warehouse space. Will ther...
Oct 30, 2020•19 min•Season 1Ep. 30
In this episode, guest Drew McElroy, chairman and co-founder of Transfix, a digital freight matching system, discusses freight markets and the challenges of last-mile deliveries. We are already entering the peak holiday shopping season, and it will be a year like no other, with omnichannel sales dominating in ways never before seen. How are retailers preparing their supply chains to handle the surge? And with more online shopping, retailers expect an avalanche of returned merchandise. We look at...
Oct 23, 2020•19 min•Season 1Ep. 29
In this episode, guest Dr. Yossi Sheffi, a professor of engineering and director of the Center for Transportation and Logistics at MIT, discusses his new book, The New (Ab)Normal. Dr. Sheffi looks at which companies have been successful during the pandemic and which have failed, as well as what the future holds for our supply chains. We also examine the growing demand for warehouse automation. The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated automation projects. What's driving the demand and how are distri...
Oct 16, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 28
In this episode, guest Gillan Hawkes, VP of product management and analytics at 6 River Systems, discusses how autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) help distributors meet surging demand, while offering other benefits during the pandemic and beyond. The new Logistics Managers' Index is out, and it shows a huge spike in logistics growth. Does it foretell a busy and possibly chaotic holiday peak season this year? And we look at how retailers are relying on marketplaces to handle their online sales due t...
Oct 09, 2020•22 min•Season 1Ep. 27
In this episode, guest Ron Dutt, CEO of Flux Power, discusses lithium-ion battery technology, which is growing in use as a power source in fork lifts and other industrial trucks. Amazon's Prime Day is just around the corner. Why was it postponed from its normal summer schedule and what will it mean for shippers and customers? And environmental sustainability is becoming a greater focus of supply chain managers. What is driving all of the attention? Articles and resources mentioned in this episod...
Oct 02, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 26
In this episode, editors from DC Velocity and CSCMP's Supply Chain Quarterly share their experiences at CSCMP EDGE, which was held this past week. This year's conference was completely virtual and marked the largest such virtual event ever held in our industry. We discuss the format and environment used to present more than 100 educational sessions, keynote addresses, and a virtual trade show known as The Supply Chain Exchange. Our editors also discuss some of the major topics and themes address...
Sep 25, 2020•20 min•Season 1Ep. 25
This is National Truck Driver Appreciation Week in the United States. In this episode, guest Randy Guillot, chairman of ATA (American Trucking Associations) shares about the vital role truck drivers play in keeping goods moving during trying times. Everyone knows that e-commerce shopping continues to surge, but now we have the numbers to prove just how much growth this sector has experienced with in-home shopping. And our nation's ports have made a nice rebound following a couple of very dismal ...
Sep 18, 2020•18 min•Season 1Ep. 24
In this episode, guest Chris Wolfe, CEO of PowerFleet, discusses how we have seen new sustainability initiatives during the pandemic that have created efficiencies and may become standards in a post-pandemic world. We also discuss how executives are reassessing their risk mitigation strategies in light of a pandemic that no one was prepared to meet. How good was their planning, and what should they do in the future? And we look at the challenges that the logistics industry will face in distribut...
Sep 11, 2020•18 min•Season 1Ep. 21
In this episode, guest Brian Thompson, the chief commercial officer at SMC³, discusses what the transportation markets may look like through the end of the year, and in particular how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the LTL (less-than-truckload) segment. Capacity for both trucking and air freight remains very tight as we navigate the pandemic. How long will it be before we see more capacity entering the market for shippers? And CSCMP EDGE is going virtual this year. Diane Rand, managing edito...
Sep 04, 2020•20 min•Season 1Ep. 22
In this episode, guest Phil Evers, a logistics professor at the University of Maryland, shares why the United States Postal Service is facing financial difficulties and what can be done to fix it. How might this affect the agency's parcel services? We also talk about how supply chains will be affected by Hurricane Laura. Some changes in anticipated landfall and other disruptions are expected in the devastation that Laura left behind. And shippers are taking a fresh look at transportation managem...
Aug 28, 2020•20 min•Season 1Ep. 21
In this episode, guest Patrick Penfield, an assistant professor of supply chain practice at Syracuse University's Whitman School of Management, discusses how Amazon will be moving into vacant mall spaces to create mini distribution centers. We also examine a growing trend of some shippers moving away from the major parcel carriers and toward smaller, regional carriers. And despite high unemployment numbers in the general workforce, the logistics industry still finds it difficult to find skilled ...
Aug 21, 2020•17 min•Season 1Ep. 20
