Features

2019 MHI Annual Conference Coverage

Annual Conference and Industry Group Sessions During these sessions, attendees heard from industry visionaries—including Pablos Holman, Jason Schenker, Peter Sheahan and Michael Bush—on topics ranging from technology, leadership, the economy and the workforce crisis. MHI Industry Group meetings and conference sessions gave attendees insights into the latest trends and digital technologies impacting our industry. Networking Events Attendees enjoyed a variety ...

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HIGHER EDUCATION: Digital Twins

Improving the Material Handling Industry Workforce through Digital Representations of Human-Based Operations * By Jesus A. Jimenez * This year, I was part of a group of professors who traveled to Europe to participate in what we designated as the “Industry 4.0 Tour.” We had one goal in mind: to find the latest developments in Industry 4.0. We visited several ...

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Industry Focus: Volatility, Ripple Effects Shaping Intermodal Trends

By its very definition, intermodal is a web of deeply connected functions. As one part is impacted, it often creates a ripple effect. Heading into 2020, though, intermodal trends have the added complexity of outside forces creating a lot of volatility. * By Sandy Smith * By its very definition, intermodal is a web of deeply connected functions. As one ...

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Supply Chains Are Finding a Market Full of Skilled, Next-Gen Talent. Why Can’t They Hire Them?

An Interview with Randy V. Bradley, Ph.D., CPHIMS, FHIMSS Associate Professor of Information Systems and Supply Chain Management, The University of Tennessee * By Carol Miller * For the past six years, MHI has produced our Annual Industry Report to present the findings of a comprehensive survey of industry leaders across manufacturing and distribution supply chains. Queried about current and ...

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Moving Through the Middle Mile

To truly understand e-commerce’s impact on supply chains, follow the movement of goods through the middle mile, e.g. from port to warehouse/DC, between warehouse and from warehouse to e-commerce storage areas. * By Mary Lou Jay * Last mile delivery is often the focus of discussions about e-commerce’s impact on supply chains. But movement of goods through the middle mile—from ...

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Partnering with a 3PL: Best Practices for a Successful Relationship

Learn some of the key ingredients needed as companies and their 3PL service providers define and create win-win partnerships, as well as how they measure success. * By Sara Pearson Specter * Engaging a third-party logistics (3PL) service provider for outsourced logistics and supply chain services has become a common practice among companies of all sizes. Indeed, research from 3PL ...

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It’s Faster and It’s Fancier. It’s The 2020 Supply Chain

These nine technological advances are reshaping supply chains, and allowing projects to be completed quicker and with a higher level of accuracy. * By Nick Fortuna * Autonomous Trucking Jason Gillespie is looking forward to a time when autonomous trucks can handle the lonely part of truck driving, the grinding long-haul trips that keep drivers away from their families and ...

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Freight Goes Digital

Fresh industry faces and sophisticated new tools are making automation a crucial piece of the freight brokerage field. * By Tom Gresham * Spurred on by innovative new industry players and the increasingly ambitious investments in technology by the field’s more traditional companies, freight brokerages have taken a major step toward more fully embracing the digital in their processes, leading ...

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