Packaging Becomes a Highly Desirable Trait Heading Forward

Packaging Becomes a Highly Desirable Trait Heading Forward

Package engineering has long been the least glamorous element of manufacturing. It isn’t as snazzy as marketing, is less glorious than production, and not seemingly as challenging as transportation. But package engineering is emerging as a sought after degree in business schools, and the impacts of smart package design go beyond purely functional, playing into…

Trends in Trucking Indicate Both Good and Bad News for the Future of the Economy

Trends in Trucking Indicate Both Good and Bad News for the Future of the Economy

According to the American Trucking Association, truck freight rose slightly (1.4 percent) during the month of August. This comes on the heels of a slight downturn in July (0.6 percent), but is the third month within the past four months that freight rose, which is a positive indicator. 

UPS Conducts Survey of UK Online Shoppers and Finds Some Interesting Trends
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UPS Conducts Survey of UK Online Shoppers and Finds Some Interesting Trends

The global package delivery giant UPS has concluded a survey of European online shoppers, and the results may be interesting to online retailers all over the world. As more consumers are willing to shop online, and fewer depend solely on brick and mortar stores for their businesses, it is important to know what online shoppers…

Clothing Makers Join Ranks of Manufacturers Returning to U.S. Soil

Clothing Makers Join Ranks of Manufacturers Returning to U.S. Soil

The trend toward bringing manufacturing jobs, which have moved toward cheaper labor pools in developing nations for decades, back to the U.S. to produce more American jobs and higher quality products is well underway. In the midst of this influx of new jobs lies the garment industry, where small to medium-sized clothing designers and manufacturers…

How Balford Farms Improved Order Accuracy

How Balford Farms Improved Order Accuracy

Ballard Farms is the oldest continually operating dairy distributer in the greater Philadelphia area, founded in 1891. It serves parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. with orders of milk, cream, ice cream, drinks, cheeses, and other gourmet foods. Their customers include restaurants, convenience stores, coffee retailers, frozen dessert retailers, and…

Even After Industry Improvements, U.S. Cargo Theft on the Rise
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Even After Industry Improvements, U.S. Cargo Theft on the Rise

Carriers have taken measures to try to improve security, including beefing up their technologies, internal processes, and employee training. Yet theft of cargo still continues to rise. During the three-month period between June and August of this year, cargo theft rose by five percent, while the value of the cargo stolen rose by nine percent….

Banks Tighten Requirements for Ship Owners’ Contracts, Threaten to Cancel Loans

Banks Tighten Requirements for Ship Owners’ Contracts, Threaten to Cancel Loans

Ship owners are having to be more careful about what companies they trade with, under threat from their banks to cancel loans when the owner enters contracts with companies the bank believes to be at risk of defaulting on contracts. This means shippers are having to settle for shorter term contracts with an increasingly smaller…

Shipping Profits Soar as Airline Cargo Industry Scales Back on Growth Estimates

Shipping Profits Soar as Airline Cargo Industry Scales Back on Growth Estimates

The news is bright for both shipping and air cargo, but shipping is seeing the lion’s share of profit growth, according to the latest reports. The International Air Transport Association revised their outlook for the global air cargo industry for 2013 down from $12.7 billion to $11.7 billion.

Cradle to Grave Approach to Supply Chain Management Can Reduce Costs, Eliminate Problems

Cradle to Grave Approach to Supply Chain Management Can Reduce Costs, Eliminate Problems

The very monotonous nature of the supply chain presents a unique opportunity for supply chain managers that few are aware of and even fewer use to their full advantage. Day after day, week after week, and year after year, companies go through the same processes of acquiring raw materials, shipping them to manufacturing facilities, turning…