Demand in toyland. Denmark-based Top-Toy A/S, the largest toy retailer in the Nordic market, has licensed JDA Demand and JDA Fulfillment solutions from JDA Software to improve sales forecasts and reduce inventory levels for both its own BR-Legetoj brand and its Toys "R" Us franchises. By implementing the JDA solutions, Top-Toy expects to gain better visibility into demand at its 250 stores, which will allow it to optimize service levels from its central distribution center.
Seeing the light. Lightning Pick Technologies is partnering with SPSI, a provider of tier-one enterprise shipping and warehouse solutions. The agreement allows the two companies to offer distributors a single-source solution for implementing light-directed fulfillment systems along with manifesting systems.
The Quest is complete. Scarbrough International, a fullservice third-party logistics service provider, has implemented TradeMaster software from QuestaWeb, a supplier of Web-based integrated trade and logistics management solutions. The software integrates operations at Scarbrough's headquarters in Kansas City, Mo., with operating sites in Chicago, St. Louis, and Milwaukee, and gives Scarbrough's customers direct Internet access to real-time shipment information.
Reaching the Pinnacle. Pinnacle Foods Group, maker of the Duncan Hines, Mrs. Butterworth, Log Cabin, Swanson, and Hungry Man brands of packaged foods, has awarded a contract for transportation management services to DSC Logistics. Earlier this year, Pinnacle had chosen DSC to provide warehousing and distribution management services. Under the new agreement, DSC will also provide transportation services to Pinnacle's customers in 11 states on the West Coast and Canada out of its facilities in Mira Loma and Tracy, Calif.
RFID pairing. RedPrairie and Avery Dennison's Printer Systems Division have teamed up to provide RFID capabilities. The solution consists of RedPrairie's enterprise software coupled with Avery Dennison's Monarch 9855 RFID printer/encoder and RFID supplies.
Seeing sea. Geodis Wilson, one of Europe's largest transport and logistics companies, has rolled out an ocean shipment management platform from GT Nexus Trade and Logistics. The system allows Geodis Wilson to exchange data between its Freight Monitor visibility system and its global network of ocean carriers.
Rug runners. Shaw Industries, the world's largest carpet manufacturer, has installed the WhereNet Yard Management System (YMS) at its main distribution campus in Dalton, Ga. WhereNet YMS manages and tracks assets in the 79-acre yard, providing improved throughput, asset utilization, and use of labor. The system is also supporting two distribution centers in the area.
Eye in the sky. Sentry Technology Corp. has signed an agreement with Steve & Barry's to install its SentryVision SmartTrack traveling closed-circuit TV system in 22 stores as well as the apparel retailer's distribution center. The program includes OperationVideo, which is Sentry's remote security and business management solution. The system provides real-time video images over the Internet, allowing companies to remotely monitor facility operations, safety, security, and compliance.
Keeping their cool. Wal-Mart has begun testing Thermo King's Spectrum SB 50 multi-temp hybrid trailer refrigeration units. The units are designed to meet proposed environmental regulations in California that would require trucks to "plug in" at loading docks. The two companies have previously worked together on several initiatives, including the development of the original Spectrum SB model.
Cheers. A.G. Barr, a leading manufacturer of soft drinks in the United Kingdom, has implemented Supply Chain Management Demand Planning software from Infor. The solution will help A.G. Barr improve its forecasting capabilities and reduce inventory.
Brrrrr. Global container transporter APL has ordered 6,300 scroll-container refrigeration units from Carrier Transicold's Container Products Group. The order for the EliteLINE scroll units is the largest ever for Carrier Transicold. Carrier says these units will allow APL to keep up with booming growth in the refrigerated-container trade.
Hear ye, hear ye. Vanguard Voice Systems has entered into an agreement with technology distributor Ingram Micro to deliver its AccuSpeech technology through the Ingram Micro Data Capture/Point-of-Sale Division. Ingram Micro will market the Vanguard voice-directed data input and control technology for mobile data collection applications to independent software vendors, solutions integrators, and value-added resellers.
Autonomous forklift maker Cyngn is deploying its DriveMod Tugger model at COATS Company, the largest full-line wheel service equipment manufacturer in North America, the companies said today.
By delivering the self-driving tuggers to COATS’ 150,000+ square foot manufacturing facility in La Vergne, Tennessee, Cyngn said it would enable COATS to enhance efficiency by automating the delivery of wheel service components from its production lines.
“Cyngn’s self-driving tugger was the perfect solution to support our strategy of advancing automation and incorporating scalable technology seamlessly into our operations,” Steve Bergmeyer, Continuous Improvement and Quality Manager at COATS, said in a release. “With its high load capacity, we can concentrate on increasing our ability to manage heavier components and bulk orders, driving greater efficiency, reducing costs, and accelerating delivery timelines.”
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it follows another deployment of DriveMod Tuggers with electric automaker Rivian earlier this year.
Manufacturing and logistics workers are raising a red flag over workplace quality issues according to industry research released this week.
A comparative study of more than 4,000 workers from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia found that manufacturing and logistics workers say they have seen colleagues reduce the quality of their work and not follow processes in the workplace over the past year, with rates exceeding the overall average by 11% and 8%, respectively.
The study—the Resilience Nation report—was commissioned by UK-based regulatory and compliance software company Ideagen, and it polled workers in industries such as energy, aviation, healthcare, and financial services. The results “explore the major threats and macroeconomic factors affecting people today, providing perspectives on resilience across global landscapes,” according to the authors.
According to the study, 41% of manufacturing and logistics workers said they’d witnessed their peers hiding mistakes, and 45% said they’ve observed coworkers cutting corners due to apathy—9% above the average. The results also showed that workers are seeing colleagues take safety risks: More than a third of respondents said they’ve seen people putting themselves in physical danger at work.
The authors said growing pressure inside and outside of the workplace are to blame for the lack of diligence and resiliency on the job. Internally, workers say they are under pressure to deliver more despite reduced capacity. Among the external pressures, respondents cited the rising cost of living as the biggest problem (39%), closely followed by inflation rates, supply chain challenges, and energy prices.
“People are being asked to deliver more at work when their resilience is being challenged by economic and political headwinds,” Ideagen’s CEO Ben Dorks said in a statement announcing the findings. “Ultimately, this is having a determinantal impact on business productivity, workplace health and safety, and the quality of work produced, as well as further reducing the resilience of the nation at large.”
Respondents said they believe technology will eventually alleviate some of the stress occurring in manufacturing and logistics, however.
“People are optimistic that emerging tech and AI will ultimately lighten the load, but they’re not yet feeling the benefits,” Dorks added. “It’s a gap that now, more than ever, business leaders must look to close and support their workforce to ensure their staff remain safe and compliance needs are met across the business.”
The “2024 Year in Review” report lists the various transportation delays, freight volume restrictions, and infrastructure repair costs of a long string of events. Those disruptions include labor strikes at Canadian ports and postal sites, the U.S. East and Gulf coast port strike; hurricanes Helene, Francine, and Milton; the Francis Scott key Bridge collapse in Baltimore Harbor; the CrowdStrike cyber attack; and Red Sea missile attacks on passing cargo ships.
“While 2024 was characterized by frequent and overlapping disruptions that exposed many supply chain vulnerabilities, it was also a year of resilience,” the Project44 report said. “From labor strikes and natural disasters to geopolitical tensions, each event served as a critical learning opportunity, underscoring the necessity for robust contingency planning, effective labor relations, and durable infrastructure. As supply chains continue to evolve, the lessons learned this past year highlight the increased importance of proactive measures and collaborative efforts. These strategies are essential to fostering stability and adaptability in a world where unpredictability is becoming the norm.”
In addition to tallying the supply chain impact of those events, the report also made four broad predictions for trends in 2025 that may affect logistics operations. In Project44’s analysis, they include:
More technology and automation will be introduced into supply chains, particularly ports. This will help make operations more efficient but also increase the risk of cybersecurity attacks and service interruptions due to glitches and bugs. This could also add tensions among the labor pool and unions, who do not want jobs to be replaced with automation.
The new administration in the United States introduces a lot of uncertainty, with talks of major tariffs for numerous countries as well as talks of US freight getting preferential treatment through the Panama Canal. If these things do come to fruition, expect to see shifts in global trade patterns and sourcing.
Natural disasters will continue to become more frequent and more severe, as exhibited by the wildfires in Los Angeles and the winter storms throughout the southern states in the U.S. As a result, expect companies to invest more heavily in sustainability to mitigate climate change.
The peace treaty announced on Wednesday between Isael and Hamas in the Middle East could support increased freight volumes returning to the Suez Canal as political crisis in the area are resolved.
The French transportation visibility provider Shippeo today said it has raised $30 million in financial backing, saying the money will support its accelerated expansion across North America and APAC, while driving enhancements to its “Real-Time Transportation Visibility Platform” product.
The funding round was led by Woven Capital, Toyota’s growth fund, with participation from existing investors: Battery Ventures, Partech, NGP Capital, Bpifrance Digital Venture, LFX Venture Partners, Shift4Good and Yamaha Motor Ventures. With this round, Shippeo’s total funding exceeds $140 million.
Shippeo says it offers real-time shipment tracking across all transport modes, helping companies create sustainable, resilient supply chains. Its platform enables users to reduce logistics-related carbon emissions by making informed trade-offs between modes and carriers based on carbon footprint data.
"Global supply chains are facing unprecedented complexity, and real-time transport visibility is essential for building resilience” Prashant Bothra, Principal at Woven Capital, who is joining the Shippeo board, said in a release. “Shippeo’s platform empowers businesses to proactively address disruptions by transforming fragmented operations into streamlined, data-driven processes across all transport modes, offering precise tracking and predictive ETAs at scale—capabilities that would be resource-intensive to develop in-house. We are excited to support Shippeo’s journey to accelerate digitization while enhancing cost efficiency, planning accuracy, and customer experience across the supply chain.”
Donald Trump has been clear that he plans to hit the ground running after his inauguration on January 20, launching ambitious plans that could have significant repercussions for global supply chains.
As Mark Baxa, CSCMP president and CEO, says in the executive forward to the white paper, the incoming Trump Administration and a majority Republican congress are “poised to reshape trade policies, regulatory frameworks, and the very fabric of how we approach global commerce.”
The paper is written by import/export expert Thomas Cook, managing director for Blue Tiger International, a U.S.-based supply chain management consulting company that focuses on international trade. Cook is the former CEO of American River International in New York and Apex Global Logistics Supply Chain Operation in Los Angeles and has written 19 books on global trade.
In the paper, Cook, of course, takes a close look at tariff implications and new trade deals, emphasizing that Trump will seek revisions that will favor U.S. businesses and encourage manufacturing to return to the U.S. The paper, however, also looks beyond global trade to addresses topics such as Trump’s tougher stance on immigration and the possibility of mass deportations, greater support of Israel in the Middle East, proposals for increased energy production and mining, and intent to end the war in the Ukraine.
In general, Cook believes that many of the administration’s new policies will be beneficial to the overall economy. He does warn, however, that some policies will be disruptive and add risk and cost to global supply chains.
In light of those risks and possible disruptions, Cook’s paper offers 14 recommendations. Some of which include:
Create a team responsible for studying the changes Trump will introduce when he takes office;
Attend trade shows and make connections with vendors, suppliers, and service providers who can help you navigate those changes;
Consider becoming C-TPAT (Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism) certified to help mitigate potential import/export issues;
Adopt a risk management mindset and shift from focusing on lowest cost to best value for your spend;
Increase collaboration with internal and external partners;
Expect warehousing costs to rise in the short term as companies look to bring in foreign-made goods ahead of tariffs;
Expect greater scrutiny from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol of origin statements for imports in recognition of attempts by some Chinese manufacturers to evade U.S. import policies;
Reduce dependency on China for sourcing; and
Consider manufacturing and/or sourcing in the United States.
Cook advises readers to expect a loosening up of regulations and a reduction in government under Trump. He warns that while some world leaders will look to work with Trump, others will take more of a defiant stance. As a result, companies should expect to see retaliatory tariffs and duties on exports.
Cook concludes by offering advice to the incoming administration, including being sensitive to the effect retaliatory tariffs can have on American exports, working on federal debt reduction, and considering promoting free trade zones. He also proposes an ambitious water works program through the Army Corps of Engineers.