Calling all cars. The Carphone Warehouse, a mobile phone and services retailer with 2,400 stores in the United Kingdom and Europe, is implementing RedPrairie's Execution Management application. This will allow the company to gain a single, chain-wide view of all aspects of store operations, including marketing, merchandising, and promotions. The RedPrairie solution will also help the company gain visibility into store-level compliance, streamline communications with stores, and gain additional financial benefits.
Better brokering. Aljex Software has integrated ALK's PC- Miler software into its full-service truckload brokerage services. This enables Aljex customers to access ALK's routing, mapping, and mileage functionality. Aljex Software, which is based in Middlesex, N.J., offers management software for freight brokers, logistics companies, and other non-assetbased transportation service providers.
Freight fjording. Agility Project Logistics has signed a multi-year logistics agreement with Norwegian company Aker Kvaerner ASA. Agility will handle the freight forwarding and project shipping needs of all of the Oslo-based company's operating units.
Port of call. The Port of Tacoma, Wash., has entered into an agreement with the Puyallup Indian tribe, Marine View Ventures, and SSA Marine for the construction of a new terminal on the Blair-Hylebos Peninsula. Under the arrangement, SSA Marine will have use of a 1,200-foot berth and about 20 acres of backup land. The port and the Puyallup Tribe will also exchange land to improve the terminal's footprint. In addition, the Blair Waterway at the planned terminal site will be widened to improve navigation.
Sounds good. Sony DADC has installed an automated material handling system from HK Systems at its Indiana manufacturing facility. The system consists of an automated storage and retrieval system, unit load conveyors, and controls. The Sony facility manufactures, packages, and distributes more than 1.8 billion discs per year and is the world's largest distributor of content media.
Coke picks it. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, the second largest bottler of Coca-Cola in the United States, has upgraded its supply chain management software with JDA Version 7.4. The solution includes JDA Demand, JDA Fulfillment, and JDA Transportation Planning. The JDA software helps Coca-Cola Consolidated improve forecast accuracy, customer-service levels, order fill rates, and on-time deliveries.
Jump start. Richmond Cold Storage has chosen HighJump's warehouse management solution for implementation in 12 of its facilities in Virginia, North Carolina, and Alabama. The software will integrate with Richmond Cold Storage's customer Web pOréal to give clients easy access to real-time inventory and shipping data.
Paint powered. Catalyst has completed a successful installation of the SAP Warehouse Management and SAP Console applications at Dunn-Edwards' new regional support center in San Diego. Dunn-Edwards is a manufacturer of paint products. The solution has already improved shipment and picking accuracy and has boosted efficiency and speed throughout the supply chain operation.
Wheeling and dealing. RT Systems is installing its warehouse management system, RT LOCATOR, at CJ's Tire and Automotive Services. CJ's, located in Birdsboro, Pa., operates a chain of tire retail and service centers in eastern Pennsylvania. The software will be installed in a new distribution center that will feature a narrow-aisle material handling system.
Go fetch. Wesley International and FastFetch Corp. have formed a marketing alliance for solutions aimed at increasing efficiency and accuracy in order fulfillment operations. Wesley is now the exclusive partner representing FastFetch's multimodal, batch, and order-picking systems, which combine voice, bar-code scanning, and light-directed technologies. Under the new arrangement, FastFetch will function as a division of Wesley. Wesley produces the Pallet Mule, Pack Mule, and Power Mule line of forklift-free handling systems.
Method acting. Method Products, a San Francisco-based distributor of home care products, has chosen Ozburn- Hessey Logistics (OH Logistics) as its supply chain management partner at Method's new distribution center in Dayton, N.J. OH Logistics also provides these services for Method at its DCs in Georgia and California. The new facility will allow Method to optimize its distribution network and reduce its transportation routes.
Van go. Blick Art Materials, a company that sells art supplies to professional artists, art students, and teachers through retail stores and catalogs, has selected Kewill Flagship for its distribution operations. Kewill Flagship is an enterprise shipping management software solution that will help Blick reduce costs and streamline its fulfillment operations. The Kewill software will integrate with Blick's recently implemented RedPrairie systems. Blick has two distribution centers and ships about 5,000 packages each day.
A move by federal regulators to reinforce requirements for broker transparency in freight transactions is stirring debate among transportation groups, after the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a “notice of proposed rulemaking” this week.
According to FMCSA, its draft rule would strive to make broker transparency more common, requiring greater sharing of the material information necessary for transportation industry parties to make informed business decisions and to support the efficient resolution of disputes.
The proposed rule titled “Transparency in Property Broker Transactions” would address what FMCSA calls the lack of access to information among shippers and motor carriers that can impact the fairness and efficiency of the transportation system, and would reframe broker transparency as a regulatory duty imposed on brokers, with the goal of deterring non-compliance. Specifically, the move would require brokers to keep electronic records, and require brokers to provide transaction records to motor carriers and shippers upon request and within 48 hours of that request.
Under federal regulatory processes, public comments on the move are due by January 21, 2025. However, transportation groups are not waiting on the sidelines to voice their opinions.
According to the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA), an industry group representing the third-party logistics (3PL) industry, the potential rule is “misguided overreach” that fails to address the more pressing issue of freight fraud. In TIA’s view, broker transparency regulation is “obsolete and un-American,” and has no place in today’s “highly transparent” marketplace. “This proposal represents a misguided focus on outdated and unnecessary regulations rather than tackling issues that genuinely threaten the safety and efficiency of our nation’s supply chains,” TIA said.
But trucker trade group the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) welcomed the proposed rule, which it said would ensure that brokers finally play by the rules. “We appreciate that FMCSA incorporated input from our petition, including a requirement to make records available electronically and emphasizing that brokers have a duty to comply with regulations. As FMCSA noted, broker transparency is necessary for a fair, efficient transportation system, and is especially important to help carriers defend themselves against alleged claims on a shipment,” OOIDA President Todd Spencer said in a statement.
Additional pushback came from the Small Business in Transportation Coalition (SBTC), a network of transportation professionals in small business, which said the potential rule didn’t go far enough. “This is too little too late and is disappointing. It preserves the status quo, which caters to Big Broker & TIA. There is no question now that FMCSA has been captured by Big Broker. Truckers and carriers must now come out in droves and file comments in full force against this starting tomorrow,” SBTC executive director James Lamb said in a LinkedIn post.
The “series B” funding round was financed by an unnamed “strategic customer” as well as Teradyne Robotics Ventures, Toyota Ventures, Ranpak, Third Kind Venture Capital, One Madison Group, Hyperplane, Catapult Ventures, and others.
The fresh backing comes as Massachusetts-based Pickle reported a spate of third quarter orders, saying that six customers placed orders for over 30 production robots to deploy in the first half of 2025. The new orders include pilot conversions, existing customer expansions, and new customer adoption.
“Pickle is hitting its strides delivering innovation, development, commercial traction, and customer satisfaction. The company is building groundbreaking technology while executing on essential recurring parts of a successful business like field service and manufacturing management,” Omar Asali, Pickle board member and CEO of investor Ranpak, said in a release.
According to Pickle, its truck-unloading robot applies “Physical AI” technology to one of the most labor-intensive, physically demanding, and highest turnover work areas in logistics operations. The platform combines a powerful vision system with generative AI foundation models trained on millions of data points from real logistics and warehouse operations that enable Pickle’s robotic hardware platform to perform physical work at human-scale or better, the company says.
Bloomington, Indiana-based FTR said its Trucking Conditions Index declined in September to -2.47 from -1.39 in August as weakness in the principal freight dynamics – freight rates, utilization, and volume – offset lower fuel costs and slightly less unfavorable financing costs.
Those negative numbers are nothing new—the TCI has been positive only twice – in May and June of this year – since April 2022, but the group’s current forecast still envisions consistently positive readings through at least a two-year forecast horizon.
“Aside from a near-term boost mostly related to falling diesel prices, we have not changed our Trucking Conditions Index forecast significantly in the wake of the election,” Avery Vise, FTR’s vice president of trucking, said in a release. “The outlook continues to be more favorable for carriers than what they have experienced for well over two years. Our analysis indicates gradual but steadily rising capacity utilization leading to stronger freight rates in 2025.”
But FTR said its forecast remains unchanged. “Just like everyone else, we’ll be watching closely to see exactly what trade and other economic policies are implemented and over what time frame. Some freight disruptions are likely due to tariffs and other factors, but it is not yet clear that those actions will do more than shift the timing of activity,” Vise said.
The TCI tracks the changes representing five major conditions in the U.S. truck market: freight volumes, freight rates, fleet capacity, fuel prices, and financing costs. Combined into a single index indicating the industry’s overall health, a positive score represents good, optimistic conditions while a negative score shows the inverse.
Specifically, the new global average robot density has reached a record 162 units per 10,000 employees in 2023, which is more than double the mark of 74 units measured seven years ago.
Broken into geographical regions, the European Union has a robot density of 219 units per 10,000 employees, an increase of 5.2%, with Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Slovenia in the global top ten. Next, North America’s robot density is 197 units per 10,000 employees – up 4.2%. And Asia has a robot density of 182 units per 10,000 persons employed in manufacturing - an increase of 7.6%. The economies of Korea, Singapore, mainland China and Japan are among the top ten most automated countries.
Broken into individual countries, the U.S. ranked in 10th place in 2023, with a robot density of 295 units. Higher up on the list, the top five are:
The Republic of Korea, with 1,012 robot units, showing a 5% increase on average each year since 2018 thanks to its strong electronics and automotive industries.
Singapore had 770 robot units, in part because it is a small country with a very low number of employees in the manufacturing industry, so it can reach a high robot density with a relatively small operational stock.
China took third place in 2023, surpassing Germany and Japan with a mark of 470 robot units as the nation has managed to double its robot density within four years.
Germany ranks fourth with 429 robot units for a 5% CAGR since 2018.
Japan is in fifth place with 419 robot units, showing growth of 7% on average each year from 2018 to 2023.
Progress in generative AI (GenAI) is poised to impact business procurement processes through advancements in three areas—agentic reasoning, multimodality, and AI agents—according to Gartner Inc.
Those functions will redefine how procurement operates and significantly impact the agendas of chief procurement officers (CPOs). And 72% of procurement leaders are already prioritizing the integration of GenAI into their strategies, thus highlighting the recognition of its potential to drive significant improvements in efficiency and effectiveness, Gartner found in a survey conducted in July, 2024, with 258 global respondents.
Gartner defined the new functions as follows:
Agentic reasoning in GenAI allows for advanced decision-making processes that mimic human-like cognition. This capability will enable procurement functions to leverage GenAI to analyze complex scenarios and make informed decisions with greater accuracy and speed.
Multimodality refers to the ability of GenAI to process and integrate multiple forms of data, such as text, images, and audio. This will make GenAI more intuitively consumable to users and enhance procurement's ability to gather and analyze diverse information sources, leading to more comprehensive insights and better-informed strategies.
AI agents are autonomous systems that can perform tasks and make decisions on behalf of human operators. In procurement, these agents will automate procurement tasks and activities, freeing up human resources to focus on strategic initiatives, complex problem-solving and edge cases.
As CPOs look to maximize the value of GenAI in procurement, the study recommended three starting points: double down on data governance, develop and incorporate privacy standards into contracts, and increase procurement thresholds.
“These advancements will usher procurement into an era where the distance between ideas, insights, and actions will shorten rapidly,” Ryan Polk, senior director analyst in Gartner’s Supply Chain practice, said in a release. "Procurement leaders who build their foundation now through a focus on data quality, privacy and risk management have the potential to reap new levels of productivity and strategic value from the technology."