New industrial trucks give Bonide's DC operations a lift
As sales boomed, pesticide manufacturer Bonide found itself struggling to keep up with orders. New lift trucks and a warehouse redesign changed all that.
Diane Rand is Associate Editor and has several years of magazine editing and production experience. She previously worked as a production editor for Logistics Management and Supply Chain Management Review. She joined the editorial staff in 2015. She is responsible for managing digital, editorial, and production projects for DC Velocity and its sister magazine, Supply Chain Quarterly.
A few years back, Bonide found itself facing the classic growth challenge—at least where its distribution operations were concerned. The Oriskany, N.Y.-based company, a third-generation family-owned and -operated manufacturer of home, lawn, and garden pest-control products, had experienced a decade of double-digit sales growth. While that was great for the bottom line, it had put a strain on the back end of the operation, leaving the company scrambling to make good on its 48-hour-to-ship commitment to its customers.
It was clear that without some major changes, things were only going to get worse. With business exponentially growing, the warehouse needed more space to move product, the current workflow was laborious, and the facility had no room for expansion.
After evaluating its warehouse operation, Bonide concluded that a big part of the problem was its lift-truck fleet. The lift trucks were inefficient and plagued by issues that were causing significant downtime, slow processes, and missed deadlines. The company was also dissatisfied with the service it was receiving from its lift-truck provider.
For help finding a fix, Bonide brought in Pengate Handling Systems, a material handling and storage solutions provider and authorized Raymond sales and service center. Together, the partners developed a plan that included switching to Raymond trucks, a new brand for Bonide. As an initial step, they launched a three-month test run of Raymond electric lift trucks.
By all accounts, the pilot was a success. "We had struggled with maintaining lift trucks in the past because they were constantly needing attention and causing downtime. Raymond trucks proved to be the exception when we ran our test. They were easy to work with and made a significant contribution to us reaching our efficiency goals," said Bill Szalkowski, facilities manager at Bonide, in a statement.
The switch to Raymond trucks also brought service benefits, including quick turnaround time when it came to getting service technicians in the door. "We have very rarely had to wait longer than 24 hours to see a service technician," Szalkowski said in the statement. "And most of the time, service was needed because of operator error, not the truck breaking down."
Today, Bonide uses more than 50 Raymond trucks at its warehouse. Models range from the Raymond 4000 Series stand-up and sit-down counterbalanced forklift trucks to the 8210 walkie pallet truck to the 7000 Series universal-stance Reach-Fork truck. Bonide's fleet also includes 8000 Series pallet trucks.
But the collaboration didn't end there. Owing to a recent warehouse addition, Bonide was also looking to redesign its warehouse. Pengate was able to help out with that project as well—in this case, by determining the optimal rack configuration and helping ensure the trucks would properly interface with the racking. After conducting a site assessment, the dealer recommended that Bonide increase its rack height by eight feet and go with a narrow-aisle racking system of nine feet, six inches.
It's been five years since Bonide overhauled its warehouse operation, which included adding the Raymond trucks and redesigning the facility. Today, Bonide solely runs Raymond trucks, and those trucks support the new 28-foot-high racks in the storage area and the 20-foot-high racks in production, with full capabilities to reach and move materials. On top of that, the changes have enabled the company to significantly boost its production and reduce the number of forklift touches per skid.
Completely reworking the racking system and switching out the trucks in its fleet was a huge culture change for Bonide and an ambitious project to embark on. The company is pleased with how Pengate and Raymond contributed to its success. "We have no hesitation in continuing to work closely with Pengate on future projects and to find Raymond solutions to improve our business even more," Szalkowski said in the statement.
Nearly one-third of American consumers have increased their secondhand purchases in the past year, revealing a jump in “recommerce” according to a buyer survey from ShipStation, a provider of web-based shipping and order fulfillment solutions.
The number comes from a survey of 500 U.S. consumers showing that nearly one in four (23%) Americans lack confidence in making purchases over $200 in the next six months. Due to economic uncertainty, savvy shoppers are looking for ways to save money without sacrificing quality or style, the research found.
Younger shoppers are leading the charge in that trend, with 59% of Gen Z and 48% of Millennials buying pre-owned items weekly or monthly. That rate makes Gen Z nearly twice as likely to buy second hand compared to older generations.
The primary reason that shoppers say they have increased their recommerce habits is lower prices (74%), followed by the thrill of finding unique or rare items (38%) and getting higher quality for a lower price (28%). Only 14% of Americans cite environmental concerns as a primary reason they shop second-hand.
Despite the challenge of adjusting to the new pattern, recommerce represents a strategic opportunity for businesses to capture today’s budget-minded shoppers and foster long-term loyalty, Austin, Texas-based ShipStation said.
For example, retailers don’t have to sell used goods to capitalize on the secondhand boom. Instead, they can offer trade-in programs swapping discounts or store credit for shoppers’ old items. And they can improve product discoverability to help customers—particularly older generations—find what they’re looking for.
Other ways for retailers to connect with recommerce shoppers are to improve shipping practices. According to ShipStation:
70% of shoppers won’t return to a brand if shipping is too expensive.
51% of consumers are turned off by late deliveries
40% of shoppers won’t return to a retailer again if the packaging is bad.
The “CMA CGM Startup Awards”—created in collaboration with BFM Business and La Tribune—will identify the best innovations to accelerate its transformation, the French company said.
Specifically, the company will select the best startup among the applicants, with clear industry transformation objectives focused on environmental performance, competitiveness, and quality of life at work in each of the three areas:
Shipping: Enabling safer, more efficient, and sustainable navigation through innovative technological solutions.
Logistics: Reinventing the global supply chain with smart and sustainable logistics solutions.
Media: Transform content creation, and customer engagement with innovative media technologies and strategies.
Three winners will be selected during a final event organized on November 15 at the Orange Vélodrome Stadium in Marseille, during the 2nd Artificial Intelligence Marseille (AIM) forum organized by La Tribune and BFM Business. The selection will be made by a jury chaired by Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO of the Group, and including members of the executive committee representing the various sectors of CMA CGM.
The global air cargo market’s hot summer of double-digit demand growth continued in August with average spot rates showing their largest year-on-year jump with a 24% increase, according to the latest weekly analysis by Xeneta.
Xeneta cited two reasons to explain the increase. First, Global average air cargo spot rates reached $2.68 per kg in August due to continuing supply and demand imbalance. That came as August's global cargo supply grew at its slowest ratio in 2024 to-date at 2% year-on-year, while global cargo demand continued its double-digit growth, rising +11%.
The second reason for higher rates was an ocean-to-air shift in freight volumes due to Red Sea disruptions and e-commerce demand.
Those factors could soon be amplified as e-commerce shows continued strong growth approaching the hotly anticipated winter peak season. E-commerce and low-value goods exports from China in the first seven months of 2024 increased 30% year-on-year, including shipments to Europe and the US rising 38% and 30% growth respectively, Xeneta said.
“Typically, air cargo market performance in August tends to follow the July trend. But another month of double-digit demand growth and the strongest rate growths of the year means there was definitely no summer slack season in 2024,” Niall van de Wouw, Xeneta’s chief airfreight officer, said in a release.
“Rates we saw bottoming out in late July started picking up again in mid-August. This is too short a period to call a season. This has been a busy summer, and now we’re at the threshold of Q4, it will be interesting to see what will happen and if all the anticipation of a red-hot peak season materializes,” van de Wouw said.
The report cites data showing that there are approximately 1.7 million workers missing from the post-pandemic workforce and that 38% of small firms are unable to fill open positions. At the same time, the “skills gap” in the workforce is accelerating as automation and AI create significant shifts in how work is performed.
That information comes from the “2024 Labor Day Report” released by Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute (WPI), the firm’s government relations and public policy arm.
“We continue to see a labor shortage and an urgent need to upskill the current workforce to adapt to the new world of work,” said Michael Lotito, Littler shareholder and co-chair of WPI. “As corporate executives and business leaders look to the future, they are focused on realizing the many benefits of AI to streamline operations and guide strategic decision-making, while cultivating a talent pipeline that can support this growth.”
But while the need is clear, solutions may be complicated by public policy changes such as the upcoming U.S. general election and the proliferation of employment-related legislation at the state and local levels amid Congressional gridlock.
“We are heading into a contentious election that has already proven to be unpredictable and is poised to create even more uncertainty for employers, no matter the outcome,” Shannon Meade, WPI’s executive director, said in a release. “At the same time, the growing patchwork of state and local requirements across the U.S. is exacerbating compliance challenges for companies. That, coupled with looming changes following several Supreme Court decisions that have the potential to upend rulemaking, gives C-suite executives much to contend with in planning their workforce-related strategies.”
Stax Engineering, the venture-backed startup that provides smokestack emissions reduction services for maritime ships, will service all vessels from Toyota Motor North America Inc. visiting the Toyota Berth at the Port of Long Beach, according to a new five-year deal announced today.
Beginning in 2025 to coincide with new California Air Resources Board (CARB) standards, STAX will become the first and only emissions control provider to service roll-on/roll-off (ro-ros) vessels in the state of California, the company said.
Stax has rapidly grown since its launch in the first quarter of this year, supported in part by a $40 million funding round from investors, announced in July. It now holds exclusive service agreements at California ports including Los Angeles, Long Beach, Hueneme, Benicia, Richmond, and Oakland. The firm has also partnered with individual companies like NYK Line, Hyundai GLOVIS, Equilon Enterprises LLC d/b/a Shell Oil Products US (Shell), and now Toyota.
Stax says it offers an alternative to shore power with land- and barge-based, mobile emissions capture and control technology for shipping terminal and fleet operators without the need for retrofits.
In the case of this latest deal, the Toyota Long Beach Vehicle Distribution Center imports about 200,000 vehicles each year on ro-ro vessels. Stax will keep those ships green with its flexible exhaust capture system, which attaches to all vessel classes without modification to remove 99% of emitted particulate matter (PM) and 95% of emitted oxides of nitrogen (NOx). Over the lifetime of this new agreement with Toyota, Stax estimated the service will account for approximately 3,700 hours and more than 47 tons of emissions controlled.
“We set out to provide an emissions capture and control solution that was reliable, easily accessible, and cost-effective. As we begin to service Toyota, we’re confident that we can meet the needs of the full breadth of the maritime industry, furthering our impact on the local air quality, public health, and environment,” Mike Walker, CEO of Stax, said in a release. “Continuing to establish strong partnerships will help build momentum for and trust in our technology as we expand beyond the state of California.”