Logistics - On the move

Are you stuck by or running from the "on time" bug surrounding the Railroad industry? Read on - this article might just be on time for you.

Continue reading "Railroads - Taking the "On-Time" Bug head on" »

Posted by James Wilson at 2:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I love the smell of diesel fuel in the morning!  Is this a famous movie line?  Is this from someone working at the fuel rack?  It is not from the shipper fuel procurement person who is seeing prices on the rise.  It is not from all of us who are watching the birth of new "democracies" in the Middle East that are causing the rise in prices.  However, it is an opportunity for all of us to save fuel by putting more trailer, container, bulk and boxcar loads on the railroads in North America.  Capacity is available on existing trains and there is capacity to add more trains and services.  This convergence of opportunity for shippers and the railroads is not one to be missed.

Continue reading "Railroads : Some Insights" »

Posted by James Wilson at 4:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

At a very high level - how do we get a shipping cost? While taking a dive in time, it seems that in the beginning there were predefined routes with fixed costs from origin to destination. But with growing needs of the customer things have changed. For example, some do not need the cargo as quick as others but would like a cost incentive, while there might be a segment that does not care about the cost but need a quick delivery. There are people who need a stretched time to bring in the shipment which in-turn needs a stretched cut-off period. There are numerous such needs which the shipping industry has beautifully catered to keep up with the "just in time" theme.

However we humans have no limits and so does the competition. I was thinking what else could be done in current situation where the requirement driven services are almost exhausted. Going by the basic human psychology that any reward, gift or opportunity that we get unexpected out of the blue gives us immense pleasure - makes me think the following:

Continue reading "What if your shipment is suddenly expedited?" »

Posted by Rajdeep Sarkar at 2:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Continue reading "Entry summary declaration - the latest buzz in the world of customs security - Part 2" »

Posted by Satish Kumar Sahoo at 3:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The mere usage of different modern technologies in warehouse might not produce the desired results. Belonging to the community of the creator of these technologies - humans, who make use of these technologies, can always find loopholes and can make use of it to achieve individual benefits defeating the very purpose of implementing the costly technologies. So effective use of the technology to make it definitely achieve what it is primarily intended to achieve becomes a necessity.  We will take here an example of usage of RF Technology in warehouses and determine how it can be effectively used.

Continue reading "Effective use of RF Technology in WMS - An example" »

Posted by Senthil Kumar Chockalingam at 4:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Recent Quarter results from Class I US Railroads are promising. The economy over the past two years has forced all industries, including Railroad, to squeeze the maximum out of their systems. Organizations were able to do this more efficiently on their core competencies. Could they have run some of their non-core departments more efficiently? 

Continue reading "Can Cloud help Railroad during Recession?" »

Posted by Deepak Ilango at 1:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Carriers and 3PL s are gearing up to meet the latest regulation in customs security measures - the Entry summary declaration from the European Union. This blog is the first in a two part series that looks into various aspects of this regulation and how it impacts the Logistics community.

Continue reading "Entry summary declaration - the latest buzz in the world of customs security - Part 1" »

Posted by Satish Kumar Sahoo at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The railroads are the canary in the recession coal mine. The canary is starting to breathe a little easier as per volumes announced by the Association of American Railroads. Let's take stock.

Continue reading "Railroads - a status check" »

Posted by James Wilson at 5:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

With the ever changing and increasing demands from consumer groups, businesses are now required to make the relevant data accessible beyond the normal confined areas of fixed infrastructure. With "on-the-go" becoming the trend of the normal ecosystem, there is now a growing trend to empower the workforce across the board by making data accessible on the move. Herein lays the concept of "Enterprise Mobility" which allows extension of enterprise systems to the workforce on move. Such mobility helps enterprises improve productivity, enhance revenue by improved customer experience and overall enhances the brand value and customer loyalty.

Continue reading "Railroads - Mobility for Agility" »

Posted by Prem Jaisinghani at 2:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Two of the most time consuming processes in the warehouse are picking and pack out process. They also account for the majority of the warehouse operating cost - Lets discuss some of the key aspects that should be considered to reduce cost and increase warehouse operations efficiency.

Continue reading "Improving Warehouse Operations Efficiency" »

Posted by Sainathsubramanian Ganesan at 6:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)