Technology

CEO Update  Just as a conductor brings together a musical group into a cohesive performance, orchestration strategies keep your data, people and processes continually in sync. This powerful pairing of humans, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) provides an end‑to‑end, data‑driven view of your supply chain that boosts accuracy and improves efficiency. Adoption of new technology can be daunting for your ...

Executive Viewpoints BY ANNETTE DANEK‑AKEY, CHIEF SUPPLY CHAIN OFFICER, BARNES & NOBLE AND MEMBER OF THE MHI BOARD OF GOVERNORS It was the greatest compliment I’ve ever received. Our team was giving a tour to a group of customers when someone noticed that the material handling equipment went in and out through different buildings. They asked whether the building and ...

Feature BY MARY LOU JAY ISTOCK.COM/JAY YUNO No matter where or how you want to deploy AI in your company, there’s one element that is key to successful implementation: the quality of the data that you input into your AI models. “The path from AI’s potential to its inevitability for a company is paved with data. That’s an underlying capability ...

Feature Collaborative robots (cobots) and autonomous vehicles are increasingly finding a home in warehouses and distribution centers (DCs). The success of those deployments, however, is not assured. Industry experts shared six best practices that can help achieve an effective implementation. BY SARA PEARSON SPECTER ISTOCK.COM/ONURDONGEL Well entrenched in manufacturing processes, collaborative robots (cobots) and mobile autonomous vehicles (MAVs) have increasingly ...

Solutions Spotlight BY KATIE KUEHNER‑HEBERT Robotics for warehousing and distribution applications are increasingly leveraging artificial intelligence to be more efficient and effective, according to members of The Robotics Group (TRG) Industry Group of MHI. AI‑driven robotic solutions have played a pivotal role in expanding use cases far beyond the original manufacturing applications for robots that started more than 50 years ...

Feature Humanoid robots are poised to gain traction in warehousing and manufacturing. BY NICK FORTUNA The first humanoid robots for manufacturing plants and warehouses were “expensive,” “cumbersome,” “clunky” and “slow,” but newer versions promise to be much more versatile and effective, driving stronger adoption in the coming years, according to Dwight Klappich, vice president of research at Gartner. Klappich, a ...

Feature Utilizing AI to optimize inventory management, demand forecasting and route planning BY SHERYL S. JACKSON ISTOCK.COM/CHAYADA JEERATHEEPATANONT While most are generally aware of the potential benefits of AI for their organizations, the value of specific applications of AI for supply chains is less clear. Recent research by Accenture found that companies using generative AI, advanced machine learning and other ...

Lurking behind the real-time benefits of interconnected technologies and trading partners are the disruptive dangers posed by threat agents armed with ransomware as a service. BY CAROL MILLER, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, MHI Behold, the wonders of the digital, integrated supply chain! Real-time visibility through automated, connected access to information shared between suppliers, customers and third-party service providers and to data ...

Low Earth Orbit Satellites Offer Global Asset Tracking BY MARY LOU JAY Companies desiring greater visibility into their supply chains now have another option for tracking their goods. By using IoT sensors that communicate with low earth orbit (LEO) satellites, they can gain new insights into where their products are and the conditions under which they are traveling. IoT sensors ...

Is the lack of a clear business case preventing your operation from implementing automation? Use this guide to build a compelling justification. BY SARA PEARSON SPECTER Every year, MHI’s Annual Industry Report queries supply chain leaders on a multitude of topics surrounding their adoption and deployment of innovative technologies—including automation. Survey questions ascertain budgets, operational challenges, investment plans, obstacles to ...