Logistics/Supply Chains

US companies move to break China’s dominance of rare earth industry

In 2010, tensions flared between Japan and China over a fishing trawler incident in the East China Sea. The Chinese government reportedly blocked all exports of rare earth elements to Japan in retaliation for the detention of a Chinese fishing boat captain.

Japan at the time had grown almost entirely dependent on Chinese rare earth elements (REEs), importing more than 90% of the metals, which are used in everything from computers, smartphones and electric vehicles to wind turbines and even...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/us-companies-move-to-break-china-rare-earth-dominance

Drilling Deep: How to move off your antiquated supply chain systems

Changing a company's supply chain technology can be ardulous. In this podcast, Karon Evanoff of QSC talks about how her company completed that task.

Karon Evanoff is the vice president of the global supply chain for a major manufacturer of audio equipment. A few years ago, she was saddled with out-of-date systems that weren’t keeping up with the latest developments in supply chain software and visibility.

She joins host John Kingston on Drilling Deep to talk about her company’s supply chain transformation and what it took to change direction to a cloud-based approach that is current with the most cutting-edge technology. She discusses what a...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/drilling-deep-how-to-move-off-your-antiquated-supply-chain-systems

Google pushes hard into supply chain technology

XPO personnel working with Google Cloud's supply chain suite.

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) is and will likely always be associated with its search engine. What is less known is the company has moved aggressively to support logistics and supply chain operations with its Google Cloud platform.

Given Google’s scale and expertise, the runway for all stakeholders is potentially enormous. Google Cloud is in the early innings, but it has already attracted attention and business. For example, XPO Logistics Inc. (NYSE: XPO), which is as advanced an IT player as any...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/google-cloud-supply-chain-technology

Visibility tools play essential role for carriers in enduring weak market

All carriers know that unfavorable market conditions aren’t a matter of if but when simply due to the natural ebbs and flows of the supply chain. That time may have unfortunately come for carriers. 

Shippers have taken the upper hand in rate negotiation as slowing consumer spending and dwindling tender rejections are putting carriers into a corner. With higher operating costs due to inflation added to the mix, the pressure is coming from all angles.

Rocky times won’t last forever, though, and Truc...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/visibility-tools-play-essential-role-for-carriers-in-enduring-weak-market

FedEx invests in FourKites to build intelligent supply chain platform

FedEx truck

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and Chicago-based supply chain visibility provider FourKites have partnered to build a global supply chain intelligence platform, the companies announced Tuesday. Under the agreement, FedEx has invested an undisclosed amount in FourKites.

The new platform, FourKites X, will aim to help large shippers and logistics providers with features like dynamic planning, real-time visibility, proactive alerts and supply chain optimization insights. FourKites customers will be able...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fedex-invests-in-fourkites-to-build-intelligent-supply-chain-platform

Powerful TMS helps Gully Transportation increase cash flow with same-day billing functionality

Shifting demand, dropping rates and skyrocketing fuel prices are just some of the market obstacles carriers are currently facing, with new supply chain challenges cropping up seemingly every day.

As these problems compound on one another, it’s no wonder carriers are beginning to feel budgetary strain. In the uncertain market, midsize and large carriers are looking to set themselves apart from the competition in order to continue to stay ahead. 

For many, challenging times tend to highlight...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/powerful-tms-helps-gully-transportation-increase-cash-flow-with-same-day-billing-functionality

No surprise: Report finds logistics costs spiked in 2021

container terminal

The 33rd annual State of Logistics Report, the year-over-year report card of the U.S. business logistics system, confirmed empirically what everyone already knew: 2021 was nirvana or a nightmare depending on what one does for a living.

Total logistics costs, which measure how much was spent on transportation, warehousing and ancillary services such as support and administrative, soared 22.4% last year to nearly $1.85 trillion, according to the report. That was equal to 8% of the U.S. GDP, a...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/no-surprise-report-finds-logistics-costs-spiked-in-2021

Small Fleet & Owner-Operator Summit to address key industry issues

The free Small Fleet & Owner-Operator Summit kicks off in less than 48 hours (9 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, June 15). 

So far, 2022 is turning into a nightmare for many in the trucking industry. Freight volume is down, while costs for fuel, insurance, etc. are significantly higher. 

Regardless of the freight environment, truck drivers are the backbone of the industry – the people who deliver more than 85% of the goods consumed by the nation. Small fleet owners and owner-operators wear a number of...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/small-fleet-owner-operator-summitto-address-key-industry-issues

With plenty of money and lots of runway, Flexport hands the reins to Clark

Flexport may not have needed a new hand at the tiller to take its business to the next level. Come Sept. 1, however, it’s getting one.

The hiring of Dave Clark, who departs his remarkable 23-year gig at Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) on July 1 to become the San Francisco-based freight forwarder’s new CEO, marks the end of an era, though a relatively brief one. For nine years, Flexport reflected the flamboyant persona of its founder, Ryan Petersen. It is now expected to settle into a more mature...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/with-plenty-of-money-and-lots-of-runway-flexport-hands-the-reins-to-clark

Supply chain exec’s advice: Don’t get sucked in by the day-to-day

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — When you’re trying to transform a company’s operations, you’ve got to let the short-term stuff get fixed by others.

That was one of the takeaways from an initiative undertaken in the past two years at General Mills to overhaul its supply chain as part of a broader transformation going on with the food manufacturer.

The person who delivered that message at the Gartner Supply Chain Symposium was Becky Crane, the vice president of the morning foods supply chain at General...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/supply-chain-execs-advice-dont-get-sucked-in-by-the-day-to-day

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