When you have to manage nine facilities and 230
carriers, a manual, spreadsheet operation doesn’t
allow the proper documentation, can’t optimize
invoice audits, and lets transportation providers pad
their pricing.An interview with Max Beach,Contract
Administration and Logistics Manager, Northwest
Pipe Company.
Role of Logistics Providers in Transformation
of Supply Chain
Roddy Martin, Senior Vice President of Research,
AMR Research;May 5, 2009
Logistics service providers truly can enhance the
value of your company. But the LSP’s journey from
being “the trucking guys in your business” to strate-
gic supply chain partners offering panoply of serv-
ices and managing outside contractors should be
better understood.An interview with Roddy Martin,
Senior Vice President of Research,AMR Research.
Navistar Parts and Its Lean Journey Challenge
Nate Jolliff, Dir., Worldwide Log.& Lean Oper. Sup-
port, Navistar Parts Group;May 5, 2009
You learn that change is inevitable, but growth is
optional when you begin a lean initiative. Resistance
often is great, and it has to be overcome if you’re
going to“focus the operation forward.”An interview
with Nate Jolliff, Director, Worldwide Logistics and
Lean Operations Support,Navistar Parts Group.
Lean and Green: More than a Catch Phrase
Stephen Dean, Senior Vice President, Sales and
Marketing, Ryder System;April 6, 2009
‘Lean and green’is a catchy way to describe initia-
tives that reduce both costs and greenhouse gases,
but Stephen Dean, senior vice president of sales and
marketing at Ryder System, sees it as something
more. Proven lean processes, like value stream map-
ping, can be broadened to incorporate green met-
rics, he says, enabling companies to establish and hit
measurable goals.
New Environmental Activism in Washington
Glen Kedzie, Vice President & Assistant General
Counsel, American Trucking Assn.;April 6, 2009
New pro-active leaders at the Environmental Protection Agency are ready to take on greenhouse gas regulations, says Glen Kedzie, vice president and
assistant general counsel at the American Trucking
Associations. Kedzie explains what the industry can
expect in terms of regulatory activity from the
Obama administration and a Democrat-controlled
Congress and details steps that ATA is taking to stay
ahead of the curve.
Norfolk Southern Leverages Rail’s Green Advantage
Blair Wimbush, Corporate Sustainability Officer,
Norfolk Southern;April 6, 2009
The inherent environmental advantage of rail freight
transportation has helped Norfolk Southern forge
public-private partnerships with state governments
to upgrade tunnels and bridges on older rail corri-
dors, enabling these corridors to move efficient dou-
ble-stack trains. Blair Wimbush, corporate
sustainability officer at NS, explains why such part-
nerships hold great promise for the future.
Virginia’s Inland Port—A Bit Closer to the Customer
Russell Held, Deputy Executive Director of Devel-opment,Virginia Port Authority;April 1, 2009
For 20 years, the Port of Virginia has operated a
short-haul rail line running from 220 miles from
Norfolk to the Port Royal,Va., area. The authority
feels that a new cross-dock development there
will be attractive to shippers and transportation
specialists in Maryland, Pennsylvania and the
Ohio Valley.
What Makes Industrial Site Selection a Success?
Raymond Walker, President, Walker Compa-
nies;April 1, 2009
The best industrial real estate deal has very lit-
tle to do with real estate. Instead, it’s about
gaining incentives, tax abatement, negotiating
the transaction, putting together a bid pack-
age, and design and build-out. It’s about value
creation.
Improving Transportation Performance in Retail
Peter Ward, Director of Supply Chain Solutions,
Hitachi Consulting;April 1, 2009
You need a transportation management sys-
tem.And if you have one already, you probably
need a better one. That’s because advances in
optimization, visibility and reporting allow a
top-grade TMS to enable better business
processes.
Navigating Tomorrow’s Panama Canal Today
Alberto Aleman Zubieta, Chief Executive Officer,
Panama Canal Authority;April 1, 2009
New locks mean greater freedom for bigger
ships, their cargo and the maritime industry. The
trades will be dramatically affected by the
canal’s expansion, planned for completion in
just a few short years.
An FTZ May Be in Your Future. Or Not.
Curtis Spencer, President, IMS Worldwide;April
1, 2009
Legislative changes in 2000 and 2005 make it
highly beneficial for some companies to import
through a foreign trade zone. But is an FTZ right
for every company? And should every location in
the country have its own F TZ? An interview with
Curtis Spencer, President, IMS Worldwide.
Non-Asset-Based Service Providers, Cost
Containment and IT
John O’Connor, Vice President, Strategic Devel-
opment, JAS Forwarding Inc.;March 27, 2009
Declining international trade volumes have
forced a shift in shippers’thinking, from the
added value that providers can give to how they
can help control costs. In such an atmosphere,
customers demand that service providers invest
in the information technology that will increase
visibility, and improve collaboration, inventory
management and transportation.
The Fate of Freight: An Outlook for the
Next Two Years
John Barnes, Managing Director, BB& T Capital
Markets;March 27, 2009
John Barnes, managing director of BB&T Capi-
tal Markets, offers his outlook for transporta-
tion supply, demand and fuel prices in the
coming year. He also talks about how economic
recovery could raise the cost to shippers of
moving freight.
Steamship Industry Challenges and Why
‘Nearshoring’ Won’t Work
Peter Keller, President, NYK Line;March 26, 2009
The current economic downturn is the worst
for ocean transportation in at least 40 years, but
the interconnected nature of trade guarantees
that the long-term prospects for recovery are
very strong. Growth of four to six percent is not
out of the question. In the meantime, while
extended supply chains are problematic,“the
idea that Americans are again going to sew and
make toys is silliness.”
‘Intransito’—The Heart of Mexican Freight
Transportation
Michael P. Gamel, Chairman of the Board, Mex-
press Transportation;March 26, 2009
Despite significant infrastructure investment at
Laredo and other U.S.-Mexico border crossings,
congestion remains heavy. In part, that’s due to
the laborious customs clearance process. The
‘Intransito’program allows trucks to make in-
bound deliveries directly to inland airports, deep
in the heart of the country, where clearance
paperwork is expedited.
How to Make Your Logistics Network Truly Cus-
tomer-Oriented
Scott Keller, Associate Professor of Logistics, Univer-
sity of West Florida;March 26, 2009
What does it mean to be “internally customer-
oriented”? Scott Keller, associate professor of
logistics at the University of West Florida, offers
some pointers on how companies can improve
worker efficiency, morale and dedication to the
entire process.
The State of U.S. Infrastructure—and A Strategy
for Rescue
Doug Duncan, President and CEO, FEDEX Freight;
March 11, 2009
Doug Duncan, president and chief executive
officer of FedEx Freight, gives his perspective on
the major factors that will impact global supply
chains in the coming year. He also talks about the
need for a new way of viewing the U.S.trans-
portation network.
What Fuel Cost Volatility Means to Transportation
and the Economy
Igor Rodriguez, Procurement Professional, Global
Logistics, IBM;March 11, 2009
Igor Rodriguez, procurement professional in
global logistics with IBM, talks about how Big
Blue copes with volatility in fuel prices. He
offers some tips on how companies can incor-
porate fuel into their strategic planning and pro-
curement programs—and how they can benefit
when prices go down.
An Expanding Panama Canal Makes Waves in
U.S. Transportation
Dr. Luka Powanga, Professor, School of Manage-
ment, Regis University, Denver;March 11, 2009
The U.S. transportation network is ill prepared
for the widening of the Panama Canal, scheduled
to be completed by 2014. The enlarged canal
will significantly increase the number of vessels
with capacity of 5,000 TEUs or greater that call
Gulf Coast and East Coast ports. Few of them are
