Modern Materials Handling—With a record number of exhibitors and attendees seen at ProMat 2017, MHI anticipates more of the same at Modex 2018—the industry’s premier supply chain event. Modex will once again be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, April 9-12, 2018.

Bloomberg—United Parcel Service Inc. will add Saturday ground deliveries, making one of the biggest shipping-time changes in its 109-year history in response to rising demand from online shoppers. Homes and businesses will no longer have to wait until Monday to receive packages, while online and brick-and-mortar retailers can send goods on Saturday for Monday delivery.

Material Handling & Logistics—As a growing economy increases the demand for affordable merchandise, imports at the nation’s major retail container ports should see double-digit year-over-year increases for the next two months, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released recently by the National Retail Federation  (NRF) and Hackett Associates.

ASME—Automation and robotics continue to enter the US manufacturing workspace. As companies continue to see big benefits from using robots on the factory floor, they are starting to invest in smarter, smaller, more collaborative robots for more delicate or complex operations. The following is a list of the top robot jobs that are currently emerging in factories.

MHI Blog—Day 2 of ProMat was busy and had a lot going on. Let’s jump in and hit the highlights.

Cleveland.com—Ohio this year will begin a new phase in its autonomous vehicle exploration. California-based Peloton Technology will roll out an evolving vehicle tech known as 'platooning' on the Ohio Turnpike.

MHI Blog—Members of the millennial generation looking for their perfect jobs might craft an advertisement something like this: Employment wanted: Position must be challenging with multiple possibilities for growth and new experiences. Job should involve technology, have a global focus and include opportunities for making a positive contribution to society and/or protecting the environment.

NASDAQ—Growth in Mexico's manufacturing sector rose in March to its highest level this year, helped by a jump in output and new orders, a survey showed on Monday.

Modern Materials Handling—Wednesday’s keynote panelists agreed it is time to embrace the shift to digital supply chains seen in MHI’s latest annual industry report, titled "Next-Generation Supply Chains: Digital, On-Demand and Always-On." 

SupplyChainBrain—Worldwide retail e-commerce sales was expected to reach $1.915tr in 2016, roughly 8.7 percent of total retail spending. By 2020, that number will increase to $4.058tr, accounting for 14.6 percent of all retail sales. As e-commerce growth continues to expand its share of retail sales, companies will need to increase capacity and equip their distribution centers and stores to efficiently handle more labor-intensive order profiles, whether for direct-to-consumer orders or store replenishment.

EBN—One minute, you’re enjoying the sweet sounds of music emanating from your wireless headphones.The next minute, your face burns as your ordinarily safe and reliable headphones explode in your ears.

It sounds improbable, but that’s exactly what happened to one young woman during a recent flight from Beijing to Melbourne. Safety officials say the lithium-ion batteries inside the headphones likely caught fire.

KPCC—The California legislature is expected to take action this week on a comprehensive plan to fund road repairs through an increase in the gas tax and other steps. But the state is also experimenting with a completely new way of raising money for highway maintenance: taxing consumers on how far they drive, rather than on how much gas they buy.

Material Handling & Logistics—Robots have long been maligned for job-snatching. Now you can add depressing wages and promoting inequality to your list of automation-related grievances.

Industrial robots cut into employment and pay for workers, based on a new analysis of local data stretching from 1990 to 2007. The change had the biggest impact on the lower half of the wage distribution, so it probably worsened America's wage gap. Today's economic research wrap also looks at labor market slack, student loan defaults in times of crisis, and where rates might be headed in coming years.

EBN—To achieve supply chain success, electronics OEMs need to think outside the traditional box. Of course, recruiting new hires and scouring the university for supply chain talent will always be part of the task. In light of the big gap between demand and supply of potnential hires, though, supply chain organizations need to add a variety of approaches to recruitment in order to ensure success.