Current Features

The 2026 MHI Annual Industry Report findings underscore that supply chains can no longer evolve incrementally. To compete in an era defined by volatility, organizations must integrate artificial intelligence, automation and workforce strategy into a cohesive, scalable operating model. BY CAROL MILLER, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, MHI WITH THE RAPID emergence of artificial intelligence (AI), supply chain leaders have arrived at ...

The 14th Annual MHI Innovation Awards recognized transformational technologies across four categories at MODEX 2026. BY GREG BAER, MHI, VP OF SALES OUT OF THE thousands of supply chain and material handling solutions on display at the Georgia World Congress Center during MODEX 2026, just four earned top honors through the MHI Innovation Awards. Selected from a competitive field of ...

Supply chains are becoming more automated and complex as artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates the pace of change, but pressing workforce challenges—including a massive skills gap, chronic labor shortages and high turnover among frontline workers—threaten to limit the benefits of innovation. AI may be exacerbating those challenges, but experts say it will also be the key to solving them. BY DAVID ...

BY MARY LOU JAY HYEJINKANG/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM AI, AUTOMATION AND RELATED technologies are changing the way that people work today and altering the approach that organizations are taking to determine their future workforce needs. “Traditional operational workforce planning is focused on filling headcount and managing short-term staffing needs, as well as on the ability to run the organization in the current environment,” ...

Fulfillment networks are steadily evolving in three noticeable ways. BY CHRIS LEWIS ISTOCK.COM/ARTEMISDIANA MAKE NO MISTAKE about it. When it comes to micro‑fulfillment and omnichannel strategies, a variety of shifts are occurring. In fact, many—if not most—of these shifts will continue well beyond 2026. Why? Simply put, companies are striving to meet their customers’ ever‑rising expectations. Yet, at the same ...

BY TOM GRESHAM ISTOCK.COM/NVS NO INDUSTRY IS closer to the ultimate end‑user than the consumer goods industry. “They have a real finger on the pulse of what the consumer wants and needs and uses every day,” Tom Madrecki, vice president of supply chain and logistics for the Consumer Brands Association, said. The consumer goods industry encompasses all products bought by ...

The event was held April 13‑16 in Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center MODEX, THE LARGEST event for manufacturing and supply chain professionals in 2026, concluded its most successful edition to date, breaking records for attendance, exhibition and global participation. The 2026 event, sponsored by MHI, welcomed 50,000 registered visitors from every U.S. state and 132 countries, alongside 1,057 ...

BY JASON SCHENKER, PRESIDENT, PRESTIGE ECONOMICS; CHAIRMAN, THE FUTURIST INSTITUTE; AUTHOR, “COLD WAR TWO”   ENERGY PRICES ARE significantly exposed to Cold War Two risks. The key takeaway for manufacturing and supply chain professionals is that the companies that insulated themselves by reducing their reliance on hydrocarbons ahead of the conflict with Iran to meet sustainability goals are poised to ...

Member Stories: How Changing MHI Event Demographics Are Shaping Exhibitor Strategy BY CHRISTY DULA, CHIEF EXPERIENCE OFFICER AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, MHI WALK THE AISLES at any recent ProMat and MODEX, and one thing is immediately clear: the audience is changing. Exhibitors are engaging with a more diverse mix of attendees than ever before—from first‑time visitors and early‑career professionals to ...

From early‑career apprenticeships to mid‑career transitions, companies are rethinking how talent enters—and stays in—the industry. BY MICHAEL MIKITKA, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE MHI KNOWLEDGE CENTER AND WERC DIVISION AS THE MATERIAL handling and supply chain industry continues to grapple with persistent labor shortages, a growing number of companies are rethinking a long‑held assumption: that talent must be sourced externally. ...