Modern Material Handling
Chinese export growth of manufactures, which went from a very high 19% in the first quarter of 2013 before decelerating to 3% in the second quarter, raises a number of intriguing questions, according to an analysis from the Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI).

 

In a report on the trade figures in manufactures for the first half of 2013, Ernest Preeg, Ph.D., MAPI senior advisor for international trade and finance, notes that U.S. exports were flat in the first quarter year-over-year and grew by only 2% in the second quarter.

Supply Management
The growth of e-commerce is causing a "headache" for the retail sector because it is sucking up supply chain professionals, according to a report. The Talent Spotlight, produced by recruiter Badenoch & Clark, said talent is "flocking" to e-commerce firms and leaving the wider retail sector with tough-to-fill vacancies.

 

The report shows supply chain and logistics vacancies increased by 19.5 per cent in July, compared with the month before, and by 67.5 per cent year-on-year.

Logistics Manager
Some logistics firms could be missing out on substantial tax breaks, with SMEs in the sector accounting for just one per cent of all SME claims on research and development tax relief.

 

According to figures from HMRC, only 135 claims for R&D tax relief were made by SMEs in the transport, storage and communications sector, with claims totalling around £5 million out of the £420 million claimed by SMEs in all sectors.

EBN
If you haven't yet gotten used to the idea that 3D printing is playing an important role in the supply chain, you'd better hurry up. 4D printing is about to change today's manufacturing by adding transformation capabilities to 3D-printed objects on an industrial scale.

 

Self-assembly, replication, self-repair, and self-adaptation will change design, and the creative process that gives life to components, giving birth to a new era in the manufacturing world. 3D printing will no longer be a component's end-of-life. On the contrary, it will be just the beginning.

Supply & Demand Chain Executive
Resilinc Corp., a provider of supply chain resiliency solutions, today announced that leading global supply chains have become dependent on the same small group of sub-tier suppliers—concentrating the risk and increasing the potential for crippling supply chain disruptions.

 

Additionally, because this sub-tier supplier concentration is occurring deeper in their global supply chains, many large organizations are not aware of the risks involved. As a result, they are not adequately prepared to mitigate those risks to ensure global supply resiliency.

MHI
MHI has announced the dates for ProMat 2015. ProMat 2015 will be held March 23-26, 2015 at Chicago's McCormick Place South.

 

ProMat 2015 will be the largest international material handling, logistics and supply chain show and conference held in North America. Over 800 exhibitors are expected to showcase their solutions on the 300,000 square foot ProMat 2015 show floor.

Material Handling & Logistics
One trillion dollars. That's roughly how much U.S. businesses spend every year on logistics. In fact, the actual amount spent in 2012 was $1.331 trillion, which was an increase of $43 billion from 2011 (a growth rate of 3.4%). To put that number into perspective, $1.3 trillion equals 8.5% of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP). While the U.S. economy may still be in a state of torpor, the amount spent on logistics in 2012 was the highest since 2008's $1.344, and the third highest ever.

 

As the recovery-that-doesn't-feel-like-a-recovery continues, it's time to ask if this is the new normal, says transportation analyst Rosalyn Wilson, author of the annual State of Logistics Report on behalf of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP), and presented by Penske Logistics. "We are experiencing a new order that is translating into the new way of life for the economy and the logistics and supply chain sectors for the foreseeable future," she adds.

EBN
The process to tie a mobile Web-based interface or application to your company's enterprise platform or suppliers' systems might seem daunting, but in the long run the move will prove invaluable.

 

Technology executives are the biggest buyers from a mobile device, with more than two-fifths reporting they use mobile to research transactions greater than $100,000, according to a Forbes Insights and Google survey of 511 executives.

Exchange
Are you responsible for managing a supply chain or transportation/distribution network? No doubt, reducing your carbon footprint is becoming a key supply chain management priority. You may be pursuing this goal in a number of ways.

 

Maybe your focus is on reducing energy consumption to cut costs. Improving energy efficiency in distribution centers. Or, adding fuel-efficient vehicles to your fleet to minimize environmental impact.

Supply Chain Brain
Drewry’s latest Container Leasing report shows that the world’s fleet of operationally leased containers grew annually by almost 11 percent throughout 2011-12, although a smaller 6.4 percent is being forecast for 2013, in line with the poorer global trade forecast.

 

The strong fleet increase of 2011-12 was evenly balanced between the two years, even though it did experience some fluctuation. Fleet expansion was unprecedented for the opening six months of 2011, when demand and pricing remained high, but subsequently slowed throughout the closing part of the year. This was due to a build-up of newbuild stocks, which subsequently curtailed further investment.

Packaging Strategies
A comprehensive systems approach is essential for effective decision making with regard to global sustainability because industrial, social, and ecological systems are closely linked. Despite efforts to reduce unsustainability, global resource consumption continues to grow.

 

There is an urgent need for a better understanding of the dynamic, adaptive behavior of complex systems and their resilience in the face of disruptions, recognizing that steady-state sustainability models are simplistic.

McKinsey Quarterly
It is not enough for global businesses to know that in coming years China’s economy will move away from an overreliance on investment and toward more consumption. They also must know that the potential costs and benefits of rebalancing the world’s second-largest economy are high and will affect industries not only domestically but also around the world.

 

The degree of impact depends largely on the policies that Beijing chooses to implement. While China’s leadership—under both President Xi Jinping and his predecessor, Hu Jintao—has made it clear that it understands the risks of rebalancing, the process won’t be easy. Companies must be ready.

Material Handling & Logistics
By 2018, more than one-third of respondents surveyed by Motorola (35 percent) plan to increase the number of warehouses and distribution centers they operate, representing a 71 percent increase from current expansion plans in action today. The Motorola Solutions Future of Warehousing Survey polled warehouse IT and operations professionals in the manufacturing, retail, wholesale and third-party logistics (3PL) markets on the state of warehousing today and their vision for warehousing and distribution in the future.

 

The most commonly cited reasons for the expansion of storage and distribution networks include a mix of cost-savings and revenue-growth initiatives such as, lower transportation costs (36 percent), shorter delivery times (35 percent), new suppliers and trading partner locations (31 percent) and heightened omni-channel pressures (11 percent). (See infographic showing survey results here.)