Best Practices

The skills needed to do the supply chain job keep evolving. That’s not to say that the fundamentals learned in the classroom or in early job assignments are no longer relevant. Rather, they need to be revisited and reinvigorated within the context of today’s challenges. These are the “new basics” that supply chain managers must master.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration is projecting diesel fuel to average $4.09 this summer. Carrier bankruptcies and consolidations have reduced capacity, while demand has been increasing by almost 7% year over year, according to industry sources.

How does your IT team today determine your company’s current industrial wireless system needs and assess whether they are being met? When was the last time the wireless network at your industrial sites was upgraded or refreshed – does it lag behind the deployment of new mobile devices or applications?

Using Software to Enhance & Improve Your Supply Chain - Supply chain efficiency has forever been a mystery that C-level executives are inundated with deciphering - Advanced tools are needed to monitor and forecast results, providing executives with actionable business intelligence to ultimately reduce supply chain expenditures.

The decision of whether or not to locate manufacturing operations in the U.S. is still going to be unique to each business. However, there are several factors you should be aware of that might encourage you to join the on-shoring movement.

The supply chain discipline is replete with rules that most managers live by. But in certain cases, true innovation and breakthroughs come only when those conventional rules are broken. By clearly understanding the nature of the rules and the details of your supply chain, you can better determine where and when rule-breaking makes sense.

See the story of how HPs Security Analytics helped The University of Nottingham to gain a real understanding of the risks that this global University faces.

Want to improve your outsourcing efforts? This article unpacks the lessons of five “Big Thinkers” in the world of economics and shares how their insights can help improve your outsourcing.

“The Seven Principles of Supply Chain Management” provides a clear and compelling case for excellence in supply chain management, the insights provided here remain remarkably fresh even ten years after its original published date.

Intelligrated Kelly-Moore Paint Company Case Study - Alvey Robotic Palletizers help the 5th largest paint company in the US yield big dividends with a 76% return on investment in the first year.

Amazon continues to change the game for retailers. A few Christmases ago, they set the retail world on its backside with the introduction of free shipping – regardless of the fact that it costs Amazon, and everyone else, something to provide that service for free.

Cost management has taken on increasing importance in all aspects of the business. And in no part of the business is it any more critical than in procurement and sourcing activities. In this article, professor Wendy Tate of the University of Tennessee explains the principles and techniques that enable effective cost management as part of an overall strategic sourcing approach.

The concept of demand management includes demand sensing, demand shaping, demand translation, and demand orchestration throughout the value network.

ADS's cutting edge technology provides expert systems solutions implementation with complete materials handling equipment integration. ADS's in-house software specialists have designed a highly flexible system with robust tracking and waving capabilities.

Expert inventory management advice from our panel of 6 industry leaders—representing a combined 80 years of inventory experience; Curt Sardeson Open Sky Group, Aman Sapra, St. Onge Company, Dave Wheeler, St. Onge Company, Jennifer Sherman, Oracle, Michael Wohlwend, SAP Americas, and Chris Jones, Descartes.

LTL carriers are looking to squeeze profit out of better-managed margins and shippers will play a huge role in this movement. Here are four time-tested methodologies to help carriers ease shipments through their systems—and get the right rates and capacity.

As individuals climb the career ladder in supply chain management, what leadership skills are important? Advice and comments from from industry executives from Dow AgroSciences, Caterpillar, and General Motors.

There is broad agreement that inventory should be optimized to properly match demand. Yet achieving this continues to prove difficult for many companies. The insight and best practices offered here will help you understand the importance of sound inventory practices and put your inventory optimization initiative on a success track.