July, 2018

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Be Careful What You Ask For

Supply Chain Shaman

Companies asked for integrated supply chain planning. They got it. It does not work so well. Now what? Sharing A Story. Last week, I met a client for breakfast in Frankfurt. Let’s call her Sally. As a leader of a global supply chain organization, her goal was simple. She was trying to define and drive supply chain excellence. In the last year, she worked with three consulting companies.

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If you can measure it then you can manage it

Claritum

Claritum Article - Procurement Blog. Contents. 1. Introduction. 2. The Challenge of Tail Spend. 3. An approach to Tail Spend Analytics. 4. Benefits of better Analytics. 5. Conclusion. 6. Further reading. 1 Introduction. “If you can measure it then you can manage it” This statement is so true in the procurement field. Whether you are focused on controlled growth or cost efficiencies, the ability to measure what is occurring in real time is essential to making decisions.

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Making Manufacturing Fun for Future Generations of Workers

Enterra Insights

Most people have heard the term Industry 4.0 which refers to the next industrial revolution. The revolution is being triggered by technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and additive manufacturing (aka 3D printing). Industry 4.0 is predicted to make manufacturing more efficient and effective and to eliminate many manufacturing jobs.

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Tour de Supply Chain

All Things Supply Chain

Cycling becomes even more popular during the summer months and the 105th edition of the Tour de France, which this year takes place from July 7 to July 29, adds…

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The 2025 Annual ProcureCon CPO Report

Procurement leaders are at a pivotal moment. With CPOs playing an increasingly strategic role, it’s time to leverage innovation and technology to drive resilience and efficiency. Download The 2025 Annual ProcureCon CPO Report to uncover key insights to thrive in a dynamic procurement landscape. What’s Inside: How CPOs are driving strategic decision-making and technology adoption The top priorities and challenges for procurement in 2025 Why AI, sustainability, and data analytics are essential for

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Shake, Rattle, and Roll: Time for Another Look at Capacity Planning?

River Logic

Global Growth. NAFTA negotiations. Trade wars. Trucking crisis. Fuel price increases. As events continue to shake and rattle the growing economy, is now the best time to take another look at your company’s capacity planning?

More Trending

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The sharing economy: An effective model for supply chain management?

Kinaxis

by Emily Hunt The sharing economy involves buying and selling temporary access to goods or services, usually arranged through an online platform. It is inevitably becoming a major source of revenue in today’s global economy, led by the likes of Uber and Airbnb. By using new digital platforms, the sharing economy has created an effective business model for the utilization of goods and availability of services.

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Decoding the Language of Demand

ToolsGroup

If you’ve been in supply chain for any length time, you might be wondering what caused demand forecasting to develop so many different ‘personalities’ over the years. Demand forecasting, planning, sensing, shaping…what’s going on? It’s easy to ignore all these as buzzwords, but that would be overlooking the genuine progress that has taken place over the past several decades.

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Innovating Production and Supply Networks to Increase Value from New Product Introductions

Logistics Viewpoints

Product and service innovation, driven by digital technologies, is key to gaining extra value from new product introductions. One particularly interesting development is the emergence of modular plants. Forecasting a NPI can be very difficult. Modular plants help companies to scale economically. The post Innovating Production and Supply Networks to Increase Value from New Product Introductions appeared first on Logistics Viewpoints.

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Advanced analytics meets social good: how Angel Flight West optimizes flight routes for families in need

AIMMS

There are many great examples where advanced analytics have contributed to social good. North Star Alliance , for instance, uses optimization to find optimal locations for its mobile HIV-AIDS clinics in Africa. The Dutch Delta Program Commissioner used analytics to prevent flooding and was recognized with the 2013 Edelman Award. Most recently, we encountered Angel Flight West , a non-profit organization that is using AIMMS-based optimization to plan flights for families in need.

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Enterprise ABM Marketing Tools: A Marketers Guide

Savvy B2B marketers know that a great account-based marketing (ABM) strategy leads to higher ROI and sustainable growth. In this guide, we’ll cover: What makes for a successful ABM strategy? What are the key elements and capabilities of ABM that can make a real difference? How is AI changing workflows and driving functionality? This Martech Intelligence Report on Enterprise Account-Based Marketing examines the state of ABM in 2024 and what to consider when implementing ABM software.

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Takeaways from the IBM Watson Supply Chain Summit

Talking Logistics

I haven’t attended an industry conference over the past year, or participated in a client meeting, where blockchain — along with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning — hasn’t been part of the conversation. In fact, at one conference this spring, after delivering a keynote presentation that had nothing to do with technology, the very first question I received from the audience was “What do you think about blockchain and its potential in supply chain management?”.

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Why Blockchain in the Supply Chain Is an Absolute Game Changer

GlobalTranz

The application of blockchain in the supply chain is among the greatest innovations to take root in the shipping industry. Application of blockchain holds promises to increase visibility, renew viability, reduce inconsistency, increase payment processing accuracy, and eliminate compliance problems. Even though the technology is still new, its potential cannot be ignored, and supply chain executives need to know why.

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Celebrating and Encouraging Women in Supply Chain

Kinaxis

by Mike McAllister By APICS CEO Abe Eshkenazi, CSCP, CPA, CAE. This article was originally published on apics.org, and is repubished with permission. Since 2012, The Manufacturing Institute has celebrated women in manufacturing with its STEP (Science, Technology, Engineering and Production) Ahead Awards, which recognize women in manufacturing who exemplify leadership within their companies.

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Here come the Response Networks

ToolsGroup

As competition heats up to meet consumer fulfillment expectations, the analyst community has worked to define a supply chain model that can dynamically and rapidly respond to changing market needs, sometimes called "Response Networks". Gartner calls their version “ Respond Planning ”. Supply Chain Insights (Lora Cecere’s firm) calls it “Networks of Networks”.

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The Evolving Retailers Fulfillment Strategy: Meeting Demands with Agility

Speaker: Becky Parisotto and John Vurdelja

Fulfillment is no longer just about getting products from point A to point B – it's about crafting seamless, scalable, customer first experiences. Flexible fulfillment strategies are more important than ever for those aiming to stay ahead and build resilience as retail enters a new era in 2025. Learn how to optimize fulfillment processes, tackle complex, multi-vendor orders, and create seamless customer experiences – from white-glove delivery for high-value items to quick-ship solutions for ever

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Robots for eCommerce Fulfillment

Logistics Viewpoints

For robots in eCommerce fulfillment, last year was the year of pilots. This year customers are willing to publicly speak about the benefits they got from eCommerce robots at eft’s 3PL & Supply Chain Summit in Atlanta. The post Robots for eCommerce Fulfillment appeared first on Logistics Viewpoints.

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IKEA supply chain: How does IKEA manage its inventory?

TradeGecko

The world’s largest home furnishing retailer has 355 stores in 29 countries. What are the best-kept secrets behind IKEA’s supply chain management processes?

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IoT Speeds Over-the-Road Shipment Tracking

Talking Logistics

If you’re a global supply chain executive, you’ve got a challenging job. A job that was once as simple as moving goods around now involves managing relationships with suppliers and service providers all around the globe, while also keeping track of the goods as your shipments move closer to their destination. According to a 2017 Michigan State University Supply Chain Management study , “supply chain and product complexity possess a number of sources that vex supply chain operations…customer acco

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The Hurdles & Current Challenges of Using Blockchain in Supply Chain & Logistics

GlobalTranz

Although using blockchain in supply chain and logistics is an exciting prospect, the technology lacks the maturity necessary to enable global deployment today. Such limitation can be discouraging, but it serves as a beacon of hope for a better future in supply chain management. To unlock the true value of using blockchain in supply chain and logistics management, shippers should consider its existing hurdles and possible challenges as the technology matures.

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4 Ways To Drive Supply Chain Excellence in the Food Industry

The Supplier Relationship Management Playbook is your guide to building effective supplier partnerships that drive supply chain excellence. This playbook equips supply chain professionals with strategies for managing compliance, tracking performance, and fostering collaboration to reduce supply chain risks. Inside, you’ll find: Strategies for Compliance: Best practices to help meet regulatory standards.

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How demand planning can quench our thirst for beer

Kinaxis

by Mike McAllister World Cup and hot summer combine to create beer bottle shortage for German brewers. On the heels of a carbon dioxide (CO2) shortage in the UK that caused some breweries to ration beer production , Germany’s long, hot summer and the revelry surrounding the World Cup have combined with suboptimal demand forecasting to create a significant shortage of beer bottles , causing breweries large and small to plea to customers to return their empties.

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Supply Chain Resiliency - Top to Bottom

ToolsGroup

There is an increased focus on being prepared for supply chain risks such as digital threats, product traceability issues, and now the potential impact of a trade war. Coping with these risks necessitates matching supply chain resiliency to both the bottom and top layers of the Gartner “CORE” supply chain planning model. Gartner defines four types of supply chain risk (see chart above) depending on frequency and impact.

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No Driver Working Today Will Need to Change Careers Because of Autonomous Trucks

Logistics Viewpoints

Mike Reid, the Chief Operating Officer at Embark Trucks, said that “Anyone employed as a driver today will be able to retire as a driver.” What makes that statement surprising is that Embark is a leading developer of autonomous trucks. One might think that the goal of an autonomous truck company is to render drivers superfluous. The post No Driver Working Today Will Need to Change Careers Because of Autonomous Trucks appeared first on Logistics Viewpoints.

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What’s the key to higher profits in meat processing?

DELMIA Quintiq

The meat processing business is on an upswing, with companies from Poland to Australia expanding their facilities to cope with rising demand. Extra capacity is always welcome, but the challenge remains – how does a company ensure maximized usage of resources and raw materials? In an industry characterized by high volumes and low margins, every cent counts.

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Freight Procurement Simplified: Bids from Hours to Minutes

Speaker: Eric Berdinis, Ran Sun, & Chris Chmielewski

Procuring freight can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and error-prone. If you’re frustrated with the complex and manual processes for obtaining bids for your contract and spot freight, you’re not alone. In today’s fast-moving supply chain environment, optimizing these processes is critical to staying competitive and cutting costs. Join this exclusive webinar with experts from Uber Freight to learn how the latest digital tools and automation can transform your freight procurement strategy by strea

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Blockchain for Logistics: Preparing for the Opportunities

Talking Logistics

Without a doubt, blockchain is currently the most talked-about new technology — it’s also the most confusing, especially for supply chain and logistics professionals who are trying to understand its potential role and benefits. What are some of the potential use cases for blockchain in logistics? What are the main barriers to adoption? What should companies do today to adequately prepare?

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[PODCAST] Why Using Logistics & Transportation Technology is Vital to Gain “Shipper of Choice” in Any Capacity Crunch

GlobalTranz

Cerasis brings you another episode of “The Freight Project Podcast!” Remember, you can catch every episode of “The Freight Project Podcast” by going over to the Podcast section of “ The Freight Institute !” You can also subscribe and find this podcast on Apple iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Soundcloud , YouTube , and iHeartRadio!

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Indiana Jones and the supply chain bullwhip effect

Kinaxis

by Joe Cannata According to the European Journal of Operational Research , the term ‘bullwhip effect’ was first coined by Procter & Gamble (P&G) in the 1990s in reference to the order variance amplification phenomenon observed between P&G and its suppliers.”. A small shift in customer demand essentially cracks the whip, and the further a supplier is from the demand, the more significant the impact, which inevitably leads to increasing swings in inventory for suppliers.

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How a changed business model initiated a new supply chain planning approach

ToolsGroup

T he telecom provider business model was traditionally about delivering networked voice and data to homes and businesses, therefore not necessitating strong supply chain planning. But that has changed in the last decade due to the rapid growth of smartphones. The following is how a few telecom providers learned to react to the change, adopting a more aggressive approach to supply chain planning, and breaking through their supply chain and business performance barriers.

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The 25 Types of Innovation Dominating R&D Today

Innovation varies widely across sectors and organizations, creating value in diverse forms. Understanding different types is crucial for R&D teams to foster creativity and uncover missed opportunities. This guide explores 25 key types of innovation in management frameworks.

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Using Big Data to Improve Your Supply Chain

Logistics Viewpoints

The term “big data” has been one of the hottest buzzwords over the last couple of years, and that’s not a big surprise. Statistical science and data analytics can help organizations (of any size and type) obtain historical measurements and generate actionable information that increases supply chain visibility, drives operational efficiency and supports overall growth.

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Process Chemicals — A Complex Supply Chain in Motion

Logility

On a recent road trip to retrieve my daughter from college I drove past a handful for chemical manufacturing plants of various types. Viewing a chemical manufacturing plant from a distance everything seems so peaceful and static. A chemical plant is a complex and expensive array of storage tanks, pipes, controls and special chemical or biological transformation and/or separation equipment to take raw materials and create new value-added materials.

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Digital Supply Chain: Where Can You Find Value?

Talking Logistics

There’s a lot of talk these days about the digital supply chain, including what it means and why it’s important. Two questions that always seem to come up in these discussions are “What’s the value of digitization?” and “What’s the business case for it?” I explored these and other related questions with Gary Barraco, Director of Global Product Marketing at Amber Road , in a recent episode of Talking Logistics.