Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

inbound

move 'em out, track 'em down

The U.S. military is using technology to track the whereabouts of everything from Humvees to hamburgers.

move 'em out, track 'em down

In order to track thousands upon thousands of pieces of equipment, supplies, and cargo containers, the U.S. military has turned to a solution that will be familiar to many supply chain managers. It is using real-time asset-monitoring technology to keep tabs on the whereabouts of everything from hamburgers to Humvees.

As the pullout from Iraq and redeployment of resources to Afghanistan nears, the military has been involved in a number of asset tracking programs, including the following:


  • In June, the U.S. Army loaded hundreds of military assets onto Navy transport ships at Norfolk, Va., and then tracked each one as it traveled along the coast and was offloaded onto the beach at Camp Lejeune, N.C. (See photo.) During the exercise, the Army relied on a logistics and asset tracking system developed by ARINC Inc. and Impeva Labs to follow individual items. Known as Next Generation Wireless Communications for Logistics Applications, the system uses battery-powered electronic tags that form secure local mesh networks and link to mobile RF gateways—no local power or ground communications infrastructure is required. The gateways transmit global positioning system (GPS) tag locations and sensor data over communications channels like satellite and cellular networks.
  • Damco, the global freight forwarding arm of the A.P. Møller-Maersk Group, is using System Planning Corp.'s GlobalTrak system to track and monitor shipments for the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) in the Middle East. The system provides security, cargo condition monitoring, and cargo tracking and inventory management using publicly available global communications networks. The AAFES shipments, destined for military base exchanges, arrive in Turkey and then travel cross country to Iraq. Damco places a GlobalTrak asset monitoring unit on truck trailers crossing Turkey. The unit carries a suite of sensors that report location and cargo condition via two-way cellular and satellite communications to a secure online pOréal.

The Latest

More Stories

Trucking industry experiences record-high congestion costs

Trucking industry experiences record-high congestion costs

Congestion on U.S. highways is costing the trucking industry big, according to research from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), released today.

The group found that traffic congestion on U.S. highways added $108.8 billion in costs to the trucking industry in 2022, a record high. The information comes from ATRI’s Cost of Congestion study, which is part of the organization’s ongoing highway performance measurement research.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

From pingpong diplomacy to supply chain diplomacy?

There’s a photo from 1971 that John Kent, professor of supply chain management at the University of Arkansas, likes to show. It’s of a shaggy-haired 18-year-old named Glenn Cowan grinning at three-time world table tennis champion Zhuang Zedong, while holding a silk tapestry Zhuang had just given him. Cowan was a member of the U.S. table tennis team who participated in the 1971 World Table Tennis Championships in Nagoya, Japan. Story has it that one morning, he overslept and missed his bus to the tournament and had to hitch a ride with the Chinese national team and met and connected with Zhuang.

Cowan and Zhuang’s interaction led to an invitation for the U.S. team to visit China. At the time, the two countries were just beginning to emerge from a 20-year period of decidedly frosty relations, strict travel bans, and trade restrictions. The highly publicized trip signaled a willingness on both sides to renew relations and launched the term “pingpong diplomacy.”

Keep ReadingShow less
forklift driving through warehouse

Hyster-Yale to expand domestic manufacturing

Hyster-Yale Materials Handling today announced its plans to fulfill the domestic manufacturing requirements of the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act for certain portions of its lineup of forklift trucks and container handling equipment.

That means the Greenville, North Carolina-based company now plans to expand its existing American manufacturing with a targeted set of high-capacity models, including electric options, that align with the needs of infrastructure projects subject to BABA requirements. The company’s plans include determining the optimal production location in the United States, strategically expanding sourcing agreements to meet local material requirements, and further developing electric power options for high-capacity equipment.

Keep ReadingShow less
map of truck routes in US

California moves a step closer to requiring EV sales only by 2035

Federal regulators today gave California a green light to tackle the remaining steps to finalize its plan to gradually shift new car sales in the state by 2035 to only zero-emissions models — meaning battery-electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and plug-in hybrid cars — known as the Advanced Clean Cars II Rule.

In a separate move, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also gave its approval for the state to advance its Heavy-Duty Omnibus Rule, which is crafted to significantly reduce smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from new heavy-duty, diesel-powered trucks.

Keep ReadingShow less
screenshots for starboard trade software

Canadian startup gains $5.5 million for AI-based global trade platform

A Canadian startup that provides AI-powered logistics solutions has gained $5.5 million in seed funding to support its concept of creating a digital platform for global trade, according to Toronto-based Starboard.

The round was led by Eclipse, with participation from previous backers Garuda Ventures and Everywhere Ventures. The firm says it will use its new backing to expand its engineering team in Toronto and accelerate its AI-driven product development to simplify supply chain complexities.

Keep ReadingShow less