SupplyChainNetwork.com

From mmh.com: “Building an environmentally friendly distribution center isn’t as difficult or as costly as you might think. That’s according to Chris Joyce, manager of the new eastern region distribution center for the outdoor gear and clothing company REI. Joyce helped oversee the design and construction of the 525,000 square foot distribution center, which opened [...]

From SupplyChainStandard.com: ” Now there is a new tool available to help supply chain managers compare just how efficient their warehouse operations are. Working with the Institute for Materials Handling and Logistics Systems (IFL) of the University of Karlsruhe, McKinsey has developed the first comprehensive technique for performance measurement across all types of warehouse. The [...]

Somewhere in the back of my mind I guess I knew it would happen someday, but to be honest I hadn’t really thought that much about the potential of mobile robots being applied to materials handing applications in logistics operations. I’m not talking about stationary robots that might wrap, stack or invert pallets, those have [...]

From FT.com: “As companies start to examine the environmental footprint of their supply chains, attention has often focused on transport and logistics. But while the movement of products across the globe is one of the most visible signs of the contribution of supply chains to climate change, many organisations are starting to look for efficiencies [...]

One can’t turn around today without seeing the growing impact rising environmental consciousness is having on both consumer choices and by extension business practices. As companies become more environmentally astute, either through brute force of customer will or in combination with the leadership of key employees, all aspects of the business will be driven to [...]

From Slashdot: “”Every year, there’s some retailer whose e-commerce or supply chain fails. And it’s a big deal, since the holiday shopping season can make or break their year. The IT challenge encompasses everything from server scalability to supply chain management to search engine optimization to database cajoling to business integration to… well, come to [...]

The CSCMP’s 2007 Annual Conference wrapped up today here in Philadelphia after running from from Oct 21st to 24th at the Philadelphia Convention Center. There were somewhere north of 3,380 people attending and it was again one of the largest gatherings of logistics and supply chain practitioners on the face of the planet. At the [...]

From Computer Weekly: “LSUK, a leading UK autoparts supplier, is improving its supply chain with a new distribution system from Infor. LSUK expects the new 250-user system across 53 branches to pay for itself within 18 months. LSUK has deployed Infor Distribution Essentials after replacing its 17-year-old trade counter, workshop and back-office IT system.” Autoparts [...]

From RFIDJournal: “Portuguese fashion retailer Throttleman has reduced the time items spend in the supply chain by five to seven days with the use of an RFID system. The solution, provided by systems integrator Creativesystems, and including hardware from Tagsys and Avery Dennison’s Paxar division, allows Throttleman to quickly identify items as they arrive from [...]

Everyday the number of facilities in the world’s supply chains with deployed 802.11 WiFi networks continues to grow. This is especially true in the case of retail stores which have become a hotbed for such deployments. So what’s to stop the determined logistics and supply chain professional from leveraging this infrasructure to faciliate supply chain [...]

From MMH: “Before the first unit was sold, Apple’s iPhone was judged a triumph of design and functionality, not to mention the cool factor. As with other hot consumer electronic products—think the Xbox, PlayStation 3 and the Wii—analysts expected big shortages when the phones finally went on sale a few weeks ago. But according to [...]

From Yahoo.com: “The large and growing installed base of Wi-Fi equipment means new opportunities for using Wi-Fi in unorthodox ways. One of the most interesting is the growing trend towards using Wi-Fi to provide real-time location services (RTLS) for asset management, security, and work-in-progress tracking, which have traditionally been the province of proprietary RFID solutions.” [...]

The more I investigate and learn about Radio Frequency Identification technology, the more I believe that it truly is the “missing link” when it comes to management of the world’s supply chains. In 1985 the concept of Quick Response (QR) was developed as a full cycle cross company integrated logistics and replenishment model with potential [...]

Software for your Supply Chain Network So after reading last week’s article Setting Up Your SCN Infrastructure – Part 1, Hardware, you’ve now got your readers and other required infrastructure in place and are ready now to install software, the digital glue which will hold your supply chain network together. Now, in this case we [...]

Distribution Centre Hardware So you’ve built the informational foundation for your supply chain network utilizing global data synchronization for all the products that will move through your operations. Now, the next step is to determine the appropriate infrastructure required for your supply chain network and then deploy, calibrate and implement it. The infrastructure for your [...]

Two of the hottest topics in logistics and supply chain management these days are RFID and the environment. By creating Triple E Logistics facilities you can advance both of these causes simultaneously, rapidly and cost effectively. So what is a Triple E logistics facility you may ask? A Triple E logistics facility is a building [...]

In my always humble opinion, the “L” in logistics stands for location. Many of the uninitiated think that to do logistics all you need is a warehouse, some inventory as well as the right people, equipment and systems to handle it. See the Zen Art of Logistics and Party Planning to learn more. Well, as [...]

Introducing PACex International’s 2007 Conference Series New for 2007, the PACex International conference series now runs concurrently with the trade show offering two sessions each day at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Get a jump on the competition and gain valuable information on the latest trends and issues affecting the Packaging, Food Process, and Material [...]