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Month: December 2024

The Supply Chain in 2025: Trends and Challenges

Posted on by Keith McKinley

2024 was a complicated year for the supply chain; from disruptions to shipping on the Red Sea through to rail strikes, port closures and announced changes to trade tariffs by the leading economic power internationally, the challenges to unhindered trade were many and diverse. So what’s in store for 2025? Simon Thompson (pictured), VP Northern Europe at JAGGAER, delves into a dozen major trends.

1. Cost Savings
Cost management and achieving savings remain a top concern for businesses worldwide. Investments in AI-driven analytics will enable businesses to identify cost-saving opportunities across the supply chain by identifying inefficiencies, optimizing supplier performance, and negotiating better contract terms — ultimately enhancing the bottom line without compromising quality.

2. Risk Management
2024 was a complex year for supply chains globally. It saw disruptions caused by Houthi attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, Canadian rail strikes and the closure of Ningbo Port in China due to a container explosion on the YM Mobility to name a few. Whether geopolitical, economic, or environmental, the vulnerabilities of the supply chain have been evident and savvy businesses have made moves to derisk their operations. Using technology and data to improve transparency and communications all along the chain, it is in fact possible to prevent bottlenecks and rapidly identify alternative routes or suppliers.

3. AI and data quality
It’s becoming a mantra that AI is only as good as the data it uses. As businesses leverage AI automation to make processes more efficient, sourcing error-free timely data from across the supply chain can be a thankless task for both suppliers, inputting information, and buyers, analysing it without automation. As effective AI increases the demand for large volumes of high-quality data with transparent and traceable data sources, it will become crucial to leverage automation to drive efficiency.

4. Blockchain Technology
Blockchain technology is expected to play a crucial role in making supply chains more transparent and traceable. With its decentralized ledger system, blockchain offers unparalleled data integrity, making it easier to track the provenance of goods and ensure compliance with ethical and environmental standards. Although this technology is still at an early stage, we can expect the debate to heat up around blockchain in 2025.

5. Cybersecurity
More use of technology, however, also means more exposure to cyber threats. As businesses place more and more of their data and systems on the cloud, it is becoming more and more complex to protect sensitive customer data as mandated by international regulations. Investing in systems and governance to protect the business across all its international operations is key.

6. Regulatory Compliance
Greater consumer awareness of sustainability and ethical issues along the supply chain, in addition to calls for greater user safety and quality, are driving increasing scrutiny from regulators. The EU Deforestation Act 2023/1115 and the US Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (H.R. 6256) are just two examples of regulations concerning the supply chain. Organizations must stay ahead of the curve by setting up systems to proactively and simply assess their suppliers along the chain to ensure ethical sourcing, anti-corruption measures, and environmental responsibility.

7. Scope 3
As businesses strive to achieve their sustainability goals, Scope 3 emissions — those indirectly resulting from the supply chain — are increasingly coming under scrutiny as they typically account for the majority of carbon footprint. Improving communication channels with suppliers and gathering information regarding their eco-friendly practices, responsible sourcing of raw materials, and reduced energy consumption, is key to ensuring that Scope 3 emissions are curbed. Shifting the focus from cost cutting to creating partnerships for sustainability is key to creating greater transparency and flexibility as well as an environment that fosters sustainable innovation along the supply chain.

8. Supplier relationship management
More resilient supply chains depend on better collaboration between parties. Stronger partnerships are created through transparent communication channels that make transmitting key information on certifications, potential bottlenecks, low stock or by provisioning difficulties in real-time without overburdening the supplier with an enormous admin onus. Providing seamless and streamlined systems to expedite information sharing can create the ideal environment to develop new strategies such as new shipping routes, new raw or component product suppliers or even co-investment in new technologies and innovation to improve end products.

9. Nearshoring, Reshoring
As the new United States president steps into his role on 20th January, the world will be holding its breath to find out whether the tariff increases threatened on international trade will take effect. With Chinese products risking “an additional 10% tariff, above any additional tariffs”, Mexico and Canada an increase to 25% and EU businesses anything between 10% and 20%, it is likely US businesses will be increasingly sourcing from national providers. Closer to home alternatives, such as sourcing from Mexico would shorten the supply chain and enhance control over logistics, as well as reducing environmental impact by reducing the distance goods travel.

10. Sourcing from Emerging Markets
Finally, another strategy to respond to tariff will be sourcing from emerging markets. This strategy, useful to help diversify and thus risk-proof the supply chain, can also benefit sustainability provided regions with lower carbon footprints or renewable energy sources are selected.

Conclusion

The global supply chain has been put under significant pressure in 2024, and response has highlighted vulnerabilities as well as ideal pathways to resilience. Technologies and strategies taking the lead in 2025 will build on these as businesses continue to bolster their supply chain against volatility and disruptions, while strengthening areas of potential exposure with increased intelligence derived from greater transparency along the entire supply chain.

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Driving Digital Transformation for Cargo

Posted on by David Priestman

At cargo-partner, a group company of NIPPON EXPRESS HOLDINGS, INC., digitalization is key to shaping the future of logistics and enhancing the customer experience. The company has made significant strides in recent years by integrating advanced digital platforms and data management systems across its organization. Central to this digital transformation is the expertise of cargo-partner’s IT leadership, with women leaders playing an instrumental role in driving these innovations.

Streamlining Logistics Processes

cargo-partner’s commitment to customer-centric digital solutions is evident in its recent developments in IT systems and platforms. “We’ve always aimed to streamline processes and improve efficiency to deliver the best possible experience for our customers,” said Nadezhda Hauer, Head of Business Intelligence & Advanced Analytics at cargo-partner. “One of our key milestones has been the implementation of CargoWise across all global locations. This, alongside our proprietary supply chain management platform, SPOT, has enabled us to integrate data across systems and external data sources, giving our customers faster, more transparent services and better control over their shipments.”

Maximizing Customer Value with Salesforce Integration

But CargoWise is just one aspect of cargo-partner’s recent digital transformation efforts. Liandre Vasco, Team Leader IT Sales Applications, has been instrumental in maximizing customer engagement through Salesforce integration. “Salesforce has allowed us to create a 360-degree view of our customer relationships,” Liandre Vasco explained. “This enables us to proactively address customer needs, enhance communication, and ensure that we deliver personalized, responsive service – critical elements in today’s competitive market.”

Enhancing Financial Operations for Seamless Business

On the financial side, Anna Nowak, Team Leader of Finance Applications, has led efforts to optimize financial processes through digital tools. “We’ve leveraged advanced digital invoicing solutions to streamline billing and payment processes, which have directly benefited our customers by improving accuracy, transparency, and speed,” Anna Nowak said. “These innovations not only support our internal efficiency but also enable us to provide faster and more accurate billing for our customers, in many cases integrated forward with the customers’ ERP.”

Fostering Passion and Confidence

At cargo-partner, fostering gender balance and empowering women to excel in IT are priorities embedded in the company’s organizational culture. Yet, challenges persist, not only within the industry but also within the mindset of potential candidates.

“Our biggest hurdle is that very few women apply for IT positions, and when they do, they often aim lower than their experience warrants,” Nadezhda Hauer explained. “Women need to stop waiting, stop doubting, and start stepping up. Passion is the key. If you love the work, you belong here. Women often try to check every box in job descriptions before applying. But that’s not the point – growth comes from challenging yourself. I’ve seen women diminish their knowledge in interviews or undervalue themselves during salary negotiations. This needs to change. As leaders at cargo-partner, we recognize and address these gaps.”

The IT field offers boundless opportunities, flexibility, and pathways for growth. At cargo-partner, teams across regions already achieve gender parity or even majority-female representation in areas like data processing. “Historically, these roles were undervalued. Today, they’re pivotal, and women must realize they belong in every corner of the IT landscape,” Hauer emphasized. By fostering a diverse workforce, cargo-partner is not only enriching its work culture but also ensuring that the company remains innovative and adaptable to the ever-changing needs of its customers.

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Clark Material Handling adds Dealer in Romania

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Clark Europe is pleased to announce the partnership with Mecano Valmar, the new authorized dealer for Clark industrial trucks in Romania. The cooperation between Clark and Mecano Valmar marks an important milestone in Clark’s expansion efforts in Eastern Europe and will strengthen the presence of the Clark brand in Romania.

Mecano Valmar was founded in 2003 by Marinela and Marian Mindru in Cornetu-Buda in Ilfov County. The company focused on servicing and reconditioning used forklift trucks. When their son Valentin joined the company in 2016, he expanded the business to include the sale and servicing of new vehicles imported from China. The office building, a workshop and the spare parts warehouse are located on an area of 3500 m2 on 1500 m2. A total of 17 employees work at the Cornetu-Buda site – 9 of them in service alone.

The family-owned company Mecano Valmar has extensive experience in material handling and logistics and will offer the entire Clark Europe product range in Romania in the future. In addition to the sale of all forklift truck classes and warehouse trucks, this also includes the supply of Clark spare parts and accessories, a comprehensive range of services including rental and financing as well as comprehensive service for new and used Clark industrial trucks.

Dealer in Romania

“The partnership with Clark Europe is a great opportunity for us to expand our product offering with high-quality industrial trucks, so that we can offer our customers in Romania first-class products and services in the field of material handling. We look forward to growing together with Clark,” explains Valentin Mindru, Managing Director at Mecano Valmar.

“We warmly welcome Mecano Valmar to the Clark family,” says Rolf Eiten, President & CEO at Clark Europe. “With their expertise and commitment to quality, we are confident that the Clark brand in Romania will be represented in the best possible way by Mecano Valmar in the future and that our customers there will receive excellent service. We wish our new partner every success in this endeavour and will provide the best possible support.”

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Automation in Last-Mile Delivery to Redefine Customer Experience

Posted on by David Priestman

Customer demand has reached a breaking point with the boost in e-commerce, with options like next-day or same-day delivery becoming commonplace, writes Jon White, Chief Commercial Officer EMEA, at InXpress. To meet these demands and have packages delivered in record time, automation is imperative to revolutionise last-mile delivery.

Last-mile delivery is the most critical step in the process when a parcel has moved from a transportation hub toward its final destination. Logistics and supply chains are undergoing a radical transformation with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced robotics, working towards reaching customer demands. To meet these growing expectations, logistic providers must optimise aspects of their supply chain and utilise automation at every step. Gartner reports that measuring customer satisfaction will be the most valuable metric for strategic decisions, according to 69% of respondents to its ‘Gartner Future of Supply Chain’ Survey.

Click to doorstep: automation delivered

AI technology and automation in last-mile delivery helps to meet customer needs. Many technologies are being developed and becoming readily available to help speed up the process, reduce costs and manual labour, and keep the process more sustainable. Innovative technologies can help to provide faster and more efficient services in last-mile delivery. AI helps to transform the process while remaining responsive to consumer needs.

Jon White, InXpress

Below are some popular automation solutions and methods that are being used regularly and achieving success across last-mile delivery:

Self-driving robots

Humans can’t do it all. To meet the growing demand for delivery, logistics companies have recruited delivery robots. These autonomous robots have emerged in recent years, giving a glimpse into the future of last-mile delivery and how far it could go. Delivery robots are designed to transport goods over short distances and to reach the recipient in record time once the order has been placed. Each robot is equipped with the right technology so it can be suited to its environment and the task it’s been assigned to. It includes advancements like tracking so that every step can be watched in case of any complications reaching its destination including sensors, cameras, and artificial intelligence capabilities. These self-driving robots aren’t designed to replace humans completely but rather, they distribute the load and cover short distances so logistic providers can focus on delivering other heavier and larger packages.

Automated delivery management platforms

Automated platforms that manage last-mile deliveries take advantage of AI and machine learning to orchestrate and successfully carry out delivery planning. Many logistic providers have incorporated management applications and software into their strategy so they can provide end-to-end automation of the delivery process. It helps to cater to the influx of deliveries, storing the data and ironing out all the logistics so every delivery is in order and on track at the right time. The management platforms can automate tedious tasks such as printing shipping labels, dispatching packages, and delivering them reliably. Streamlining the processes improves delivery times with faster options becoming available and increasing customer satisfaction.

AI-powered real-time tracking

Customers are eager to understand where their packages are once their order has been placed. With real-time tracking, powered by AI and machine learning, it is possible now. Real-time tracking provides predictive analytics, allowing companies to anticipate potential disruptions and streamline operations. Real-time visibility also allows logistic managers to make data-driven decisions, improving efficiency and visibility for customers on the other end. It also pleases the customers as they can watch every step of their delivery, from the warehouse to their front door. The options for automation in last-mile delivery are endless but there is still a lot of work to be done. Logistics providers work relentlessly to discover the latest technology that can tackle this and meet demand.

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Tosca Partners with Avery Dennison to Reduce Emissions

Posted on by David Priestman

Tosca has partnered with Avery Dennison, a global materials science company, to support its transition to reusable plastic pallets and reduce CO2 emissions across its European supply chain. By adopting Tosca’s innovative pooling model, the collaboration has delivered significant operational efficiencies while cutting nearly 500 tons of CO2 in just one year. This partnership highlights Tosca’s sustainable packaging solutions which drive supply chain efficiency while reducing environmental impact.

The Challenge: Scalable, Sustainable Solutions

Tosca were pleased to support Avery Dennison in their pursuit of a scalable, efficient solution to meet the growing demand for plastic pallets, while aligning with their strong commitment to sustainability. This includes their goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Avery Dennison recognised the need to optimise operations due to increasing demand for wooden pallets, especially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. By partnering with Tosca, a leader in sustainable packaging and supply chain solutions, they found the solution.

Reusable Plastic Pallets

Tosca has provided the solution to Avery Dennison’s challenge with its durable, reusable L1 plastic pallets, designed to enhance efficiency, reduce waste, and minimise environmental impact. Initially, Avery Dennison aimed to replace their own pallets with a more efficient solution to meet growing demand. This quickly expanded to switching much of their supply chain to Tosca’s plastic pallets.

A key challenge has been convincing Avery Dennison’s customers to accept goods on plastic pallets, as more participation would optimise logistics and enhance sustainability. Both sales teams worked together to demonstrate the operational and environmental benefits of this choice. The official partnership began in 2022, and Tosca’s plastic pallets are now used in 13 Avery Dennison factories and distribution centres, shipping to over 400 customer locations across Europe.

Operational Benefits and Sustainability Gains

The partnership between Tosca and Avery Dennison enhanced efficiency and scalability by supporting the growing demand for plastic pallets, addressing availability issues and providing a more cost effective, reliable alternative to wooden pallets post Covid-19. In addition, Tosca’s reusable plastic pallets offer cleaner, more hygienic solutions for their warehouses. These improvements align with the company’s goal of enhancing operational efficiency while reducing its carbon footprint.

In 2023, 40% of Avery Dennison’s Euro-sized pallets had been converted to plastic, and the company already achieved nearly 500 tonnes of CO2 emissions saved annually — exceeding initial estimates.

Due to the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), Avery Dennison is rethinking their transport and sales packaging, which increasingly focuses on reuse and circularity. “Our focus is on the recyclability and circularity of our packaging. By partnering with Tosca, we are moving in the right direction,” said Violeta Gómez Valdivieso, Central Packaging Leader at Avery Dennison. “For example, the PPWR requires that at least 40% of transport or sales packaging be reusable by 2030, and Tosca’s plastic pallets meet these requirements.”

A Strong Sustainability Partnership

Looking ahead, Avery Dennison plans to continue to transition to plastic pallets, with Tosca’s pooling system playing a critical role in achieving both greater efficiency and sustainability in their supply chain. The possibility to use the already integrated RFID tags on Tosca’s plastic pallets for tracking opens improved traceability capabilities and streamlined order management, bringing even greater potential operational benefits in the future.

“At Tosca, we work side by side with our customers in long-term partnerships, and our successful collaboration with Avery Dennison is the perfect example of this. Both companies strongly believe in the concept of continuing the loop,” said Felix Van Ouytsel, Sales Director UK/Ireland at Tosca. The partnership between Tosca and Avery Dennison shows how collaboration can drive significant sustainability advancements, setting a benchmark for the industry.

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Navigating the Christmas Waste Conundrum with AI

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Artificial intelligence is transforming how retailers prepare for Christmas, turning data into actionable insights for a sustainable celebration, writes Svante Gothe (pictured below) Head of Sustainability at Relex Solutions.

As retailers dive into the bustling Christmas season, a pressing challenge looms – spoilage and waste, particularly for fresh and short shelf-life products like Brussels sprouts. While it may be challenging to address spoilage and waste, there is a critical opportunity for retailers to apply Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to reduce waste and align with the increasing consumer demand for sustainability.

Retailers, grappling with inflation and economic uncertainty, are finding it increasingly difficult to accurately plan for the seasonal demand. The complexity is exacerbated during occasions like Christmas, where seasonal items such as sprouts have a finite shelf life and an even shorter consumer interest span.

According to the UK Environmental Agency, the UK generates 30% more waste around Christmas time, and this includes waste from Christmas food shopping and dinners. Infact, Business Waste estimates that 17 million Brussel sprouts go to waste each Christmas. However, there may be a shift as consumer consciousness rises — highlighting the potential for AI to help retailers predict the tipping point between consumer wastage and consumer consciousness.

Predictive power in supply chains

Beyond consumer habits, it is the retailers who are under pressure to curtail this waste at its origin — the supply chain. The integration of real-time analytics into the demand forecasting process can make businesses more agile in reacting to unexpected changes, making the system robust against sudden shifts in market dynamics.

The key to achieving this lies in harnessing the predictive prowess of AI and ML. By implementing AI-driven demand forecasting, retailers can capture the nuances of hundreds of demand drivers, translating complex consumer data into actionable insights. This means businesses have visibility into future demand, allowing for improved planning processes across merchandising, supply chain, and operations, ultimately leading to reduced waste.

The challenge, however, is not just in forecasting demand but also in ensuring that this information propels a collaborative effort across the entire supply chain. The decisions on how much to produce for items like Brussels sprouts happen months before Christmas, and so the coordination between retailers and producers is therefore vital. By sharing forecasts and planned orders well in advance, the entire supply network can adjust accordingly, reducing the risk of overproduction and subsequent waste.

Inventory planning

Another critical application of AI in this endeavour is inventory planning. By automating replenishment and allocation tasks in all nodes of the supply chain, AI ensures that the flow of goods is synchronised with real-time demand, reducing the chances of overstocking and the need for deep markdowns that often fail to clear excess inventory. Markdown and clearance optimisation also play a pivotal role in this sustainable orchestration. AI systems can dynamically adjust prices throughout the season, ensuring that products reach consumers before they lose their relevance, thus avoiding the post-Christmas slump that turns potential sales into waste.

Cutting waste for all retailers

The strength of an AI system in retail lies in its ability to be tailored to the specific needs of different business models and scales of operation, ensuring that every retailer, regardless of size, can reduce waste and improve sustainability. With Christmas spending expected to reach £88.3bn this year, and more people participating in the festivities, the opportunity to optimise the supply chain with AI is more significant than ever.

Simply put, the use of AI in retail planning is a strategic imperative in the fight against waste. As we move through the holiday season, the onus is on retailers to adopt these advanced tools and practices to optimise their supply chains and develop a more sustainable retail strategy. As retailers embrace this technology, we edge closer to a future where the holiday waste issue becomes a thing of the past, replaced by smart and data-driven approaches that balance consumer demand with environmental responsibility.

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Software Solution to Automate Intralogistics Operations

Posted on by David Priestman

The ‘MATIC:move’ software solution from Linde Material Handling (MH) enables companies to automate their intralogistics operations in a faster and more cost-effective manner by significantly simplifying the implementation and control of AGVs. The software is now also being used in the ‘Linde L-MATIC core’, a fully automated pallet stacker scheduled to be launched in February 2025. The truck also incorporates an integrated lithium-ion battery and, due to its compact design, is well suited for operation in confined spaces within warehouses and production environments.

“There is considerable interest in automation solutions. Many decision-makers in companies are facing a number of challenges, including shorter delivery times in e-commerce, mounting pressure on prices due to high energy costs, increasingly stringent sustainability and safety standards, and, not least, a shortage of skilled personnel. At the same time, there are material flow processes almost everywhere that are very well suited for automation,” states Pascal Kuster, Sales Trainer Automated Guided Vehicles at Linde MH. “On the other hand, high costs and personnel requirements cause hesitation and reluctance,” he elaborates. “Linde MH addresses this dilemma with the ‘MATIC:move’ software, which enables small and medium-sized businesses to enhance efficiency in goods handling with automated industrial trucks.”

Simple implementation and planning

The primary advantage of the ‘MATIC:move’ software is that it enables the straightforward planning and accelerated implementation of automated material flow processes. “This goes as far as allowing a simple route transport between two points to be set up in a single day,” says Kuster. Maintenance or service work can be performed by trained service technicians, eliminating the need for dedicated robotics specialists. The truck is navigated through the area by means of reflectors that are placed at key points in the infrastructure, such as corners, pick-up points and storage locations, as well as charging and service points. To populate the software with data, the automated industrial truck traverses the route and generates a digital map of the warehouse environment. Subsequently, the pick-up and drop-off points for the truck and the routes can then be planned on the computer screen using drag and drop.

The software is designed for smaller fleets of up to five industrial trucks of the same type that use standardized load carriers such as Euro pallets or pallet cages. A particular focus was placed on horizontal transport in warehousing, production, receiving and shipping areas. Additionally, the software can also be utilized to implement mixed traffic involving manually operated industrial trucks and pedestrians. The solution offers a significantly lower initial investment compared to other systems. “In many cases, the return on investment period is approximately two years,” says Jan-Niklas Freund, Manager Automation Sales Steering at Linde MH.

New fully automated pallet stacker

The ‘MATIC:move’ software is already being used in the Linde L-MATIC HD automated pallet stacker. The automated and manually operated truck has a load capacity of 1.6 tons and a lift height of 3.8 meters and is suitable for use in wide-aisle warehouses or for the supply of narrow-aisle applications. The next truck to be equipped with the new software solution – the fully automated ‘Linde L-MATIC core’ – will be launched on the market in the near future. This compact, game-changing model with a load capacity of 1.2 tons and a lift height of 1.78 meters features an integrated lithium-ion battery and the elimination of the tiller. The vehicle is capable of navigating aisles with a width of less than 2.5 meters.

To ensure operator safety, the ‘Linde L-MATIC core’ is furnished with a 360° safety zone as standard, along with an emergency switch that can be used to halt the truck from multiple sides with a single button press. Optional safety features, such as the Linde BlueSpot or the Linde Red Warning Lines, can be added to the truck as required. The battery can be charged manually or automatically via an induction charging system.

Gradual expansion

Should the project involve a higher degree of complexity or plans for an automation expansion, customers can seamlessly connect to MATIC:move. The comprehensive range of industrial trucks and the ‘MATIC:move+’ software, which can be used to automate fleets of up to 150 vehicles, are available to meet such needs. The advanced software is compatible with a range of business systems, including warehouse management, warehouse control and enterprise resource planning systems, via established interfaces. Its capabilities range from visualizing the current status of the vehicles, including their availability and utilization, to battery management.

“The software’s scalability allows us to provide the optimal solution to each customer – whether they are implementing a brownfield application in an existing facility that has grown over time or a new greenfield development,” adds Kuster. Moreover, companies can begin with a minimal investment and gradually expand their automation capabilities.

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Tariffs and Trade Barriers as Top Concern of Supply Chain Leaders

Posted on by David Priestman

Descartes Systems Group, a global leader in uniting logistics-intensive businesses in commerce, released findings from its 2024 Supply Chain Intelligence Report: Escalating Challenges for Global Supply Chain Leaders survey, which examined the most significant global trade challenges facing logistics and supply chain leaders today. The study showed that 48% of respondents identified rising tariffs and trade barriers as their top concern, closely followed by supply chain disruptions at 45% and geopolitical instability at 41%. Moreover, tariffs and trade barriers ranked as the priority issue regardless of company size, as respondents at companies with less than 250 employees, 251-500, 501-1,000, 1,001-50,000 and 50,000+ employees all cited it as the most significant issue they are currently facing.

These challenges and others (see Figure 1) highlight the need among organizations involved in international trade to sharpen their supply chain analytics practices to help build more resilient supply chain networks, including having robust, technology-enabled insights to keep pace with frequent and complex tariff updates, quickly find new markets, secure better sources of supply and acquire timely and high quality competitive intelligence.

Figure 1: Respondents’ top challenges in international trade operations

 

Results also showed that the impact of top global trade challenges on organizations can potentially vary by factors other than company size, including business growth, country and industry. For example, tariffs and trade barriers were more concerning for companies expecting greater than 15% growth (51%) than for those companies with shrinking/limited to no growth (43%).
“Evolving tariffs and trade policies are one of a number of complex issues requiring organizations to build more resilience into their supply chains through compliance, technology and strategic planning,” said Jackson Wood (pictured), Director, Industry Strategy at Descartes. “With the potential for the incoming U.S. administration to impose new and additional tariffs on a wide variety of goods and countries of origin, U.S. importers may need to significantly re-engineer their sourcing strategies to mitigate potentially higher costs.”

Non tariff trade barriers

Descartes and SAPIO Research surveyed 978 supply chain intelligence leaders in key trading nations across Europe, North and South America, and Asia-Pacific. The goal was to understand the nature of the global trade challenges they were facing and to identify if concerns varied by factors such as country, industry, company size and business growth. Respondents are members of company leadership teams, from management level to Chief Executive Officer or Owner. To learn more, read the 2024 Supply Chain Intelligence Report: Escalating Challenges for Global Supply Chain Leaders report.

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Foundation Inaugurates France’s Largest Food Aid Warehouse

Posted on by David Priestman

The Solidarity Warehouse of the CMA CGM Foundation was inaugurated on Friday, December 6, in Marseille, in the presence of Tanya Saadé Zeenny, President of the CMA CGM Foundation; Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO of the CMA CGM Group; Renaud Muselier, President of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Region; and Benoît Payan, Mayor of Marseille.

Also in attendance were Mrs. Brigitte Macron and Soprano, highlighting their close ties and joint actions with the CMA CGM Foundation.

Tanya Saadé Zeenny, President of the CMA CGM Foundation, said: “The CMA CGM Foundation has been working with French food aid organizations for several years. These organizations are currently facing an increase in demand and a lack of resources, particularly for the storage, transport and distribution of food. We decided to go further and mobilize the resources and strength of the CMA CGM Foundation to create the largest multi-association warehouse in France, located in the heart of Marseille. It took two years of work and collaboration with the associations to start from scratch, to understand the scale of the needs and to act effectively. The Solidarity Warehouse will optimize storage space, improve working conditions for volunteers, and make the distribution of food aid more efficient. This is a true social innovation and a significant investment that makes this facility unique in its technology, its relevance and, most importantly, its usefulness”.

A modern logistics platform dedicated to food aid organizations

The Solidarity Warehouse spans 5,000 m² of storage space, located in the heart of Marseille at the Arenc logistics hub, close to major transport routes. Serving as a logistics hub within the city, it stocks 3,200 tons of food that are distributed by partner organizations in Marseille and across the Bouches-du-Rhône region.

Equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, the warehouse will boost the operational capacity of partner organizations, enhance product safety, and improve working conditions for volunteers. By pooling logistics resources, the initiative will increase efficiency and reduce costs for associations. Additionally, the 500 m² of office space within the warehouse will host the local headquarters of Restos du Cœur and the French Red Cross.

With an 8% increase in 2023, the number of food aid beneficiaries has grown significantly in recent years, presenting logistical challenges for associations.

The CMA CGM Foundation leveraged the Group’s logistics expertise to optimize storage conditions, enhance volunteer working conditions, and streamline food aid distribution. The warehouse adheres to the highest technical standards in logistics, including refrigerated areas that enable associations to offer more fresh products, essential for balanced nutrition. Specifically, the 360 m² of cold storage chambers can accommodate 300 pallets of fresh and frozen products.

A collective project designed for associations

The Solidarity Warehouse is a shared space for Restos du Cœur, the French Red Cross, Secours Populaire, ANDES, and Secours Catholique. While maintaining their unique missions, these organizations can pool their efforts to deliver more effective aid, particularly in the realm of food assistance.

The Foundation will cover the full cost of equipping the warehouse and 50% of its annual operating costs. The partner organizations contribute 20%, based on the space they occupy, while the remaining 30% is funded by the State (via the Prefecture of Bouches-du-Rhône), the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Region, and the City of Marseille, through subsidies provided to the organizations.

To ensure smooth operations, the site will be managed by a logistics expert recruited by the CMA CGM Foundation.

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Warehouse Automation Depends on the Right Racking

Posted on by David Priestman

Edward Hutchison, Managing Director of BITO Storage Systems UK, explains why successful automated warehouse solutions require careful consideration when choosing the racking.

The UK’s world leading e-commerce retail sector swells demand and raises expectations for rapid delivery but the sector is also in the midst of dealing with rising labour costs combined with a shallower pool of available skills for its warehouses. This is driving growing interest in automation among many more managers responsible for fitting out these facilities, particularly as the technology continues to become more flexible, bringing it further within reach of many more companies. In fact the UK will, by 2025, be Europe’s largest warehouse automation market at over £3bn, according to market research company Interact Analysis. That will be £0.71bn larger than in Germany, which has traditionally been far more automation friendly when it comes to warehouses. Another market researcher, IMARC Group, which put the UK warehouse automation market at USD 2 Billion in 2023, expects it to reach £4.6 Billion by 2032. That’s a growth rate of over 10% during 2024-2032.

Automation’s modularity, sophisticated control systems, and performance developments can create a more practical and flexible solution for a greater variety of applications – from fulfilling omnichannel retail to supplying line-side manufacturing. Stacker crane based automated storage and retrieval systems, for example, will provide high density storage on a given footprint within a warehouse to offer an efficient and safe goods to picker solution.

However, smooth operation of this software-driven warehouse technology will rely on the racking. Given it plays such a vital role in maintaining the flow for highly accurate and rapid order picking within a warehouse, racking should be carefully considered because the right design will help an automated system to realise its performance benefits. Reliable racking will also minimise maintenance and the subsequent costly downtime for an automated system, helping to improve its productivity and hasten the return on the investment.

Assessing the quality of racking starts with the basic components: the uprights and beams. Fine tolerances in the racking’s manufacture and installation are needed for the stacker crane to run smoothly, with trouble-free operation and maximum safety. Bolted frame components will allow a fast exchange of damaged components. Uprights need to be available in a range of widths and different material thicknesses to allow an ideal upright geometry for frame heights of over 20 metres and bay loads as heavy as 40 tonnes.

Suppliers using state-of-the-art machinery to manufacture racking components will produce all the elements at the exact required size and of a consistent quality and tolerance. This ensures long-term integrity of the racking system.

Ed Hutchison

The quality of the materials used in the racking will determine how an installation will stand up to the rigours of everyday operations. For example, galvanising and epoxy coating ensures high corrosion resistance and guarantees a long service life for all components. Safety is high on any list of considerations and starts with the integrity of the installed system, which is enhanced by stable floor anchoring, while pallet support bars add additional strength.

A supplier that can provide the bins and containers in addition to racking and shelving will offer the advantage of compatibility between these two elements. This will avoid numerous issues that can disrupt smooth material flow, such as bins not rolling properly down carton live flow lanes. It also makes it easier to achieve the maximum density of stock because multiple containers designed to fit precisely with a bay racking or shelving without leaving unnecessary gaps can generate considerable space savings throughout a warehouse storage area.

They will be able to supply specially designed bins and trays that have been adapted to automated racking and stacker crane conditions and meet the requirements of the system. For example, BITO XL series stacker containers, KLT small parts containers, and trays made from steel sheet or polypropylene, all meet the requirements of automated bin storage and are suited for any application.

Racking projects for automation will draw on a supplier’s experience and its ability to work with systems integrators and automation companies in addition to suppliers of other equipment and solutions, such as mezzanine floor and forklift truck companies. Reference site visits are a great way to assess the standard of a product in a working scenario. It is also useful to have a close look at the equipment in a showroom environment wherever possible.

Ultimately, when it comes to storage and order picking solutions, companies are seeking high quality – not just of the physical products, but also of the installation team and service support. As a customer about to make a large investment in automation, you really will need to take a careful look at racking.

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